After a couple pleasant days in Dunedin we loaded up the car at set off on our road trip. Our first stop would be Mt Cook where I was hoping snow levels would be high and water levels would be low. The whole drive it was a beautiful sunny day- the kind where I would turn to Sara and say "See, New Zealand has summer!" The cloud formations were particularly picturesque over Lake Pukaki, though they suggested there might be evil things brewing about the divide. Not particularly enthused at the next day's forecast, we made an attempt on Sawyers Stream, a very steep canyon I had wanted to check out. Spectacular views presented as we climbed the steep grassy hillside. We made slow but eventual progress down a loose scree slope to the head of the canyon. We suited about and headed down but I could tell from the first drop that the water levels were considerably higher than I first thought. Nevertheless, I headed down the first abseil to scout the rest of the canyon. Peering over the second abseil was enough to convince me that the wise (but less fun) decision was to turn back. The wind strengthened in the evening, but did well drying our gear. We stayed the night at Unwin Lodge and decided to wait and see what plans tomorrow's weather would bring.
Little if no rain overnight and if anything the wind had eased slightly. We decided to go for a day walk up to Sefton Biv, where my previous plan was to overnight. Sefton Biv is a small historic hut (shack really) at 1600m elevation which serves as a base for those climbing the Footstoll or Mt Sefton. Although shorter than Mt Cook, in many ways I would consider Mt Sefton the more spectacular mountain- glaciers with great blue icefalls drool down its steep sides and the mountain is frequently steeped in clouds. We ran up the Hooker valley past the gauntlet of tourists, then veered off track through tall tussock and up an alluvial fan, headed for the very base of Mt Sefton. We crossed a few stable avalanched snow patches then found the cairned trail headed quite steeply up the hillside. The track was much better than I was expecting; between it and our light packs we made good time and the views improved, though the weather began to worsen. At one point we had a great view of the tiny red hut perched on the edge of the cliff, dwarfed by a backdrop of Tewaewae Glacier. The trail then veered over to a commanding view of the Mueller Glacier before heading straight up through a cliff band requiring steep but mild scrambling.
After that we crossed a bouldery edge of a small moraine and the last snowfield to Sefton Biv where we were happy to get out of the cold wind and rain for a snack. Periodically I would check on the outside world, only to happily return to the biv. Going back down the hill was uneventful. The light rain and late afternoon hour meant the valley trail was relatively empty. I contemplated glaciers and landscape erosion in peace.
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