Pic 619

Distance: 14.4 km.  Elevation low/high/total: 183/524/528 m.

Difficulty:5.7/10  Scenic: 5.0/10

A relatively easy 14.5 km hike that departs from the GR1 Stage 1.  Pics linked above and gpx here.

Time to make that final hike of the year.  Hiking partners are away and busy and I've had a badly sprained ankle the past two months so I wanted something relatively safe for this solo outing.  The hike starts out near the end of the GR1 ,Stage 1.  After a few kilometers, the hike continues west when the GR1 turns north.  For the most part the hike follows a well developed path and there's little concern of making a wrong turn.  Typical scenery for this region; the weather was overcast and sometimes misty so it didn't make for the most beautiful hike but I also didn't overheat on this early summer hike.  The actual peak - Pic 619 and I've no idea why it's called that - is most notable for the view point it gives to the west and north toward Dumbea.  I'd love to return on a nice day.  No twisted ankle and no drama, I was out and back in something like 4.5 hours with a longish lunch break.

Sur les traces des anciens

Distance: 12.3 km.  Elevation low/high/total: 8/509/673 m.

Difficulty:8.2/10.  Scenic: 7.0/10

A solo hike at a locale 2+ hours south of Noumea near Yate.  Pics are linked above and the gpx track is here

More than two months have passed since I was on a hike in New Caledonia ... partly because I've been on duty travel a lot and partly because my  usual hiking buddy has a bum foot.  So, tired of waiting, yet ever aware of the advice against solo hiking, off I went on a beautiful Sunday morning.  Some annual event here called "Gigawatt" was going on and I came across several areas with hundreds of parked cars, thousands of people wearing bibs and walking/running the regions around Lake Yate.  However, I continued onward to my intended destination,l hike I read about online called "Sur les traces des anciens" (the tracks of the ancients).  It took 2+ hours to get to the trailhead due to the events along the way but I was finally on the hike by about 9:15.  The hike was tougher than I expected.  It was about 1/3rd red dirt/slippery gravel. 1/3rd knee high brush/razor grass that had to be bushwhacked through and 1/3rd "dry rain forest" rather dense but at least flat, unlike the other 2/3rds.  According to the online account,  there were two watering holes to look forward to.  Lack of rain the past two months pretty much eliminated those however ... one was bone dry the other shallow compared to the size of the hole though I jumped in anyway to ease some hiking pains.  All in all, not the greatest hike - fell a couple of times, got my legs cut up pretty badly but nothing major and I got back to the car within 5 hours of starting.  As the hot/dry season intensifies, looks like it will be back to river hiking.

Éoliennes de Plum, revisited

Distance: 8.6 km.  Elevation low/high/total: 6/434/504 m.

Difficulty:6.8/10.  Scenic: 8.3/10

A return trip for me, new for Paul and Kincso (on her last hike before returning for year two at Berkeley).  Gerard the unexpected giraffe was refound  Pics linked above and the gpx track is here.

Kincso leaves shortly for her sophomore year at Berkeley but we felt we hadn't done quite enough hikes during the three month time she spent in New Caledonia between school years.  So the three hiking amigos geared up for one last climb, to a relatively nearby place that I had previously visited and where I found an "unexpected giraffe".  High above the village of Plum is a plateau where some 20 wind turbines (éoliennes en français) supply a good part of Plum's energy needs.  The climb is a bit challenging, more because it's directly into the sun (in the morning), usually windless, there's no water source and half the terrain is slippery red dirt.  But we made it fine and then started looking for my old friend Gérard.  To my dismay he was not in his usual perch .... but then we found him lying on the ground, two broken legs and looking very weather worn.  We pieced him back together, fancied him up for some photos and returned him to his sentient post.  Best of luck for your sophomore year, Miss K!

Plateau de Dogny

Distance: 15.2 km.  Elevation low/high/total: 116/1002/1170 m.

