Harwoods Hole Dec 22

The one, the only, Harwoods Hole. One of my very favorites. There is much to be said about Harwoods Hole, some of which I have said before. This would be my third trip. The hole itself is impressive- over 30m across and 250m deep. As you approach it the three walls rise above you, creating a natural amphitheater for echoing bird song. Below lay a vast space open space. A 176 m freehanging abseil (slow motion skydive really!) on one 11mm thick piece of rope. Little do you know at this point that this is just the appetizer. The beauty and sportiness of the cave below is really what keeps me coming back for more.

I was a bit hesitant to take Sara here (especially as it would be her first vertical cave!), but knew she was competent enough, would enjoy the cave, and would see it as a great adventure. It is also a really satisfying cave to show someone as they can't help but be impressed. It did not take much convincing to get Richard to agree to join us and I was much relieved having another competent caver on board who knows Hardwoods. Despite this, the anticipation of the trip still weighed heavily on me the night before and the morning of.

Richard met us at the hut. We drove past the gathering hippies on Canaan Downs and continued on to the Harwoods carpark. Here we were approached by some overly keen tourist/rock climbers/"cavers" who were asking us a lot of questions about the cave and looking at us wantingly (basically hoping to tag along on our trip or use our rope). We delicately said no and walked to the hole. Richard heroically offered to carry the 200m rope to the entrance. Once there we both set about rigging the big pitch. I refreshed Sara on caving rope techniques while Richard rigged the main anchor (and tourists watched on curiously). I would be first down, Sara second, and Richard last.

          The meager take off ledge

The trick with the Harwoods abseil is that the friction on the rope running through your abseiling device is constantly changing based on the weight of the rope below. At the top of the rope, the weight of most of the rope below pulls the rope tight through your abseil device (which means you will go slower and potentially have to help feed the rope a bit), while at the bottom the rope can be incredibly fast and it is important to create more friction either on the device or by wrapping the rope around your leg to avoid losing control. It is very important to stay conscious of the amount of friction and to adjust accordingly. Also it is important to go at a slow and steady pace as the friction of the rope going through the device generates considerable heat and in a worst case scenario could melt the rope. The new rope was certainly faster than the ones I have used in the past.

Once I found a leg wrap configuration that delivered the right amount of friction, the abseil was every bit as pleasant as I remembered it and I slowly descended. While nerve-wracking in its own way, the abseil is also incredibly calming. A thin rope separates you from the surface above and the ground below. You spin around in circles at the mercy of the rope, taking in the sights it presents you. Below a house-sized rock gradually gets bigger, above the sunny daylight drifts further from you. Down here the conversations of those above are reduced to echoing whispers. Progress is made slowly, almost imperceptibly. Near the bottom the rope dangles only a short meter or two away from a ledge, then the cave bells out again on the final length of rope to terra firma. I yelled up at the top of my lungs, "Rope free!!!"

I waited patiently but nervously for Sara to come down. Slowly the speck got bigger and she seemed to have gotten the hang of it. It turned out she wasnt nervous or scared once she got on the rope and ended up enjoying it a lot more than I thought she would. Last down was Richard, no less stoked to be back in the cave the the two of us. We had a last look up, then began walking down the great underground scree slope towards the stream.

       The view back up the underground scree slope

We abseiled down the few large flowstone waterfalls, gingerly avoiding the sometimes imperceptively clear hanging pools to reach the river. The river is pure caving bliss. My snapshots do not do it justice. A clear blue river plunges over dramatic flowstone waterfalls to the next pool waiting below. The pools are deep- often 5-10m, and at least at one point perhaps more than 30m! Incredibly, these pools typically stretch wall-to-wall apart from a narrow calcite shelf protruding near the water level. Swimming can thus be avoided by fun bouldering traverses along the walls. Worst case scenario- you get wet! Many of the traverses are just exciting enough to be a mild challenge, but there always seems to be that magic handhold right where you want it. Every pool, waterfall, abseil, and occasional squeeze is unique. It did not take long for Richard and I to wish we had opted for a wetsuit. Many of the drops could be jumped!

