Distance: 19.1 km. Elevation low/high/total: 15/372/481 m.
Difficulty: 7.2/10. Scenic: 6.1/10
One of our longer day hikes, quite varied: from brutal bushwhacking through razor grass to refreshing rain forest to a stroll along a paved road. Pics linked above, gpx here or via track below
We wanted to change things up from the crushingly vertical nature of the previous hike (Tour des Sommets). So after scouting about a bit, found this lengthy but seemingly relaxed hike and, after a 90 minute drive from Noumea, Paul and I got on the trail by 9 AM. And finally back off the trail about 8.5 hours later. This one is varied - the first 9 km are easy-peasy, as you stroll along an old access road of some kind, then along an actual real road. But then you get into the fun. 5+ km of essentially no marked trail and the entire way is knee high razor grass and short trees with stiff branches. I made the mistake of wearing shorts - thought of uploading a photo of my bloody shredded shins but we're keeping this family friendly.
The hike follows the riverbed of the now deceased Yate River which gave up the ghost so that artificial Lake Yate could have life ... curiously beginning about the time that both Paul and I began life .... let's just say 50+ years ago. the section nearest the dam is fascinating - old riverbed littered with boulders that apparently get moved around every so often when they have vent the Lake due to excess water buildup. The rest of the time it's mostly dry (save for the occasional rainstorm runoff from nearby mountains downstream of the dam). We were in the area at high tide and a surprisingly lengthy section fills up with seawater. At the end of the hike we were greeted with a near full moon so this was a day of a higher than usual high tide. The final 5 km of the hike are actually really pleasant "normal" hiking through forest with soft earth underneath, birds chirping and no sharp rocks/slippery mud/unfordable rivers etc. All in all, an OK hike and one I'd do again (though wearing long pants).
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