We arrived at our lodge which was right at the base of the mountains. And standing on the front porch... were Dan and Poppy!! It was like seeing old relatives again! All 5 of us were so excited to see the two of them again (and they to see us) and were thrilled that our group was halfway back together. The rooms only slept 4 and since Dan and Poppy already had a room, that left the 5 of us, so I volunteered to be the odd one out and sleep in a room with just randoms (all girls by request). Once we got situated the boys went on a walk up the side of the mountain which is the toughest walk they have. Us girls went to the Hooker Valley walk, which is their easier walk. Unfortunately, almost as soon as we arrived at our lodge, the weather started turning and by the time we had gotten just 10 minutes into the walk it started raining. Poppy had to turn back because she didn't have a waterproof jacket with her, so just Lea, Jeanet, and I continued.
I'm not sure how they can call this their "easier" walk because honestly it was tricky and tiring. The majority of the path is loose rocks (ginormous, big, small, gravel size... any size and it was there). While the majority of it was flat, the hills that were there were somewhat serious. Oh and did I mention it went from drizzling to pouring rain with intense winds in a matter of minutes? By the time we were about about 3/5 of the way through we were very cold and fairly soaked, but luckily the rain let up and the clouds were slowly but surely breaking up. If I had been on my own... I probably would have turned back a long time ago. The scenery, regardless of the rain, was absolutely exquisite. The rushing rivers/streams, the rocks, the hills, the bridges, the clouds, the glaciers, every piece played it's part in the ever evolving masterpiece. Unfortunately, due to the nature of the path, I had to spend more time looking at the ground than up at the scenery.
We had finally reached our destination and we were all pleased that we had stuck it out. The wind at this point however was extremely intense. You could lean into the wind and it would hold you up. After we took some photos we went and hid behind a rock to grab a quick snack, drink, and rest before heading back to the lodge. The walk back seemed way longer than the walk in, which was surprising to me since the walk in involved awful weather. Regardless of the length of time, it was a gorgeous walk now that I could see through my glasses with the rain gone ;)
Since the bus had dropped us off at the start of the walk, we didn't really take note of how long the walk back to the lodge would be. We cut across a field (that a few others had as well apparently because a skinny path of dried grass had been flattened) to the road. The whole way I was cracking jokes about hitchhiking with one of the people who had their cars parked back at the start of the walk. We started walking on the road towards the lodge and that was when the real distance set in. The idea of hitchhiking started becoming more and more enticing. We were all joking around about it as a car drove by, then another, then another - making comments on how many spare seats they had or how quickly they made it to the end of the road, etc etc. I was walking fairly slowly because I was just exhausted. The girls were walking on the path just off the side of the road, but I was so over walking on gravel and loose path that I was walking on the pavement on the side of the road. I could hear when I car was approaching from behind me I would look over my shoulder a couple times just to make sure they saw me and make sure they were driving in the lines and such so they wouldn't hit me. Well, I had looked twice and all was good and I was facing forward when I heard the car slowing. I moved further off the side of the road as I noticed there were two women in the car - one in mid/late 40s and one in her late 20s. They rolled down the window and asked if we wanted a ride. I could tell they had just completed the walk as well. I said yes and thanked them and opened the back door and hollered at the girls to come over. When they realized what was going on they came running over to hop in. The ladies were really nice chatting about travels, the walk, etc. They dropped us off right at the bottom of the driveway to our lodge and we thanked them and said good-bye. For as long as we were in that car... I can't imagine having to walk that entire distance after having just walked for 3 hours in the valley. Honestly, that walk back to the lodge would have probably ruined the experience for me.
Once we got in we made and ate dinner and I went back to my room. I ended up falling asleep going through my photos. The girls came for my computer at some point and I let them borrow it and then chatted with two of the girls in my room that were from England, both named Chloe (traveling together). I couldn't help but think of the funny introductions that had taken place and how if Nikki and I were to travel together that that would be us giving the funny/awkward introductions. Anyways, later on I went and got my computer, had a quick chat with Max, and then went back to my room and continued chatting with the Chloes. It was really cool because although we had just met within the past couple of hours or so the three of us were able to carry on one heck of a conversation for quite some time about tons of different stuff and 2/3 of it wasn't related to traveling, which most conversations with other backpackers are. Once they headed to bed I finished with the pictures, packed, prepared for the morning, showered (this place a full size ensuite bathroom which was ridiculously amazing!!), and went to bed.
I got up in the morning, had breakfast, checked out, and headed to the lobby to wait for the bus. Once it arrived I claimed our seats in the back once again and then hopped off to enjoy the beautiful sunrise behind the mountains. It was a beautiful pinkish orange with billowy clouds and a blue sky greeting us this morning before we headed off to our next destination.
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