All too soon we reached the last upclimb into the glittery Starlight passage. Past a couple fun traverses utilizing stalagmites as handholds, we reached the beautiful stalactite framed exit to the cave. Regardless of the care and skill with which you have thus far kept your boots dry, you must now succumb to the inevitable and wade through the waist deep water to escape. Once out of the cave you find yourself on an enormous scree slope surrounded by steep vegetated cliffs. I always feel like the cave has transported me to a hidden valley in the Jurassic.

        The lost valley

Next comes the pain and suffering. We had dropped over 350m through the cave and the way back to the top is a brutally relentless climb up scree and bush. It was one of the hottest days of the trip and I melted like I could remember last when. Then if that is not enough, the heavy 200m of rope must come back up. I managed to rig a pretty efficient system and the task was thankfully handled in little time. We all had a great trip and I could tell it would be an obvious highlight for Sara. Harwoods never disappoints. Thanks to Richard.

Motueka River Dec 21

We enjoyed a lazy morning hanging out with Richard and were just about to leave to enjoy yet another sunny day when Richard suggested we join him and a couple friends on a float down the Motueka River. I had been kayaking down the Mot with Richard a couple years back and had a great time. I looked at Sara and shrugged. Why not!

 

We drove to the petrol station, filled up the innertubes to the max, and set off for the river. Between the five of us we had a rag-tag mixture of 2 whitewater kayaks, 2 innertubes and a boogie board. The river was low so we slowly made our way down the flat bits between the small rapids. At about the deepest place on the river we had found that someone had left a rope leading to a nice cliff jump and couldn't resist.

 

Richard and I had been the furthest downstream, keeping an eye out for Jaws (photo above), the only real rapid on this stretch of the river. Eventually we saw the tell-tale horizon line. I escaped halfway down the rapid to take pictures of Sara. She handled the rapid with about as much class as you can in an innertube.

Unbeknownst to me, Dan had dislocated his shoulder pretty seriously in the rapid so we all rushed to his side and came up with a plan. We walked to the road and flagged down a car- I would rush Dan to the hospital in my car while the others dealt with the kayaks and other car. It turned into a long afternoon but long story and several doctors later Dan was eventually fixed by the good doctor Brewer. Although the day did not quite go as planned, the float down the river was still really enjoyable.

Doom Creek Dec 20

In anticipation of going down Doom Creek with Sara I visited probably twenty tyre shops between Dunedin and Christchurch (en route to other places of course) over the previous month asking if they had any old innertubes I could have for a float trip. Once in overabundance, modern tyres do not use innertubes so they can be hard to come by these days. Many that the shops did have were either too small or two large to make good rafting tubes. Eventually I found two that were just the right size. If there is ever a competition for the friendliest tyre shop on the southern half of the South Island I would feel well qualified to judge!

The day started hot and preceded to get hotter- perfect canyoning weather. This particular canyon did not have any abseils so we did not have to carry any ropes or harnesses. All the drops could be jumped. We followed the wide track as it contoured along the Wakamarina River and eventually into Doom Creek. I was sweating profusely from the heat by the time we reached the creek. We had a quick lunch then suited up.

        The first jump

        The second jump

We scrambled our way downstream over large boulders. At one point I found a dark slot down between two boulders which emerged from behind a waterfall. Carrying on, we came to the first jump- refreshing! Sara required quite a bit of persuasion. The second jump shortly followed. This falls forms the gateway to a nice long sculpted narrows section with many small downclimbs, jumps, and swims. It was all really fun and friendly, and unfortunately, over before we knew it.

        The start of the Doom Narrows

When we reached the confluence with the Wakamarina River I pulled out the tubes from the pack and began pumping with the bike pump. I worked up a sweat pumping the tubes to a reasonable level of inflation and then we floated on down the shallow river. The Wakamarina had a classic pool-drop style. We would float across a calm pool, slip bumpily down a small rapid or riffle, float across a pool, and so on. None of the obstacles were big enough to be a worry, so again, fun and friendly. It was hard not to wear a smile. Towards the bottom of the gorge we floated through a remarkably deep stretch of the river and I could not help myself. I had a good look around for cliff jumping options and settled on a clean 16m jump. Sara went for the 6m option with more persuasion. We floated on down to where a tributary entered on the left and climbed out on the right. Two minutes later we were at our car! A great summer's day!

