Wednesday 24/02/2016 Sharplin Falls Reserve – Mount Somers summit return
Canterbury District, NEW ZEALAND
Participants: Stephen Davies (Photos), Sue Davies (Report)
As the weather was favourable we decided to try the summit again. We had done this walk two years ago in thick fog and saw no views at all.
We started the track just after 8:30am with a strong feeling of deja vu as we had walked out from the circuit on this track only two days earlier.
NOTE: An accidental pausing of the GPS tracking has resulted in the straight line section shown.
Max elevation: 1722 m
Total climbing: 1482 m
Total descent: -1456 m
Average speed: 2.59 km/h
Total time: 06:30:27
Its a long climb to the top, almost 1300m of vertical climbing and it is unrelenting.
As we left the trees we walked along ridgelines which offered excellent views. Closer to the top the trail was steep and gravelly which would prove more of a problem on the descent.
Canterbury Plains viewed during climb to summit
After less than three hours of continuous climbing we reached the summit and were rewarded with views in all directions. Steve ventured to look at the other side of the mountain and from different vantage points could see Ackland shelter and Pinnacles hut.
View to the west from the summit
Our descent was fast. It was easier to jog down in places and we arrived back at the car in plenty of time to have afternoon coffee and cake at the Stavely store which is highly recommended. It was a great workout and a very enjoyable day walk.
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