Difficulty: 8.5/10.  Scenic: 10/10

Paul has been trying to get me on this hike for years.  Why did I wait so long?  Pics linked above and the gpx track is here.

Best hike in New Caledonia.  Obviously, I haven't done every hike in this country but I can't imagine there's a hike with a better payoff than this one.  The hike itself is tough but fair.  We (well ... I) added an extra 1 hr/2 km side track to it that we didn't need to do ... and it went through private property apparently as we had to crawl under a barbed wire fence at one pint ... but the 4 hour journey to the top is never technically difficult and proceeds through a shady forest the entire way.  You suddenly burst out of the forest right at the plateau and the view literally took my breath away.  You feel as though you are on top of the world .... New Caledonia's part of the world, at least.  There is a 6 km loop hike that we didn't have time to complete, but we did do the section of it that leads to a view point  where you can see the north coast of Grand Terre.  the plateau itself is stunning ... rolling hills that almost appear to be farmland ... the trail seems to be cut into brush and dug into the soil a bit.  Next trip I'll plan on camping overnight.  On a moonless, cloud free night the star show must be without equal.  First hike we've rated as 10/10 for either Difficulty or Beauty.

Up and Over Mt. Dore

Distance: 10.4 km.  Elevation low/high/total: 49/731/823 m.

Difficulty:6.8/10.  Scenic: 8.6/10

On a bright Sunday morning, MIss K and hiked up and over nearby Mt. Dore.  Album is linked to pic above and the gpx track is here.

Mt. Dore is impressive as seen from our kitchen door.  It looks tall.  And it's not that far away.  I convinced Miss K to come hike with me, only a bit differently from how I'd hiked it before.  We got Ildiko to come along to give us a ride to the north side of the mountain after we dropped my Land Rover at the south side.  This allowed us to walk up the slowly elevating mining trail to the peak.  The descent on the south side is quite steep (I'd hiked up and down that way in the past) and utilizes a lot of steps cut into the side of the mountain as well as rubber mats placed along much of the trail as a means of dealing with walking on the always slippery red mud.  We picked a lovely day and the views over Noumea and the ocean were stunning.

Mont Oueghi

Distance: 4.3 km.  Elevation low/high/total: 79/508/446 m.
Difficulty:6.2/10.  Scenic: 8.0/10

Beautiful crisp early Sunday morning hike.  A solo ascent but one that is fine done alone.  A small picture album can be found here and the gpx track is here.

Been awhile since I got out on a hike so when I saw the blue skies this morning (surprising given the absolute deluge we endured much of last night), I was on the road by 7 AM.  The trailhead is located almost directly across the street from the water source of Plum/Mt. Dore.  The hike is about 1.2 km along a ambling foothills and then a km scramble up a steep path of smooth and slippery rocks.  And in the morning it's directly into the sunlight.  But the views are gorgeous from the top and I summited, had lunch, and was back at the car before noon.  Not a hike for children but a good one for budding enthusiasts.  And a trip to the fresh water source fountains to fill the water bottles afterwards is a nice reward.

View over Ilôt Montravel

Distance: 14.2 km.  Elevation low/high/total: 89/298/507 m.

Difficulty:8.1/10.  Scenic: 8.5/10

With the hot weather residing, we embarked on a hike up along a mountain a ridge with nary a water hole. Somewhat challenging and varied terrain  Pics for the hike are here and the hike gpx track is here, the drive to get to the start of the hike is shown here.

It seems to be getting tougher and tougher to find the time to get out on a hike but Paul and I finally made it out of town today.   The drive is a good 1.5 hours from Noumea and includes about 25 km on red dirt roads winding among windmills.  The hike goes through brush (wear something to protect your lower legs), along some narrows ridges (watch your balance!) and up and down red clay hills.  Saw a few birds and several patches of pitcher plants.  The highlight though are the views you get from almost everywhere.  We were treated to alternating blue skies and brief rain squalls.  Paul did most of the hike on a bad ankle but braved it out.  There is no water anywhere along the hike so carry plenty.  At the end point, one can see a deep blue pool between the peninsula and Montravel.  It was very tempting to hike down and try a swim there but ... the hike already took longer than planned.

