Waiau Pass

One of the hardest passes of the trail lay ahead of us and knew there would be snow. We slept that night in Blue Lake hut where there were a number of other people staying. Some of whom warned us about the pass in poor weather. In the morning there were five us us that wanted to try to get over the pass. For safety reasons I was keen to walk with the others. We set off but after a short while Madeleine couldn't keep up. I was anxious about what might lay ahead of us and was pushing her hard but to no avail. It was clear that Madeleine was at the limits of her physical ability and going beyond her previous experience. In the end I trailed behind with her but I was worried... luck was on our side and the weather was perfect and the conditions not dangerous. It was with relief that we made the top of the pass and could see that the way down was also manageable. As we walked the level of responsibility I had felt for someones 19 year old daughter was heavy on my shoulders. The views however were spectacular!