I have been reading up on the DOC information about Mt Owen tracks and there is no information about traversing the mountain from the north to the south (or visa versa). The guides just say after summiting to go back out the way you came.
I plan to trek in from Nelson along the Karamea Track and head to Mt Owen from Rolling Junction. From there I wanted to continue over Mt. Owen to Murchison. Is this doable? If so, what's the best route?
Also, I will be hiking solo. How populated are the trails this time of year and what should I expect in terms of weather in December?
its dangerous, someone died there a year or so ago, they havent found his dody amongst the numerous chasms in the area
What about taking the side route from the Nuggety Creek track to the Branch Creek Hut and Fyfe River track? It looks like you have to find your own way for a short stretch around Culliford Hill. What's it like through that area?
I dont know, have you seen the detailed topomap for tracks in the area?
http://www.topomap.co.nz/NZTopoMap?v=2&ll=-41.538412,172.540535&z=13
I'm by no means an expert on this area, but it sounds as if it's the south side of Mt Owen which is the most dodgy, whereas the north side is more visited. From http://www.stuff.co.nz/national/8122025/Widened-search-can-t-find-tramper (describing part of the December 2012 search for that guy who's still not been found):
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Nelson Speleological Group president Andrew Smith said people travelling on the south side of Mt Owen "absolutely" needed their wits about them.
Smith said the group had been asked to help with the search, and a caver was on the mountain advising the police.
"It's not too bad a country to find your way through if you know where you're going, but if you don't, it's tough."
He said the area was one of only two places in the world with glaciated marble, and this made it very attractive to trampers.
"The Lord of the Rings [producers] knew what they were doing when they took their movies up there."
"It's not like another area in New Zealand. It's not just a normal tramping area."
The terrain included marbled slats and lots of holes, from one metre in diameter to much larger.
"Some go down only a few metres, but some go down quite a bit more." There were also sharp edges in some areas, which was quite concerning, he said.
"Even just a simple fall could injure him quite easily."
Route finding was also extremely difficult, and it was quite easy to get lost, even in such a small area, Mr Smith said. Maps of the area showed only 20m contours.
"There's a lot that happens within 20 metres that can't possibly be shown on a map."
The weather was also as variable as in any other alpine area, but Mr Levy would at least have warm temperatures and a variety of possible shelters on his side, he said.
The difficulties with the south side of the mountain were not widely known, as the north side was an easier route, Mr Smith said. But experienced trampers would take an emergency beacon if they were in an area they did not know well.
A long time ago I have taken the 'track' down from the tops to branch creek hut - it was virtually non-existant at the top end then so we just navigated our way. Would be worthwhile checking with the local DOC office if/when the tracks have been cut/marked.
To go over the top (there are a couple of unmarked routes)requires full visiability and excellant navigation skills. A good knowledge of the area also helps. The area is riddled with caves/chasms and many of these and routes to them are marked with cairns so not a good idea to follow cairns on the south side of Mt Owen. The weathered marble is very abrasive, brushing past it will graze skin or rip clothes - falling over on it would hurt a lot.
Very few people on the south side of Mt Owen, Granity Pass area is popular so likely to be people around there. Not so sure about Nuggety/Fyfe area - not many people in the log book at branch creek hut when we went for a look. DOC may know what the current useage levels are.
http://www.ctc.org.nz/index.php?option=com_tripreport&task=view&id=612
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http://www.mygpsroutes.com/walks/new_zealand/tasman/Fyfe-River-Route_6098.htm
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http://webcache.googleusercontent.com/search?q=cache:im_MzK-z5C0J:www.autc.org.nz/sites/default/files/Footprints%252005.pdf+&cd=10&hl=en&ct=clnk&gl=nz
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http://tramper.co.nz/?8821
The above sites may be of interest ....
About 5 years ago, the Missus and I went up Mt Owen from the Owen River (south of Mt Owen). There is a track to the tops from the river and from there we picked our way through the karst along the tops to a basin, west of Mt Owen and camped by some tarns. It was as easy scramble to the top from here.
We then sidled around Replica Hill to north and gained the NW ridge that led to the track to Branch Creek hut and walked out down the Fyfe river.
It was a nice circuit and in theory you could use either the Fyfe or the Owen river to exit Mt Own to the south. However I would advise a bit of caution on the Owen river route as navigating the karst south of Mt Owen is a bit like glacier travel, there are a lot of slots and it takes longer than you think to find a way through.
The tracks I mentioned were well marked 5 years ago. Check with DOC on current status.