        Floating on the Wakamarina

For extra credit we did the 10 minute trip through Deep Creek. I was told all pools were less than waist deep so took nothing but shoes, shorts, shirt and camera. Turns out I could have done without the shirt! Several of the pools were deep wades or swims. It was very cold without a wetsuit, but the canyon was so short that it worked out fine. Once sorted, we drove to Mapua to catch up with Richard and Chantal and ended up camping on their lawn overlooking vineyards and the sea.

Sawcut Gorge Dec 19

I allowed Sara her one truly civilized day of the trip by celebrating her birthday in Kaikoura. Afterwards we drove north, stopping at Ohau Stream to see seal pups swimming in the stream and at Ward Beach for lunch. We then drove inland on dirt farm roads through that dramatically wound across slopes high above the Waima River. The road deadended back down at the river and we packed up for our hike.

We headed upstream, wading through the shallow waters between segments of trail. It was a beautifully sunny day and we both had swimming on our minds. We stopped for a quick swim at the first suitable swimming hole we found. The sandflies rejoiced, so we carried on, the view improving around each new meander in the river. Ahead loomed the steep and craggy limestone slopes of Isolated Hill. The salt and pepper bedload of the stream consisted solely of blindingly white chalky limestone and a dark black gabbroic rock.

As we continued, the blue-streaked limestone cliffs lining the stream increased in height and closeness and the sun was no more. Rather than take the marked trail we decided to go the direct route up the stream. Deep wades and some rock scrambling brought us to a deep swimming pool. We found a small cave-like slot beneath a house-sized boulder that allowed us to bypass the pool and continue on. Popping through, the terrain eased to more mild scrambling and wading.

A short distance further we reached the narrow opening of Isolation Creek. A short gorge opened up into an amphitheater-like area surrounded by steep cliffs. The amphitheater seemed blind and it was not until we turned a corner that we could see the narrow defile the stream emerges from, the so-called Sawcut Gorge slicing through the blue-gray limestone. Although regrettably short, the slot canyon is one of the more impressive in New Zealand. In places overhead, the slot is much less than a  meter wide. We enjoyed the play of light and echo-y chirp of birds before exploring a bit further up the canyon. Other narrows exist, but none as impressive as Sawcut Gorge. Since we had other places to be (and Sara was getting cold in the dark shadows of the canyon), we then headed back the way we came.

On the way back I volunteered to take the backpacks on the bypass trail so Sara could climb and swim her way back through the short gorge in the main stream. She was still smiling when I rejoined her. Going back seemed much quicker, as it often does with these types of hikes and we reached the car before long. We drove on through Blenheim to the Wakamarina River where we camped in anticipation of the next day's adventures.

Sefton Biv Dec 17

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.

        Crossing avalanche debris

        Sefton Biv at top left, Tewaewae Glacier beyond

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.

Lake Manapouri Dec 12-13

 

Sara and I loaded up the car, strapped the kayaks on the roof, and drove to Manapouri for our first adventure of her visit. Manapouri is one of the most interesting of the southern lakes for its abundant islands, peninsulas, cliffs and beaches. Just a couple hours paddle gets you out of the realm of the boaties and into the Fiordland wilderness; I have long wanted to do an overnight kayak trip on Manapouri. Although I had previously experimented with strapping large drybags on the cheesy sit-on-top kayaks, this would be the first overnight trip I would take with these kayaks. We carefully packed the limited space in our drybags with the key essentials. It did not take the sandflies long to find us so we loaded up the kayaks as fast as possible and pushed out into the head of the Waiau River at about 2pm and paddled upstream to Lake Manapouri.

We aimed straight for the large cliffs at the mouth of Surprise Bay and paddled straight across the wide bay of the lake, well over a kilometer from the nearest shore. Despite pleasant sun there was considerable wind swell on the water which made for slow progress. The kayaks were not designed for these conditions, and for a while Sara had difficulty keeping to a straight line. Because of this and because of the lack of close moving references, this part of the kayak seemed to take ages. Thankfully the chop was slightly reduced close to the cliffs so we worked our way north along their base. The cliffs plunged vertically into the blue-black darkness of the lake. My fingers were crossed as we approached Stony Point- to my relief the water was calmer beyond. We paddled a bit further and had a snack on a narrow strip of beach connecting a rocky island to the shore (a tombolo). Here there was just enough breeze to keep the sandflies down and bright sun to warm our skin and deceptively color the water enticing tropical hues. Distant boats ferrying tourists to Doubtful Sound trailed long wakes that would slowly make their way across the water. The lag between hearing the boat and seeing the small tidal wave arrive was akin to lightning and thunder.

