The morning started rather uneventfully, woke up, started hiking up a valley, following a stream.
We got to a private hut, it was a little early for lunch, but I was hungry so we ate. From there we decided to take the Melina ridge trail which is not part of the TA. The idea is to trade a saddle for a ridge walk which will offer more views!
The uphill wasn’t easy but the views were fantastic!
As we hiked along the ridge it got windier and windier. Eventually I said I don’t feel comfortable, if the wind got any stronger we would be pinned down and we still had a long way to go on the ridge. Jayden said he wouldn’t go on without me, but asked if we could go two more trail markers just to make sure it wasn’t just the wind being funneled through where we were at the moment. Sadly it wasn’t.
We hiked back to Mt Melina, which blocked the wind a bit, then descended a track going into the valley on the other side of the ridge, which also got us to where we were shooting to get for a detour tomorrow! As soon as we dropped down the other side it felt as if the wind completely stopped, but we know it didn’t.
We camped near a river by the Burnt Bush hut.
Pete have been reading and following. Looks like an amazing adventure!
Is that the aurora or just light from somewhere?
I can’t believe you are nearly done!!
I believe it was the aurora, there were no cities anywhere nearby in the direction where the light was coming from and the colors don’t look like anything else, but I’m not positive
What an adventure. Beautiful pictures. Thanks so much for sharing your trip.