''Summit fever'', ''get-homeitis'' ... the list of tramping hazards can be lengthened by human nature. But that doesn't mean the great outdoors can't be great fun. Shane Gilchrist reports.
Chris Smith was most likely not pondering existentialism when he ambled along Oreti Beach a few years ago. Yet, based on the outcome of that stroll, he did find some truth in the words of German philosopher Friedrich Nietzsche, who once said: ''All truly great thoughts are conceived while walking''.
While training for a three-day tramp on the Milford Track, Mr Smith remembered a television documentary about Everest Base Camp. It fired his imagination, and his legs. After all, his new-found destination was 5185m above sea level.
"Something in my head clicked,'' Mr Smith recalls.
"I made the comment while walking along Oreti Beach one night, `wouldn't it be good to trek to Everest Base Camp'. And just like that it happened.''
His wife Jo, who also thought it a ''great idea'', was nevertheless slightly more circumspect: ''I decided to wait and see how we went tramping together. Luckily, we had a fantastic time and after that set about researching and training for Everest Base Camp.''
Having completed their Everest trip in 2010, employing the expertise of Wanaka-based alpine guiding company Adventure Consultants, the 43-year-olds immediately began planning their next challenge - to scale the 5895m Mt Kilimanjaro in Tanzania. In six weeks they will head to Nepal; specifically, the Kumbu Trek route, where Mr Smith will attempt to reach the 6200m summit of Island Peak. In short, the Invercargill pair have put plenty of thought into their outdoor adventures, exercising mind as well as muscle.
And that is crucial. Because even in the relatively lower altitudes of New Zealand's back country, there is plenty to consider.
Human nature, that broad expanse of behaviour that includes priorities, decision-making and a trait known as ''summit fever'', is to be considered on the same list of dangers as blizzards, avalanches and floods.
Oh, there's also ''get-homeitis''. Heard the one about the woman who risked getting her family across a swollen river because of a looming play rehearsal?
Antony Pettinger, the president of the Otago Tramping and Mountaineering Club, emphasises research and planning can be the difference between an enjoyable time in the bush and days of stress.
"You should get as much information on an area before you go. Look at the proposed route on a map to work out whether there are rivers and/or mountain passes to negotiate. Watch the forecasts, though they can sometimes be wrong. For longer trips we would always take a mountain radio because that daily forecast is comprehensive.''
Mr Pettinger, who started tramping as a 9- or 10-year-old in the late 1970s, says patience is also important, as is the ability to lead, or be led.
"I think it comes down to leadership. And it depends on your party. If you've got three experienced people then it is leadership by consensus. But if you have a novice in the party who is strong-willed, then the leader needs to exert their judgement. Some bad calls can be fatal.
"I tell people to have the courage to make a decision to turn back in good time, and if you have a cut-off time, then stick to it. Sometimes you do need to turn around.''
Given tomorrow marks the first day of spring, it is important to note seasonal issues: snow remains a danger; as it melts it increases the risk of avalanches while also raising the level of rivers.
According to Water Safety Council statistics, an average of three people die every year while attempting to cross a river in New Zealand. The massive catchments feeding many of the upland river systems mean they can rise quickly. In New Zealand, more than three-quarters of those who have drowned while trying to cross a river attempted to do so while that river was in flood.
Still, spring can be a good time to go tramping, Mr Pettinger says, providing people plan correctly.
"If you make good judgement calls as you go, then it's often a good trip.''
Mr Pettinger says he prefers to get away from the more popular tracks. In fact, sometimes he goes where no track even exists.
"The way I've been promoting the club during open days and so on is that we could be the next step beyond doing the Routeburn or the Greenstone, those sort of tracks. It's a way for people to get more confidence and maybe learn skills such as using a map and compass.
"We have some newer members and I have taken them on trips that involve going into areas where we might start on a track then go off to a place where there are no tracks,'' he says, mentioning Tiel Creek, near Makarora, a route that runs from Siberia Valley, between the Wilkin and the Young rivers and comes out at Makarora River.
"Some of those people had never been off-track and said it was the hardest thing they had ever done, but they felt great.
"There was no danger. The weather was perfect that day; we had plenty of daylight and we were travelling in a group of eight. These people weren't inexperienced; they just hadn't done anything like that before.''
The valleys, passes and bush tracks of New Zealand attracted nearly 900,000 international visitors between April 2012 and March 2013, according to Tourism New Zealand.