We were making good time but still had quite a distance to go so we continued on a more direct route past Belle Vue Island to the next peninsula. We paddled in the calm lee of the northwest facing coast of the peninsula. Ahead we could see the point and a nasty wind swell spilling out of Hope Arm. We gathered our senses and paddled into the heart of it. Wind screamed violently past our ears as waves hit the bow and splashed spray in my face. There was no break from paddling as any deviation from hitting the swell head on could potentially be enough to flip us. Unfortunately the faster I paddled the bouncier the ride and the worse the spray. I paddled without stop but constantly peered over my shoulder to check Sara's progress. She was always smiling and at one point yelled "Don't worry, I'm having fun!" over the noise of the wind and waves.

We needed to get out of this as soon as possible so I aimed for a small beach sheltered from the wind by a slight point. I got out of the kayak and peered beyond the point- my planned destination would be a long way to go in these conditions and may be very exposed to the wind. I went back to examine the small beachlet. It seemed to be free of the gusts but also remarkably free of sandflies so I signaled to Sara to come in. It felt good to get out of the boat and the wind and I greatly enjoyed the sun on my skin as we unpacked the drybags and preceded to set up camp. Before long we had a tent, a hammock, a fire and a warm meal. We watched the sun set over the Hunter Mountains and wondered what tomorrow's weather would bring as the stars came out overhead. The sandflies and mosquitoes worked up a frenzy beneath the fly of the tent and the sound persisted through much of the night.

We awoke to a beautiful calm day, the sort of one that made you want to linger in this beautiful place. However, the sandflies had other plans to we tried to efficiently pack up camp and paddle away as the sandflies would be better on the water. We both had clouds following us for about 500m before we finally ditched them. We paddled back across the same stretch of water which felt somewhat epic yesterday. Today we glided across the clear water, occasionally seeing eels and fish. For the return we paddled along the coast into Circle Cove with the plan of taking the short portage over to Surprise Cove, saving us several kilometers of paddling. We paddled past a few more nice cliffs as I assessed cliff jumping potential. The wind had now switched direction and began to pick up noticeably.

We found the portage without trouble and it was even easier than the topo map suggested. After lunch we ferried our kayaks and gear across to the small beach on Surprise Bay where we enjoyed one last bit of isolated Fiordland before our paddle across the open water back to the docks. The wind swell was really nasty and slightly oblique to the direction we wanted to head so we cut across towards Richters Rock and hugged the coast towards the outlet of the lake. All the paddling of the previous day and a half had been in preparation for this was the biggest swell we encountered. It was enough that I had no interest in attempting to take photos. We tried to maintain a consistent pace and made good time. It was not exhausting physically so much as mentally, as everything was moving around us and demanded our constant attention. After what again seemed like ages, we re-entered the Waiau River where things calmed down again. We promptly loaded the car and said goodbye to the sandflies. We wisely abandoned our plans for another kayak trip on Lake Hauroko (as the weather was forecast for even higher winds) and instead headed to Dunedin via Mavora Lakes. Thanks to Cathy for use of her kayak.

Beyond Words Expedition Dec 1-7

One of the last days of the WCG Megamania expedition in January 2011, Justin and I spent a day checking out a little known and seldom visited cave named Beyond Words. The cave is hard to get to and protected by thick vegetation so at the time the best way to get to the cave was to commute through Megamania Cave. At the time the cave had about 400m of surveyed passage, but there were several intriguing "?"s marked on the map including a 20m pitch down a waterfall in the cave's main streamway. The upper level of the cave was very confusing- we traveled from room to room, frequently unsure of whether the walls and ceiling were bedrock or large blocks. We came to the impressive Scallop Room- a 20m-wide passage with stunning formations and well-preserved scallop fossils in the limestone. We then rigged the pitch and explored down the sporty streamway for what we guessed was 250m. Eventually we had to begin belly crawling in the stream between stretches of passage we could stand in. Further on the passage reached its smallest dimensions yet- lack of a draft and foam on the ceiling were tell-tale signs we were nearing a sump so we turned back.

