14 keen woppers arrived at the Mt Donald carpark after briefly stopping at the Huia comfort stop on the way! (see pic of mist hanging in the bush) hopeful the weather wouldn't be as grim as forecasted. In fact, although steady drizzle most of the time the rain never became torrential. The weather didn't put anybody off as lots of others on the track also. A number of walking groups plus what appeared to be overseas visitors as well ,so great to see the tracks well patronised.

The plan today, to go so far along Puriri Ridge & hopefully the cloud would clear for decent views, retrace & go along Karamatura as far as the junction, retrace again then lunch at Mt Donald McLean. I haven't done Puriri Ridge before & was rapt with the beautiful bush plus amazing views. With all the rain the bush was looking particularly lush & certainly the ferns with their different hues of red & green. Lots of kauri of course & our favourite, lancewood to name just a few. The steps I found good, plenty of them but nice & wide & a good firm metalled track. Going down the view was hazy with misty cloud hanging in the valleys, but coming back up the weather had cleared enough to show more clearly out to the ocean with big waves coming in & great views of Omanawanui.

Karamatura track has very nice bush also but we were all starting to get hungry so were happy to turn back & scamper up to the lookout on Mt Donald McLean & thankfully the rain held off long enough for everyone to enjoy the shared lunch. The views from both lookouts are very impressive as you will see from the attached photos. Once lunch was eaten,it was back to the cars just as the rain started more steadily. A lovely day finished off by some of us stopping at the Huia cafe for a quick coffee then off home.

Thanks Elizabeth for a great walk today, I certainly loved it & I think everyone else did too. A big thank you for all the walks you have provided this year.

Wishing everyone a happy & safe festive season & look forward to seeing everyone on the track in 2023.

Click here to see photos by Colleen