With Jo back from Brevet duty a little tender in certain parts the plan was for a wee trip around the South Coast this weekend - on feet rather than bikes. Other family and sports commitments meant that the team had to be out by 7pm on Saturday (Hurricanes game 7:30pm) and fit and well for Sunday (Phoenix game) so the plan was to set out from Eastbourne, head around the South Coast of wellington to Pencarrow, then Orongorongo, a sleep over at Turakarie Head and then back to Eastbourne via the Mukamuka Valley, Soyjt Saddle, Whakanui, Wainuiomata, Rata Ride, My Lowry and Days Bay. In true XPD the plan was for a feed of pie and creamed bun at the Wainuiomata Bakery so we knew we had to be out before the 4pm close time there.
After a shocking Thursday when Glen and Mark biked the ScreamingO at night (that's another blog) Friday arrived with absolutely fabulous weather - light southerly turning to northerly but warm all the way through with no rain. Nutrition being very important at this stage of the buildup the team stopped off at the Moera Fish and Chips shop for a order and then planned out the course in detail at the beach at Days Bay, finally setting off at 8pm.
At this stage, close to the start of the XPD event, the story is settling into a team routine and bedding in the gear that we will be using. Thanks to support from Icebreaker and Bridgedale the team is well decked out in gear that not only will last the distance but will also not smell - so the spooning order for the night's sleepover was a minimal debate. Team tactics was the main form of discussion for the 22km trek to the camping point as what to wear for the flight over and what to eat during the race. Jo entertained the team with a few lines from 'By the River of Babylon' so quietly and secretly earphones were added to the team order list.
In arriving at the designated sleep spot we were a bit concerned to find a lack of suitable trees to pitch the fly and a few too many stones to offer a flat area for a decenty night's kip. A bit of wandering found us a good spot to not only pitch Jo's fly but also the regulation XPD tent that Shane had bought to test out (after owning it for 6 months and not having set it up once). With the fly and tent erected people all took one look at the regulation XPD tent and decided that while close the team was not that close yet and we split ourselves between the tent and the fly - Shane recovering from a chest infection had the tent while the others had the fly. Surprisingly comfortable, we settled in at 1:30am for a wakeup call at 6am to continue.
Saturday's plan was for a quick start at sunrise, along the coast to the Mukamuka Valley and then home - more or less in a direct line. With a lack of drinkable water on the coast we had a brekky stop at the Mukamuka Valley (extremely well matrked out now by DoC by the way (well done guys) which will make it much much easier for the 2010 Mukamuka Munter. The Mukamuka Munter was the normal scrabble - recent rains have hammered the top section just below the South Saddle so that was a bit of a struggle with full packs but otherwise an easy trip up the valley. Coming down the Mt Matthews track was a simple exercise (nice to see a few people coming up the other way taking advantage of the nice weather) as was the trip up the Whakanui - a much drier trip than the last time we did it. Glen, being a local boy, put us onto a few shortcuts to the Bakery where we obtained cold coke, hot pies and creamy buns. The final push was Mt Lowry (373m) via the Ridge Track with it's amazing views and then back to the van via the Eastbourne Dairy and another coke to see us through.
Total distance 57km
Who: Jo, Glen, Mark, Shane.
Total time on feet 8pm start, 7pm finish less 5 hours rest - 18 hours
Feet condition for the team - all good. No reported blisters or injuries
Lessons learned - May need to look at the fly option rather than the tent. Icebreaker and Bridgedale gear is REALLY worth the investment. Knowing the local store hours is a motivation factor. More gurney goo on the feet and as soon as there is a niggle with feet deal with it.
