I had no idea if there was a track going even further north so I thought I’d send up the drone to investigate

It definitely looked fantastic towards where we’d like to go but it was difficult to see a track

Today I’m armed with just a PLB and a camera

So we just went for it and luckily there actually was some kind of marked path, and stunning views along the Canyon Creek

Canyon Creek, as cold as it’s clear

All these little streams come from the Huxley Range and Thurneysen Glacier

The path we’re following doesn’t get walked a lot and is difficult to follow but the views are rewarding

And if you’re thirsty you can simply drink the water, no filtering needed

And it tastes sooo good!

Looking back at the Ahuriri Valley

Yay! The weather is getting better, finally some blue sky over the Huxley Range

And now that I’ve climbed higher I get a a good view of the Thurneysen Glacier

I would have liked to follow the track higher up the mountain but it’s not even listed on NZ Topo Map so I have no idea where it ends so I decide to descend again where Rachel was waiting as she didn’t want to climb as high as I did

Almost back at the Canyon Creek

The view looking back

Back at where we camped and left the backpacks

The Huxley Range

We’re now on our way back towards where we parked the car, still a long way to go

Just rock, water and trees here

Oh, and some grass

Déja vu

One last view back

Our exit out of the valley is just to the right of that dip, where the diagonal part begins

I’m mostly smiling because it’s just downhill from here

This is that exit, looking back down to where the previous photo was taken, the grassy patch

We enjoy another little rest

The view towards Little Canyon Creek

Back at the valley floor

Barrier Range again

Not far to the car now where there’s some well deserved chocolate to eat and diet coke to drink!

Rachel not far behind me, it was an amazing overnight trip!

Back at the car it’s time for some toasties, so hungry!

We camp next to the Ahuriri Valley with a great view of the southern end of the Barrier Range

And the Huxley Range in the distance

Hours later, we finally made it to the Ahuriri Valley that I wanted to show Rachel as I think it’s a stunning valley

Now that I have a 4WD I can baldly (pun intended) go where I didn’t go before, though what you see in the photo was too steep, I went around it

We parked the car at the very end of the Birchwood Road and set out with our backpacks to walk the Canyon Creek Route for an overnight trip, it’s a bit gloomy today

Rachel working her way up the hill through the woods

At the summit, time for rest

Enjoying the view and a well deserved rest (Jasper will remember this place), Barrier Range in the background

Huxley Range ahead of us, that’s where we’re headed

Lots of walking today

Lots of people must have enjoyed a nice campfire here, not us though, we need to keep moving, still a lot of ground to cover

At the very very very end of the track we finally found a few square meters of flat grassy ground where we could pitch the tent, it will soon be dark and we’re hungry, the views are amazing!

Enjoying a curry