A wrap of the biggest stories and best writing about the outdoors from New Zealand and around the world.
One of our most popular Great Walks, the Heaphy Track, has been closed as a thru-hike for a year now, after storms washed away the famous Heaphy River swingbridge.
But there’s light at the end of the tunnel, as plans to build two swingbridges to replace the old one are on track, and will future-proof the trail.
A 93m-long bridge will scale the Heaphy River and a 100m-long structure will cross the Lewis River. Both are expected to be complete before the track completely reopens on 6th October.
Until now, trampers have been able to walk parts of the Heaphy as a there-and-back. The section between Lewis Shelter and the site of the new Lewis River bridge is now complete, and track builders are currently working on the stretch between where the two bridges will be. Find out more at Stuff.
Dramatic Fox Glacier rock falls captured on webcam “not out of the ordinary”
An erosion-caused rock fall that sent plumes of dust into the air, delaying a helicopter flight, was caught on webcams at Victoria Flat.
But the amazing thing is these rock falls aren’t that unusual, even though this one might have been slightly bigger than the ones normally seen at Fox, Franz Josef and Tasman glaciers.
“This is a steep cliff that’s once had glacier ice around it – we’ve had a collapse and it’s been caught on camera, but this is happening all over the show,” said Fox Glacier Guiding operations manager Marius Bron.
“In the bigger picture, of course, everything’s reacting at the moment to climate change. As glaciers recede, they leave behind the slopes, which naturally want to self-stabilise without the ice holding up the valley walls.” Read more at Stuff.
North Island huts and campsites close again
The second extreme weather event in as many weeks has prompted DOC to once again close huts and campsites in affected areas until the damage has been assessed.
The worst hit areas from Cyclone Gabrielle stretch from Northland down to Hawke’s Bay, and huts, tracks and campsites will only be reopened one-by-one over the coming days as each is evaluated.
Family grateful for renewed search for son
In 2014, 19-year-old German tramper Christian Prehn went missing in Nelson Lakes National Park. His pack was found at Travers Saddle and it’s believed he may have left it there to climb Mt Travers.
An extensive search took place at the time, but they were unable to find him. Now, with new technology and drones at their disposal, a group of up to 60 people from several rescue teams, will once again look for Christian.
“We were, and still are, very desperate, and we hope that new technology and the drones might bring clarity to the case,” say Christian’s family. “We want to thank the New Zealand people, who very much shared in our destiny, and still do so.” Read more at New Zealand Herald.
The new trail with Caribbean ocean, tropical rainforest and high mountaintops
Those planning a world tour should put Puerto Rico in Central America on their list, if the new NorEste Trail is anything to go by.
This 40-mile trail begins at Fajardo, where there’s a famous bioluminescent lagoon, as well as coral reefs and beaches where leatherback sea turtles nest.
After this, the trail ascends through rainforest – where trampers might spot a rare Puerto Rican parrot or one of the island’s endemic frogs – to the highest peak in El Yunque National Forest. Read more at National Geographic.