However, because visitors are not required to ''sign in'' to access many of the routes, it is difficult to accurately quantify how many locals or tourists use our back country. Still, statistics on hut use (obtained from hut book entries and track counters installed at some sites) offer some insight.
In Mt Aspiring National Park, the Department of Conservation's (Doc) Wanaka area office collected the following figures for July 2011-June 2012: Raspberry Flat car park, 5800 vehicles; Raspberry Flat stile (access to West Matukituki and Rob Roy valleys), 27,000 visitors; Rob Roy Track, 20,000 visitors; Cascade Saddle, 500 visitors (estimated).
Elsewhere, the Routeburn Track, listed by Lonely Planet as one of the top 10 treks in the world in 2011, now attracts more than 13,000 walkers a year; nearly two-thirds of those are from overseas.
That latter statistic dovetails into another issue: awareness - or ignorance - of New Zealand's back-country conditions.
ACC accepted more than 3500 tramping-related injury claims in 2012 and a similar number the previous year. In 2012-13 LandSAR volunteers responded to 329 incidents involving either lost, missing or injured people throughout New Zealand. Of these, about 70 call-outs were in Otago or Southland.
The safety of the Cascade Saddle, in Mt Aspiring National Park, came under the spotlight earlier this month when Otago-Southland coroner David Crerar stated there had been ''far too many deaths'' in the area.
His comments came during an inquest into the death of German tourist Frank Spychalski, a 38-year-old software engineer for Google, who died on November 29, 2012, from head injuries after falling about 200m from the Cascade Saddle down a steep gully.
Mr Spychalski's body was located in the most high-risk area of the Cascade Saddle, a steep section just before the ''Pylon'', deemed particularly treacherous when covered in snow. He was the second man to die in the area in 18 months, and one of at least 12 to have died there in recent years.
At Mr Crerar's request, a review of the area was undertaken by representatives from Doc, Wanaka police, Search and Rescue, New Zealand Mountain Guides and Alpine Cliff Rescue in March. They looked at safety options including signs, structures and education. The group felt an independent review of the route was a good idea and said signs should more clearly convey warnings.
A Mountain Safety Council instructor and experienced tramper, Stuart Thorne, of Wanaka, had spoken to Mr Spychalski about his plans to go over the Cascade Saddle and advised him against attempting the route without an ice axe and crampons. (Mr Spychalski had neither. Also, the coroner found he had been wearing shoes designed for trail running.)
Mr Thorne knows what he is talking about. A former Doc employee (he retired three years ago), he has been involved in search and rescue operations in Mt Aspiring National Park for more than 30 years. He has also done more than 65 ascents of Cascade Saddle and was a member of the team that explored route options to the saddle from Matukituki Valley.
"If you get a good day in the summer, then Cascade Saddle is a brilliant place; it's relatively straightforward,'' Mr Thorne says.
"But, the problem with these high-altitude places is when you get poor conditions, such as low cloud or fog, rain or cold southerlies. That then makes places such as Cascade Saddle, Rabbit Pass and Gillespie Pass quite difficult for a lot of people.
"The problem is a lot of people attempt these passes in the shoulder seasons, rather than in summer. A lot of people have the ability to go over these places, but only in perfect conditions. Get some bad weather and they would be completely out of their comfort zone.''
Mr Thorne says although outdoor equipment requirements might be obvious to some, others seem more intent on sightseeing than safety.
''I've been a hut warden and I've seen people arrive not equipped for any bad weather.
''Also, a lot of these routes are written up in guidebooks and travel books, which don't contain as many warnings as, say, Doc would put in its track guides. A lot of overseas people don't seem to worry about getting advice from Doc staff or hut wardens. Some do, but a lot don't,'' Mr Thorne says.
''Overseas people come to New Zealand and are often on a tight schedule. They might arrive in the shoulder reason and have a list of things they want to tick off. They just go for it. It doesn't matter what the weather is doing.''
Geoff Wayatt, who has been climbing mountains for more than 40 years and has his own Wanaka alpine guiding business, Mountain Recreation, urges those seeking more adventurous outings to join a tramping club or alpine club.
''That was the old way of doing things. You'd link up with friends or clubs. Don't just look at a guidebook. Instead, look at whom you could be doing it with.''
And, for those contemplating going beyond the bushline, he has a warning: ''Don't get locked into summit fever.
''Just take a rock climber's attitude: the process of doing the climb is more important than reaching the top.''
For more information, visit: www.mountainsafety.org.nz Recommended reading: Bushcraft: Outdoor Skills for the NZ Bush (available from website above).