Chapeau du gendarme (up and over)

Distance: 6.2 km.  Elevation low/high/total: 79/690/364 m.

Difficulty:8.0/10.  Scenic: 7.6/10

A return to the scenic peak known both as Malaoui roi and Chapeau du gendarme.  Pics for the hike are linked to the above pic and the gpx track is here.

From many vantage points around Noumea one can see this distinctive peak, and most refer to it as Chapeau du gendarme.  My family and I climbed the peak some 18 months ago, parking at the Auberge des Koghi and we did a there and back hike.  However, it is possible to climb up the peak as we did and then descend on the south side where one would follow the visible red "scar" one sees from all over Noumea.  It requires two vehicles to do this and so Paul and I did jut that.  We parked one car at the south end - at the terminus of the Route de Yahouè - and then drove to the Auberge des Koghis.  Doing the hike in this fashion meant less climbing (~364M) and more descending (~738m).  In this manner, one could face Noumea and the sea on the way down.  However, the south side is quite steep and chains are installed at several places - without them it would have been near impossible to descend/ascend (at least for us).  Much of the route is slippery steep red mud and it rained much of the day. All in all, an excellent way to spend a work holiday.

Cascade de Tao

Distance: 2.0 km.  Elevation low/high/total: 10/123/130 m.

Difficulty:2.6/10.  Scenic: 9.0/10

North of Hienghene lovely waterfall is just a 2 km round trip.  Geotrack is here, album of pics is here.

The entire region surrounding Hienghene is beautiful and less visited by non-residents than most of the rest of Grand Terre simply because of the distance and relative lack of "nice" facilities.  No worries there - we camped just outside of Hienghene and this lovely waterfall is about a half hour drive (and includes a cable ferry river crossing!) north of Hienghene.  The hike is pretty much exactly 1 km to the falls (the path is a little tough to follow at the 3/4 point but persist) and there are several places to stop and swim along the way.  And many folks were swimming at various pools and riffles.  However, at the top, at the biggest pool where the falls end their drop ... there was only us!  It did start raining almost as soon as we arrived but the warm drizzle just added to the warm wet experience.  Very highly recommended as a hike - for the young or old!

Rivière des Pirogues

Distance: 8.6 km.  Elevation low/high/total: 62/113/180 m.

Difficulty:4.1/10.  Scenic: 8.3/10

Fun hike along a beautiful river - with swimming and fishing holes!Click pic above for picture album, gps track is here

It's quite warm here in New Caledonia  this time of the year.  Thus, Paul and I seek out hikes near water during the summer and the river system along the road to Yate is just spectacular for that purpose.  This particular river we explored is the Rivière des Pirogues, where one also finds the Pont des Japonais where we've been many times.  We drove Paul's 4WD truck some 5 km inland over a close-to-undriveable old mining/logging road.  The plan was to hike back to the main road, near the Scout Camp that Paul has long been involved with, and he would mountain bike back to his truck to get a little extra work out.  Well, the hike back from the parking spot was awesome and we found a couple of excellent swimming holes. We also encountered sizable fish populations feasting on the bits of granola bar we happened to drop in the water.  After some good swims and a bit of a hike we decided that wasn't enough hiking and we just hoofed it back to his truck to make it an overall 8+ km hike and drove back out.

I returned the following week on my own to try out the fishing.  Sadly, almost immediately upon arrival, a drenching rain began and basically continued all morning as I moved form fishing hole to fishing hole.  I did catch three of the little bass-like fish (there are bigger ones to be caught that would make a fine meal ...), and now I'm trying to identify them down to species level. 

A good hike to do with kids - it's flat easy to follow and so many places to swim even in times of low rainfall.