Story & Photo by Richard Soult, 4x4Explorer.co.nz
A 4WD is more than a ticket to adventure. As roving NZ4WD correspondent Richard Soult is finding out heading off-road is also a great way to make friends
When people ask me why I own a 4WD, the answer is always the same. I like getting to amazing places and meeting amazing people.
In fact, since I’ve been in the South Island, I have been amazed by the number of Overlanders here and how great it is that we all share the same interests.
In Auckland, my social life revolved around the yacht club and, moving down south I was worried what would fill that vacuum. I needn’t have though. Since I’ve been here, I’ve met so many great people keen to get out there doing it.
Follow us on….
If you’ve been following 4x4Explorer on Facebook, you will have seen our trip, the places we’ve been and the people we have met. It’s always good to get feedback from people and receive invitations from people to join them on trips.
That said, I was amazed a couple of weeks ago when I received a message from Scott Gray and Steve Bate, two people whom I was aware of via Facebook, but didn’t know at all.
They offered to drive down to Queenstown from Christchurch and Timaru to explore the Rees Valley and Macetown with me. Well, I decided, if they’re prepared to drive all that way for a weekend, I’m up for it.
It’s always a little bit of a lottery when you organize a trip with people that you don’t know, but these guys were epic!
Whether the weather?
We were in Alexandra at the time and arranged to meet at Glenorchy around lunchtime the following day. When Andrea and I arrived in Glenorchy, the weather was on the change and we couldn’t even see the tops. I phoned Scott and told him in case he wanted to change the plan and do something else. He was very insistent, obviously keen to explore the Rees Valley, and said that the outlook looked good.
An hour or so later they were at the pub, introductions made, UHF channel selected and we were on our way.
Stunning
I can only describe the Rees Valley as stunning! Many of the Canterbury High Country valleys are very barren and negotiating the bare valley floor crossing braided rivers can be a mission in navigation.
However, the track up the Rees Valley is easily definable and relatively easy. Mostly a Grade 3, excluding the river crossings.
We travelled for an hour or so and the views just got better and better, the further up the valley we went. I was exclaiming, over the radio, to Scott that this was already my favourite valley and he simply replied that this was only the approach.
The valley floor is yellow tussock with rich green Beech lining the lower slopes. Above the tree line is the real spectacle. Glaciers and waterfalls abound. I lost count of the number of waterfalls and think that there must have been three or four seriously good ones.
Wade to go!
We continued up the valley until after the third river crossing, we came to a locked gate. Looking at the river, and being brave in numbers, we decided to carry on up the riverbed itself and came to a beautiful grassy area where we stopped for refreshments and marveled at the surrounding scenery feeling very small indeed.
As it was now getting late in the day, we made out and down to the aptly named settlement of Paradise. Close to the road end, we pulled into a side track and found a sheltered spot for the night next to the river.
After we had eaten, we had a few glasses of our favoured beverages and started to find out about each other and discussed trips, past and future. Sitting there in a setting like that with these two new friends, in this amazing environment, really made me appreciate just how much Overlanding has to offer.
But wait, there’s more!
The following day, we headed into Macetown and had a fantastic day! So happy to have met two such great people! We’ve already got more trips planned and I’m sure that we will meet more people and develop long-term friendships along the way, such is Overlanding in New Zealand.
To read the full story in the April 2019 issue of NZ4WD go to Zinio.com (March 15) or purchase your own hard copy at the Adrenalin store.
