Fox River June 6

I've had this one in my sights for years since it was suggested to have one of the two best stream passages in NZ. It has a tricky entrance series and has a reputation for being very cold and very prone to flooding. For these reasons I have had great difficulty persuading someone to go on a trip with me until now.

It was actually Justin that persuaded me, as I was eager to drive home and get sorted for fieldwork I had scheduled just a couple days later. Although we were unsure whether the underground stream dropped low enough for us to enter safely, we were both keen for a try and to at least scout the cave for a more ambitious trip later on.

We donned our wetsuits and vertical gear and clambered toward the distant roar of the stream below. The first obstacle is a short climb over a rock ledge with a 10m drop below. Then came the slots where it took us almost an hour to go 20m horizontally! Here we abseiled part way into a slot, bridged across while still on rope, and then began to climb back up the other side. Once on top, this same process was repeated to cross the second slot. Once this was surmounted we could take off our vertical sets and jump in the frothy tannin-stained stream. We saw fresh foam 2m above the present water level in places, indicating that yesterday's rains would have made this cave a death trap then.



The force of the water looked intimidating at first, especially the eddies and hydraulics at the small waterfalls, but we quickly gained confidence as we cautiously headed upstream. The stream was wonderfully sporty and loads of wet fun- swims could often be avoided by climbing traverses and crossing ribs of bedrock protruding up from the deeper pools like ghostly waist-deep walkways in the dark red tannin-stained water. For the most part the passage stays about 3-4m wide with wall-to-wall water and about 60m high. Formations flow down the walls at intervals, brightening up the dark manganese-coated walls and the dark water, which suck the light and contribute to the ominous mood of the cave.

We made it about halfway up the whole stream passage before deciding we should call it a day. It took us half the time going downstream as we were more comfortable with the cave and could float downstream with the current. This trip whetted my appetite and I can't wait to return for a more thorough explore. Thanks to Justin.