This is a vid my mate Rob put together from a recent mission to the Waiatoto via the Wilkin/Pearson saddle route. Another south island must-do. We struck the river in flood but it was still awesome. Overall I’d say it is a little more challenging trip than Brodrick pass/Landsborough river.
Thanks for posting! A great adventure and really informative/helpful for future trips there. Loved the look of Waterfall Flat. Keen to do the trip just to see that area - beautiful. Certainly looks like you guys are really well equipped/sorted for PR missions. Well done on the trip and to Rob on the video.
Thanks Mark! I really enjoy following your adventures and watching your high quality videos also! Waterfall Flat is definitely a highlight of this trip. Another great trip (but shorter and more straightforward) that still takes in Waterfall Flat would be to head up the East Matukituki over Rabbit Pass, down the Waterfall face (carefully!) and paddle out on the Wilkin. This would probably be better as an early summer trip when the Wilkin is running a bit higher. Gear for these trips is still being refined but our packs were light enough (15-16kg) to move comfortably on steep, rough ground on this trip. A lighter rescue PFD is next on the list.
Cheers Trev and thanks for that info. Will be very keen to hear what lightweight rescue PFD you end up getting. As our standard rescue vests weigh approx 1200g Jen and I were looking last year for something lightweight with harness/rated shoulders and reasonably compact for an overseas trip but couldn’t find anything suitable. In the end we just got Astral YTVs that are much more compact and less than half the weight but unfortunately don’t have a chest harness or rated shoulder loops. They are also still bulkier and heavier than I would like. I may end up adapting ours to add these additions although it would be awkward to do this on the YTVs, particularly as it would potentially reduce access to the pockets. Well done on getting your total weight that light!