Keen for a day off and a chance to escape the Alpine Fault drillsite for some much needed R&R in the Paparoa karst, I called up a few friends, speedily packed my boat, sleeping bag, a few clothes and a bit of food, and stood thumb drawn on the curb at the end of Whataroa. Not many cars on the road for a nice day, it took the better part of an hour to get out of town. Two very memorable hitches (whole stories in themselves) brought me to Greymouth, followed by a further hitch on to Runanga to stay with Mary. I called Paul and it sounded like we were all on for a paddle down Cave Creek starting early the next day.
I caught a ride to 12 Mile with Linda on her newspaper run just in time to meet Leon arriving at Paul's. After a brief but hearty reunion we set off for Punakaiki. Paul opted out, worried about the possibly severe storm damage from the unprecedented April windstorm, but would be our car shuttle hero. No one had been down Cave Creek since the devastating storm, and the middle reaches are seldom visited. Leon grabbed a kayak from Ken and I was kindly loaned a wetsuit. Ken seemed to share Paul's skepticism but wished us well none-the-less. When Ken asked me where my kayak was and I pointed to my modestly sized bag (with packraft in it) he gave me a queer look. I felt pretty confident it would do the trick.
In little time we were at the end of the road in Bullock Creek. Paul said "nice to have know us" or possibly something more positive and off we went. I helped Leon carry his kayak when I wasn't too entertained by taking photos of him walking it along the track. He handled it well, even down the steps to Cave Creek and over the rocks below. We were good and hot in our wetsuits by the time we reached the creek. Most people walk the track to where it deadends at the big gaping entrance of Cave Creek Cave, one of the overflow piracies of Bullock Creek. Very few realize that continuing downstream is a beautiful limestone gorge complete with picturesque side waterfalls and karst springs. Slippery rocks and deep pools quickly dissuade most. Although certainly a very remote and somewhat committing place once you paddle far enough to not return, in most cases the creek makes a stunning trip down to and out the Porari valley. Leon handled his boat heroically over and around the many rocks while I innocently scrambled past, my boat still conveniently in my pack. After about 500m of navigating the rocky gorge, we stopped at a beautiful waterfall pouring in from the left. Here a small beach provided the perfect place for me to inflate my Alpacka. In a few minutes time I was ready to go and we were both off.
Initially the stream was looking to be in excellent shape, little evidence of recent windfall as we quickly floated down long corridors and over small mini-riffles. On the right we came to one of the last major Bullock Creek resurgences that enter the creek, Paul's Naked Eel Resurgence. Leon stopped to have a quick look to report back to Paul. Peering just beyond the next corner we could hear pounding of a waterfall and see mist flying off into the air. This falls was even more impressive than the first. This trip was starting to exceed my already high expectations. Further, the packraft was working out just fine as long as I was ever-cautious to avoid shallow snags lurking just beneath the surface.
The scenery changed with each passing corner. A few tree/log obstacles started appearing in the creek but conveniently we were able to thread through them one way or the other. After a few more turns we encountered our first creek-spanning log requiring us to portage over. Although initially cold, the sun came out and it turned out to be a fantastic day, wetsuits hardly even needed. We took advantage of a sunny little beach for a quick lunch stop. Shortly after our nut and lolly break, the windfall had finally caught up to us- long hallways with logs haphazardly thrown about, and unfortunately many branches blocking safe passage downstream. Over a half dozen of these logjams required me to gingerly portage my craft, whereas Leon could boldly slide over most obstacles with a little momentum. This is the part of the trip where his craft excelled, but I didn't mind a little extra challenge and inconvenience at this stage. Regardless of the downed trees, the creek was still stunningly beautiful and the usually open bush surrounding us offered surprising views of sky. The windfall was impressive though and had us
briefly worried the trip could take much longer than anticipated.
Gradually limestone began appearing on the side
of the creek again indicating we had passed through the center of the Paparoa
syncline. At the same time obstacles became less frequent and easier to avoid.
From here on the limestone would continue to climb around us until it peaked in
great 300m blue cliffs in the lower Porari. We came upon an interesting
submergence on the side of the creek which shortcuts the Porari confluence and
has been dye traced to exit at the main Porari resurgence over 500m away in a
straight line. The small hole sucked in a surprising amount of the Cave Creek
flow, and with great speed, even indicating a decent drop and some distance
before a sump would be encountered. Leon had a quick look. I couldn't resist
the call so I decided to give it a half decent look. Cautiously I entered foot
first, feeling the pull of the current in the narrows but confident a return
would be easy. Onward I proceeded, shortly encountering a narrow pancake slot
where a block had fallen from the roof. This obstacle likely would have deterred
most other curious individuals. With a little pressure on my chest, I managed
to clear the squeeze and crawl out the other side. Back into the stream and
onward a bit the water raced rapidly down a narrow bell-shaped corridor. I
could see straight ahead another 10m or so but without another caver decided
the force of the water was a bit much and it might be a better push for low
water conditions. While the passage size was modest and there was no real
airflow, the flow certainly showed no sign of immediately sumping and the
possibility remained that it could encounter the main Bullock Creek cave system
in a sizable passage on its way to the resurgence. At any rate the cave is
still there for another day.
From here it was smooth sailing to the Porari confluence. Leon noted the
incredible damage at what used to be quite a picturesque spot. It is quite
clear the coast will take years to recover from the great storm. A couple shallow riffles brought us
to the Porari swingbridge. This stretch of the Porari was stunning! I was
impressed by the narrow towering gateway of the place. We turned a dark corner
to the left into the sun which afforded a long view down the Porari, whose
canyon walls increase in height downstream due to the syncline. Paradise!
We passed the Porari resurgence which spat out a significant volume of water from the limestone. A few hundred meters down I began recognizing landmarks; we were at the furthest upstream extent I had reached before. The lower Porari was brightly sunny though with a bit of a headwind. Leon charged on ahead, but I was in cruising mode, eager to savor the last of this magnificent stretch of river. The last stretch of the river was the slowest. We reached the end as whitebaiters looked on. I thought my Alpacka performed very well and I would happily take it down again. Although I had to be more careful than Leon, being able to hike without manhandling a boat made it well worth it overall. My Alpacka continues to open my eyes to the incredible possibilities available in New Zealand.
We followed the trip with a relaxing afternoon of blissful sun at the 12 Mile, including a nice sunset beach walk with geological tour, impromtu bouldering, and stick throwing for dog. I slept soundly that night in a sleepout cantilevered over the Tasman Sea. For only a couple days off it was a most rejuvenating visit with friends and a beautiful trip through a seldom visited place.
Thanks to Leon, Paul and Mary. Photos of me by Leon.
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