This Labour Weekend was a great way to start off the first tramp of the season. Rachel and I decided to go to the Wairarapa and do the Mt Holdsworth-Jumbo track in the Tararuas. We left Wellington on Friday night and set up camp around 9pm. The next morning we started our walk "sort of" early since we wanted to make sure we would get a bunk at Powell Hut. It gets really busy since it's a popular track. This was Rachel's first tramp as well so we just wanted to make sure she would have the best experience. Having to sleep under the tables or benches in a crowded hut will put off anybody if it's their first time.
When we got to the hut, we were basically the first to arrive so we had the chance to pick the best bunks in the place. The hut accommodates 30 people supposedly but I think the capacity is much smaller. At least it would seem that way when you get about 45 people all trying to spend the night there. It was packed!!
One of the good things about staying in a crowded hut, is that people start really early in order to get ready since the facilities have to be shared. Even though the hut is equipped with several cookers, you still need to wait your turn if you get up too late. So you get up at the crack of dawn and that's when you're able to see some spectacular sunrises (weather dependent of course).
After having a quick look in the Intentions Book, we saw that we weren't the only ones that were heading toward Jumbo Hut that day. There were at least 15 people heading in the same direction so once again we had to be quick in order to secure some bunks for the next night. Jumbo Hut has capacity for 20 people so we already knew that it was going to be crowded.
As we walked along the ridge, the wind started to pick up and the clouds started to roll in. Fortunately we were equipped for this kind of situation so we didn't have to worry about it, it just made the walk more interesting.
We finally arrived to Jumbo Hut after 3 hours of leaving Powel Hut, we had a nice long rest in the sun since the wind and cloud didn't descend past the peak of Mt Jumbo. It was really nice to have the whole hut to ourselves as well and be able to pick our bunks once again. Around midday, the rest of the trampers from Powel Hut made their appearance and that made us change our mind of staying there for the night.
We decided to press on and make our way back all the wat to the car park and set up the campsite. The day was so nice we just had to enjoy it to the fullest. Going back to Welly would've been a crime. The sun was up and there was just a small breeze to keep you cool. Rachel was able to score some cold beers from some fellow campers hahahha. We also found out that they organize a race each year which actually follows the route we did. The shortest time ever to do the 23km race is 2 hours and 16 minutes! Insane.
