| Leader | Mentor | Understudy | Tail Ender | |
| Standards | Alan H | Bill S | Nicky | Shirley |
| Alternates | Leonie | Liz | Norma | Eric |
Dist: approx. 15.5km Duration: 4.45hrs Elevation: max alt 748m min alt 289m
The forecast of rain earlier in the week did not sound promising for Wednesday but later this changed to fog, cloud and maybe some drizzle. After several mornings with thick fog Wednesday was another pretty gloomy start but with the promise of it clearing, we were hopeful of at least some views from Mt Alexander.
Bus driver Viktor with 47 on board plus 2 visitors, Chris H & Jae Hun Park soon had us at the pickup spot at Woodend to collect three more trampers. By this time the sky was noticeably brighter & when we reached the comfort stop at Amberley where we were greeted by the Riddlers & Whitmores who had travelled with them by car, the sun was shining brightly.
President Jan reminded us of the late cancellation fee of $10 to be paid to Norma and to book and pay for the Birthday lunch, deadline 28th June, as currently only 30 bookings received. Kiwan handed around a leaflet advertising a concert by the Garden City Orchestra in which he plays the trombone for the 20thJune at Cashmere High School. Good luck Kiwan for an enjoyable successful performance as I know how much practice has to happen in readiness for a concert. After travelling through Scargill Viktor turned right in to Foxdown Rd and soon had the bus parked at the end of the road outside the museum.
Andy Fox, proud 5th generation owner of Foxdown hill country farm established in 1877, along with farm dog Hash had us all gathered together to provide a warm welcome and inform us of the rules for the day. He is so passionate about allowing his unique farm to be enjoyed by others & always thanks us for eating his meat & using his wool. As roading contractors with huge trucks were working moving shingle we were to be watchful on blind corners and move from the road to allow them easy access.
High on a hill in the middle of the farm is the newly built Foxdown Hut which is 5-star luxury accommodation with many wonderful rustic touches, outdoor tub & log burner. The first guests were welcomed in October 2020 & the glowing reviews are a great endorsement to what the family have created. Currently they had guests in residence so we were asked to respect their privacy. I don’t think anyone had the urge to climb an extra hill.
At 10.20am Standards set off (30) followed closely by the Alternates (21) in a very steep ascent for the start of the day up to the water tank, instead of the more gradual farm road, as this was being used by the contractors. That had the majority puffing & already beginning to strip off. As some had planned for the worst scenario & worn 5 layers that left them plenty of scope for strip poker as the day progressed. At 10.55am we were ready for morning tea after the uphill start with an ideal grassy bank to enjoy the sunshine & views. When a large truck came up the road a couple on the lower bank moved to higher ground to avoid any chance of amputation.
We continued up the well-formed farm tracks which after the steep start had a more gradual incline on our way to the trig on Mt Alexander. As is often the way when we spotted the trig it appeared relatively close but as we rounded another corner the distance seemed far greater.
The bright sunshine had gone behind the clouds & the return of the fog created an eerie atmosphere as we walked towards the summit. Looking to the left we spotted a rainbow with halo shaped rings of colour with our own shadow in the middle. This is called a “spectre de brocken” (thank you Norma for knowing the terminology) It is some times called a “mountain spectre” which appears on a misty mountainside or a cloud bank. The magnified shadow of the observer is cast upon clouds opposite the sun’s direction & water droplets retract & back scatter the light. Quite exciting to witness & made me feel quite spiritual.
Lunch was at 1230pm beneath the trig in wonderful sunshine as most of the cloud had cleared with good views in most directions apart from the east where Pegasus Bay wasn’t visible. Mt Grey is to the south, north the Scargill Valley & Hurunui River & looking to the west over the Amuri Basin the mountains looked spectacular in the background rising above a solid bank of cloud. It wasn’t a surprise to have Viktor join us for lunch as we know his enthusiasm now to make the most of his day out.
Just as the standards were leaving the alternates arrived so they had made good time in reaching the summit. The cloud was beginning to return but pleased to hear later they did enjoy some sunny patches.
The standards commenced downhill on an eastern track providing a loop back to the bus. The downhill didn’t last for too long as was interspersed with several steep uphill sections which meant we continued to play the game of strip poker. The views were quite haunting as the terrain drifted in & out of the cloud. We saw one large flock of sheep (Andy has approx. 4700 ewes) all very well-trained walking in single file up one of the steep farm tracks. We had no tricky encounters with any cattle.
We were back at the bus at 3pm & the alternates arrived at 3.15pm after retracing their steps on the return journey.
This gave us time to look at the incredible array of artefacts in the museum. Different types of barbed wire to radios, cameras, cooking utensils, gardening tools, farm implements, washing machines, bottles, petrol pumps, toys, board games, typewriters…………too many to name, better stop. If we ever go into lockdown again I’d be happy to spend a few days in there playing with the little tin soldiers, miniature farmyard animals with the cutest chickens & swans or the train sets. If the lockdown lasted a month, I could get the dusting done but must admit the dust adds to the appeal. Others looked at the many classic cars he owns.
As it was 3.30pm before we left Foxdown we headed straight back to ChCh after a wonderful day on the farm on dry tracks with just a few patches of mud on a perfect Winter day. (txt by Kate)