While I was waiting for Justin back in the more comfortable passage I happened to look up into a muddy alcove on the side of the stream. To my surprise the passage seemed to continue in a steep spiral above the streamway passage. Up the spiral about 20m I found myself in very comfortable sandy-floored running passage. I slid my way back down to lead Justin back up the spiral and off we ran. We explored about 400m of really impressive passages as we passed junction after junction and even a large chamber. Unfortunately the day wore on and we still had a long way back to camp so we made our way out. The potential of this cave wore on me for the better part of two years since.

Then at the end of 2011 I found out Michael and several others had resurveyed Beyond Words on another Megamania expedition. Looking at the map it was obvious they missed or did not have time to get to most of what Justin and I saw on our trip. After more talking, it was decided we should organize a small expedition of keen folk intent on further surveying and exploring Beyond Words Cave- to my knowledge the first expedition to be focused on the cave. We would helicopter much of the gear in, but elect to carry it all out- probably also a first!

December 2012. Michael volunteered me for the early walk in with him to set up camp while the rest of the team slept-in soundly in Karamea. Luckily there are rarely gaps in conversation when Michael is around and the walk in on the Heaphy track went by very fast (and scenically). We arrived at the Gunner campsite hours before the helicopter was scheduled to land. I got all of 10 minutes of napping in my boxers in the sun on the riverbank before Michael appeared out of the bush with the aim of training me up to use the digital surveying PDA and laser disto. Luckily it was surprisingly intuitive and I caught on pretty quickly while we were closely watched by a tweeting and bouncing robin. Curiosity took hold of me so I shined the laser at the bird's feet. To my great amusement the bird pecked at the red dot and bounced after it whereever I shined it! After several minutes of great entertainment, Michael reminded me that we had limited battery and that calibrating new batteries is a complex process involving imagining you are trapped in an invisible cube so I stopped. The helicopter arrived and we set up camp. The kitchen was set up in a dry creekbed...on the West Coast (this comes into play later). Just when I thought I was finally going to get a nap in the sun, Michael suggested we hike up the hill to do an overland survey between Megamania and Beyond Words since we had a couple hours before dinner. Somewhat reluctantly I agreed. Michael sure is keen! We surveyed a somewhat circuitous transit between the two entrances after some navigational follies. I was declared captain of the B team and given my license to use "Pocket Topo" on Michael and Bruce's treasured baby "Nomad" (the PDA). Michael threatened a very early start the next day, but groans from the rest of the cavers quickly brought him back to reality.

Day 2. Everyone heads to Beyond Words via Megamania. B team: Nic, Geoff, Justin and Travis head down the main streamway to survey up the spiral staircase and into the good stuff Justin and I were previously in. Leads, leads, leads! Travis and Justin appear to have a glorious time running down holes only to occasionally return to report on their seemingly endless finds. Meanwhile I am bound to the Nomad strapped to my wrist, a slave of technology (and surveying). Geoff seems to take disto-ing in good stride. We found a new streamway and closed off a loop. For every lead we killed, we made two more. We found an easier commuting way back into the streamway via what would later be called Poseidon Hall. It was a great first day and we seemed to have a week's worth of things to do. Geoff talked us into climbing up the waterfall rather than the steep chute we came down on. It was...refreshing? We were thoroughly wet by the time we reached the entrance. We did not climb that waterfall again that week!

Day 3. B team: Nic, Geoff, Travis and Simon begin survey in the Gypsum Maze section of the cave that Travis found on the first day. Carefully we made our way through gypsum encrusted passage, laying taped paths where necessary. All the junctions were daunting! A highlight was the Great Wall of Gypsum, a rift passage where an entire wall was coated in white sparkling gypsum including large sheets and flowers. We closed a couple large loops and were on our way to a productive survey day when the disto battery went flat. We exited the cave via yet another new route, a large chamber Travis dubbed "The Wrath of the Gods" after the large amount of ceiling collapse and broken formations. The rain...had begun.

