| Leader | Mentor | Understudy | Tail Ender | |
| Standards | Wendy | Dave R | Glenys | Lynne R |
| Alternates | Bill W | Pauline W | Ali | Moira |
Distance 12.3km; elevation gain 298m; walking time 3.5hr
Following early rising in the dark and cellphone checks for cancellation on a cold wet morning it was an 8am start from Bishopdale. After bus driver Alan had picked up the Yaldhurst trampers we were 34 strong. Stepping up for President Bev, away due to Covid, VP Judy was on the microphone and welcomed visitor David F. NB The last report for this tramp is dated 18 March 2020 when we were daily counting new Covid cases, one week after the WHO declared an official pandemic and one day before the government closed the country’s borders for the first time ever to all but New Zealand citizens and permanent residents.
There were lots of roadworks on the way which made for circuitous travelling and delayed the start of our walk to 10.50am. One comment made was that if we’d been in a fleet of cars rather than on the bus some of us would never have got there, would have gone for coffee and cake and returned to Christchurch.
While the length of the track is orange poled, the poles weren’t always easy to spot with patches of the track overgrown. Thistles (past flowering), matagouri and fences topped with barbed wire all posed threats to skin and shorts. We much appreciated Dave R’s leather gloved gallantry holding down barbed wire while we clambered over. There was a short climb to the upper river terraces before our morning tea stop. Sitting in the sunshine under a blue sky warm congratulations were extended to the weather team on their call to commit to the tramp.
We continued to follow the gorge until the decision was made to stop for lunch before Gunsight Pass – the Standards had run out of time due to our late arrival and the time the return bus trip would take. The two groups lunched within sight of one another, with spectacular views of the gorge and milky river below. After lunch it was back mostly the same way. Some of the footing was uneven and awkward. Fortunately any cows were a long way off so on occasion we again crossed over the fence to easier ground.
The Standards did have time on returning to the bus at 2.35pm to look at the start of the 67 km Rangitata Diversion Race. Built between 1937 and 1944 it was the first such construction in the country. It is a combined hydro power generation and irrigation scheme diverting water from the river to irrigate over 100,000 hectares of farmland in mid-Canterbury. In 2022 a fish screening facility was added to prevent fish being swept out of the river and into the Race. The screen captures more than 30 cubic metres per second of flow from the river and safely returns fish to the river via a 190 metre bypass channel. It is designed to protect salmon and trout and a variety of native fish species
All aboard the bus and we were stopped by a truck parked across the road – doing some sort of Diversion business? After about 20 minutes the road was freed up and we were on our way home. We arrived in Christchurch to a clear cool evening feeling blessed to have experienced the autumn sun’s warmth and fresh air beside the Rangitata Gorge.
Text by Jen C
