“On a Mish” #445 Determination (Part One). North Mavora Lake. Mavora Lakes Conservation Area. 22.11.2025. Determination is a powerful tool we have in our arsenal, and in the hiking world it can be something that can be the difference between getting to a location or not. If your mind is well stocked then it is amazing where you can get yourself to, even when the going gets tough. After a foray to the mid-point of North Mavora Lake with Georgie and my good mate Rob we returned for more, and this time we wanted to see if our determination could get us to the very top of the impressive Southland body of water…
Just before I headed away to Nepal, I got one last mish to Mavora in. On that adventure Georgie, Rob and I hiked the flood detour route around North Mavora Lake to a viewpoint at about the mid-way point. It was an excellent outing and after returning to Nz I was determined to get to Careys Hut and the very top of the lake. I had been up there a few times; however, this would be the first since injuring my hip. I new it would be tough, so I just hoped that my determination tanks were full enough for the journey.
We left Te Anau in the dark and arrived at the Mavora Camping Ground before most had crawled out of their beds. The normal tranquillity found in this area was replaced with bass, and we started the mish to the sound of loud music thumping as a group enjoyed their breakfast by the lake. We didn’t know it, but the noise of others would be a constant on this hike.
We got to the point where you either get wet feet by sidling a very swollen North Mavora Lake or take the flood detour. We took the detour again after a lakeside reccy revealed that the water would be over our knees if we went this way. Luckily the detour track wasn’t as boggy as last time and before we knew it, we were back at the same spot around halfway along the lake, at least we thought it was halfway!
We pushed on towards Careys Hut and on the way, we were passed by vehicles going in and out. It can be a bit of a shock to the senses to go from the sounds of birds and wind to engine and at times Bluetooth speakers at full volume. At one stage we were passed by 11 ‘Side-by-side’ buggies, which filled the air with the noise of fuel burning. The sound of an engine removes a little bit of the tranquillity of the area, but luckily the place is full of it!
The last couple of kilometres to the hut (and then a small hill behind it for lunch) were long and tough, but we both used our determination reserves to drag ourselves the distance. The view we had for lunch made any ache or pain vanish as it was truly awe inspiring. I’m glad we stuck at it as there were a few times when turning back seemed like a much better / easier idea…
