August 2012 Issue - Federated Mountain Clubs of NZ

Great Walks Hut and CampsiteFees StandardisedIn July, DOC introduced a new three-tieredpricing system for Great Walks huts andcampsites. Fees for the Great Walks huts andcampsites had varied around the country,leading to some confusion and inconsistency.The new system is simpler and sets uniformcharges. There was no change to the fees forthe other 940 DOC back-country huts aroundthe country.Great Walk Huts (per adult, per night)•y Tier 1: $54 (up $2.90) Milford, Routeburnand Kepler Tracks.•y Tier 2: $32 (previously between $30.60and $35.70) Abel Tasman Coast Track,Heaphy Track, Tongariro Northern Circuit,Whanganui Journey, Lake WaikaremoanaTrack.•y Tier 3: $22 (up $1.60) Rakiura Track.Campsites (per adult, per night)•y Tier 1: $15 – Serviced campsites – flushtoilets, tap water, kitchen/cooking bench,hot showers etc•y Tier 2: $10 – Scenic campsites – pit orcomposting toilets, water from tap/stream/lake.•y Tier 3: $6 – Standard campsites – pitor composting toilets, water from tap/stream/lake.‘Check, clean, dry’ stopping thespread of didymo in FiordlandDOC and Fish & Game are delighted that thetesting of 22 rivers in Fiordland National Park,previously known to be unaffected, showedno new signs of the invasive freshwater pestdidymo.DOC freshwater ranger LyndsayMurray said ‘This is our third year in a rowwith no new records of didymo. It’s a fantasticresult and shows that people’s willingness to‘Clean, Check and Dry’ all their gear continuesto help prevent didymo spreading further intothe pristine waters of Fiordland.’Ms Murraysaid that once didymo has established itself ina waterway there is no known way to eliminateit, so preventing it from spreading to new riversis critical.Didymo, first found in New Zealandduring 2004 in the lower Waiau River, has sincespread to many rivers and waterways in theSouthland Plains and along the eastern boundaryof Fiordland National Park (including Lakes TeAnau and Manapouri and the Eglinton River).Quick reaction by lead organisations (headedby Biosecurity New Zealand – MAFBNZ) andan engaging ‘Clean, Check, Dry’ campaign hasresulted in many Fiordland rivers remainingdidymo-free.Each year Fish & Game and DOCcollect water samples from selected sites andsend them to NIWA for analysis.Protection call for non-renewablewild rivers welcomedFMC and Forest and Bird both praised a recentreport on wild rivers and hydro-electricity,released by the Parliamentary Commissioner forthe Environment (PCE), Jan Wright.FMC President Richard Davies said,‘Trampers and climbers recognise thevulnerability of our remaining wild rivers, andthis report does an excellent job of identifyingthe policy changes that are required to give thema level of protection that befits their importanceto all New Zealanders.’Forest and Bird Advocacy Manager KevinHackwell said, ‘New Zealand’s wild riversshould not be paying the price for our demandfor energy. Our wild rivers are not a renewableresource. Dr Jan Wright has recognised that oncea river is dammed, it is lost forever. Her report isthorough and tackles the core issues.’Mountain Map WorkshopThe New Zealand Cartographic Society is hostinga workshop on mountain cartography at OPCTaurewa in September. Wellington cartographerGeoff Aitken will present a paper about themaking of the 1936 Tararua map (see: http://web.env.auckland.ac.nz/public/mcw2012/).The workshop will follow immediately after theNational Cartographic Conference (GeoCart’2012), held the preceding week in Auckland,see: http://web.env.auckland.ac.nz/public/geocart2012/.August 2012 • FMC Bulletin 19