Mar 3

It had rained overnight and the mountains were shrouded in clouds. As we drove toward Arthur's Pass it started to rain, and it rained right into the settlement of Arthur's Pass although there was some blue sky showing. After visiting the DOC there, we decided to hike the Bealey Spur trail and started hiking at about 11 a.m.. We reached the hut in 1½ hours, and after a quick bite, we continued to the top of the ridge stopping at the bump that was definitely higher than the ridge behind it.

On our return hike we talked to a couple from Toronto whose three children had gone to Queen's. Then we ran into the couple that we had met at the top of Roy's Peak in Wanaka. This was a very nice hike with no rain; we could see heavy clouds to the west so it was probably raining in Arthur's pass. We stopped at Cave Stream and went through the cave again. This time I wore a bathing suit and carried our valuables high in my pack. We drove on to Methven to stay overnight; along the way we saw more venison farms.