        The Wrath of the Gods Chamber

 

Day 4. B team: Nic, Geoff, Travis, and Justin head up South Stream. Here we surveyed a long way up the stream until we reached the Icing Room (frontispiece and below) where formation choke blocked forward progress. After a pleasant lunch, Travis and Justin explored up a rift while Geoff and I survey-explored up the other branch of the stream. We went a considerable distance up a wide and sinuous stream passage to some stunning formations. We switched into boots and suits off mode to survey over some pristine rimstone pools. Towards the end we got to the Bowling Alley where meter-wide granite chockstones were wedged in the narrow ceiling at perfect distances such that we could use them as giant steps to climb to the top of the passage. Unfortunately this passage had a convincing formation choke (but fortunate for the passage remaining pristine). Once reunited with the other two, they excitedly told us of their endless finds, in the end deciding there was too much to do here and we were better to head out a bit early and try to tackle the area fresh the next day. We decided to tie off a sporty rift lead that Simon partially explored the day before. In places the walls were solid beds of fossil oysters which led the passage to acquire the name Seafood Buffet. After surveying through the top of the 10m-high rift for a while a floor finally appeared. A few short survey lengths later we reached a formation-rich junction in the passage with impressive calcite crystal pools, flowstone and stals. Travis recognized this as an area he and Justin had been exploring earlier in the day, which meant another day's worth of surveying. We emerged from the cave in heavy rain.

        Icing Room

Day 5. The grim mountain radio forecast and thorough rain through the night led to an unanimous rest day. I slept in, periodically wake to listen for the sound of people stirring in the kitchen before drifting back to sleep. I got up at some civilized time like 10am and socialized over a late breakfast. Some peoples tents and sleeping bags were casualties of the rain. The main activity of the day was watching the water levels in the formerly dry creek bed slowly rise towards the kitchen. Despite admirable civil engineering efforts, the water still reached the kitchen and gum boots came into style. The Gunner River was a speedy brown torrent stretching from bush edge to bush edge. It was not the gravel bank-lined ankle-biter of the first couple days. Inevitably we discussed the cave, leads, and where to survey next. Travis seemed very excited by the passages he and Justin climbed into the day before and was keen to get back. From Travis's description Sarah remarked that Travis must have felt like Alice in Wonderland. "It is like a wonderland up there," Travis replied. The name for the passage stuck: Travis in Wonderland. The day's inaction spurred grand plans of caving the next day.

        Water approaching the kitchen.

        The kitchen flooded.

        The Gunner River in flood.

Day 6. B Team: Nic, Geoff, Travis and Kevin surveyed Travis in Wonderland from Seafood Buffet towards the Icing Room. Surveying was initially slow due to the need to take delicate steps. Most of the passage was pleasant and typically 4-6m-wide. We surveyed through a belly crawl to where the main trunk passage continued onwards in a southwesterly direction away from the rest of the known cave. Abruptly the great trunk passage runs into a large breakdown area without a floor. Travis did some sketchy climbing traverses over loose boulders to scout the area. Geoff and I surveyed through a small rift that got within 10m of the Bowling Alley before formation choking. Travis' initial report was not encouraging. The way on was not completely obvious, but this part of the cave remains very enticing. We ended the day surveying the Wrath of the Gods chamber, which as it turned out, had been surveyed by the A Team hours before. The weather sank the team's enthusiasm and there seemed to be a general consensus to pack up and head out the next day. We felt satisfied with what we were able to accomplish, no thanks to the weather!

        Dog tooth calcite in crystal pools

        Lunch in Travis in Wonderland .

Day 7. Retreat! Most of the team got an early start packing up the gear. Between my heavy tent, camping, gear, caving gear and group gear (all rain-soaked), my pack was as heavy as it had ever been. The slog out was brutal and unrelenting. At Kohaihai Shelter my feet were screaming mutiny and I couldn't possibly see how I could carry on. Then the cloud of sandflies came to give me some unsubtle encouragement so I carried on the Ketetahi roadend. Salvation lay in taking my boots off and remaining barefoot the rest of the day.

We surveyed Beyond Words to a length of 4.5 km with many promising leads remaining. It is a fantastic cave well worth its name. The amount of intersecting passages present in such a small area is pretty unusual (especially without needing SRT gear). Chambers, rifts, streams, formations- the cave has a bit of it all. In several locations the cave overlaps or comes within 100m of Megamania Cave, yet a connection eludes us for now. Overall, it was one of my most enjoyable cave expeditions to date. Thanks to Michael, Sarah and the rest of the team.