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I did to find any King Boletes but there were some of these
around. Amanita muscaria grows in the same areas as King Boletes |
I decided to try going back to the pine forest in the hills above my new home in New Zealand to look for King Boletes.
I did not find any boletes and I got distracted by a hill that I felt I had to climb. But by the time I climbed the hill I had walked farther than I wanted to if I was doing a round trip hike.
I noticed a trail that was just a hole in the bushes. Could that trail take me down to a town below and a bus home? The trail was only on one of my maps. Taking the trail down could be risky, what if this trail that dropped 1,200 feet in 2.5 miles suddenly ended at the bottom and I had to hike back up?
I was feeling adventuresome so with a bit of trepidation I went down the strange trail into the strange forest down to the strange city in a foreign country. I soon reached a trail maker sign, so I thought I was golden. But wait! The trail I wanted was not listed on the sign. The trail was clearly there behind the sign though.
Why was the trail not signposted? What the trail impassible? Did the trail end at a no trespassing sign or even worse did it end in an impenetrable mass of gorse? Gorse is a horrible invasive plant, it is basically Scots Broom that is covered with long sharp thorns and spiders webs. Would I get lost in the woods and die and cause an international event?
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| Would you take this trail? |
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| The trail I took is unmarked and behind this sign |
Oh well, I was going to go down that trail anyway. Soon I found a little campsite on the trail and I was tired so I stopped and had a cup of coffee and a feijoa.
Feijoa is a fruit related to Guava that is considered to be distinctly New Zealand. I had my first one last week and since the season for them is brief, I've been eating a lot of them. They taste like a cross between an orange, a pear and a bar of soap. Some people don't like them. I wonder why?
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| Feijoa |
After my break I decided to continue down the mystery trail and hope for the best. I sent some messages home with my map and plan.
The trail was fine, a proper trail instead of a road. I've been walking a lot of roads in search of mushrooms, so it was nice to be on a trail in the actual bush. It is regenerating bush so kind of like second growth forests at home except it is a nice mix of stuff, not just Douglas-fir.
I think the trail was unmarked because it was a hiking trail and not Mountain bike trail. Local mountain bikers have marked all the bike trails in the area. This area seems to be a mountain bikers heaven.
The trail came out to an abandoned road with old water tanks and that road led to a main road and ended across from a bus station and a train station, very convenient.
I had to wait half an hour for the bus but the bus stop was in a little park with a giant picnic table under a giant Pine tree. The table was made for an orc or a troll I think, it was huge and this is middle earth.
It took two busses to get home, the bus service in the Wellington region is great.
Because I did not return the way I a came, I did not really investigate the pine forest like I had planned. I have an excuse to go back I think.
I intend to go for a long walk with my camera almost every day until I lose a lot of weight.
6 miles 800 feet elevation gain
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| Monterey Pine, not native here, but they get giant. |
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| Stokes Valley |
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| Lower Hutt below the road I walked |
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| Another pine ridge to explore someday |
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| Mexican Pine |
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| Trail to middle earth? |
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| This is called a trig and they are found on the tops of hills in New Zealand |
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| The mystery trail |
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| Campsite on the hikers trail |
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| Horrible plant called gorse. It is basically Scots Broom with thorns |
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| Uh oh, is my trail going to end in a wall of gorse? |
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| Almost down to the town of Tiata |
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| If I was trespassing I was about to find out. Luckily there were no signs on the gate |
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| Pic nic table for trolls or orcs? |
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