“On a Mish” #17 The Big Thumbs Up (Part Three). Mt Xenicus(1912m). Mt Aspiring National Park. 13.1.2011. Light breezes and sunshine, check. High up a mountain ridge, check. Outstanding views in every direction, double – no triple check! The views of both Mt Aspiring and Fiordland National Parks from the summit of Mt Xenicus are incredible. It is a location I would like to be in all the time, but would that make it less impressive? …. Nah!
The challenge of getting to the top of Xenicus had been overcome and now we had a chance to soak in the feeling of victory on the top of the hill. We both kicked back and enjoyed the reward for our effort in the glorious midday sun, with only a light breeze blowing. From the mountains around Lake Te Anau in the south to the Darran Mountain monsters in the north, we definitely had an excellent meal of some of the finest mountains in Aotearoa (or the planet!).
Knowing what we had come up snapped us back into reality, as we had to somehow get ourselves back down the mountain to the safety of the Routeburn Track. With no intention of going near the chimney on the west ridge, we picked our way through the bluffs on the shoulder, which in turn had their own challenges.
On the way down we had a great view of the alpine gem that is Lake Wilson. The lake is guarded on all sides by mountains, as if the giant pool is in a very well-fortified mountain base trying to keep all away from the pristine water of the lake. It would be about a year later that I would find myself on a mish up to the lake with the same name as my last.
Small ledges would lead to massive cliffs and dead ends (literally if you kept going that way!), so we carefully took our time and eventually found our way through the near vertical maze. For every start, stop, turn back and look for another way, there were views to ease any anger caused by the inconvenience of turning back. The way up and down isn’t overly difficult; however, you must stick to the right route or you’ll be getting some extra exercise, just like us!
Our descent route took us into the secluded ‘Valley of the Trolls’, located about 1km north of Lake Harris. The small valley is an incredible mission in itself, and a place guided walkers used to visit back when there was a rest day while hiking the Routeburn Track. An incredible little valley much, much quieter than the busy main track – and well worth a visit.
We had had nothing but sunshine all day, and now we were feeling the effects of a day in the hot sunlight with little shade. So, to cool down, the mission was capped off by a swim in Lake Harris with a flock of ducks that just happened to be there at the same time as us. After our swim it didn’t take long for us to dry off in the afternoon sun, and as much as we wanted to stay at the lake we pushed on, as we had a victory feast to enjoy once back down at Routeburn Flats.
That night we had a couple of whiskeys, while once again watching the sun setting on the snowfields of Mt Somnus(2293m), reminiscing on another amazing day out in the mountains. I couldn’t wait for my next Routeburn Track trip so I could finally walk past Mt Xenicus(1916m) and say, “I’ve climbed that!”
