Forêt de Thy redux

Distance: 14.3 km.  Elevation low/high/total: 18/248/646 m.

Difficulty:5.8/10.  Scenic: 9.1/10

Two years after our first foray to this lovely spot, we return ... but htis time we had three dogs with us.  But it was as troublefree and fantastic as the first time.  Click pic for album, the geotrack is here

Paul is more cautious than I am.  So, between us that probably makes for a good danger/safe/fun balance on our hikes.  This particular one was our most "controversial" in the three years we've been hiking together.  On a lovely late October spring day, we headed off on this already-done hike, that is one of my favorites. The issue is that the destination is deep within, adjacent to actually, the tribal area of one of the more combative tribes agitating for immediate independence.  As a result, there is some fear of trouble should we encounter members of the local tribe, or even have our car targeted on the drive to the hike location.  Nothing happened to us, and the hike was fantastic.  Later, upon return, we heard that there had been trouble with the tribe that day and the road was closed.  But we missed that.  My guess is we don't do this one again but should tensions ease, I highly recommend this hike to one and all.  It's a bit lengthy but not difficult and the "swimming pool" is a fantastic payoff.

Mine des Barbouilliers

Distance: 5.4 km (hike only).  Elevation low/high/total: 30/424/462 m.

Difficulty:3.5/10  Scenic: 5.8/10

Finally out and about on a new hike.  Pics are here and gpx is here

Well, it took 5 months, but finally Paul and I found a common time to join up for a hike.  Given that I just had (another) knee surgery, we choose a relatively easy hike.  Paul and I both have a new dog and they are amazingly similar looking.  Mine is the small one above, a female named Carlos (I didn't name her) and his is a male named Kenai (like the Alaska peninsula/river).  The trek was a slow climb up an old logging road to a long abandoned mining site.  the weather was so-so and even started to rain a little at the end.  But, with my recovering knee and Paul's problematic ankle, this was just the right level of difficulty and hopefully we'll be back to bigger hikes soon.

Mont Tonta

Distance: 12.4 km (hike only).  Elevation low/high/total: 27/1122/1426 m.

Difficulty:9.2/10  Scenic: 8.8/10

A rather serious hike (by our standards).  Photos are here, hike gpx is here and full gpx including required biking and 75 minutes of wrong way hiking here.

My favorite kind of adventure involves a good dose of "mis" to make it more memorable.  Well, this outing had a bit of everything.  First, there was gaining access to the Mont Tonta hike itself. The trailhead  is along a heavily used mining road ... but the road is closed to the public ... or at least public cars.  Paul knew somebody who knew somebody and we learned we could throw our bikes over the barrier gate and bike the 5.6 km to the start of the hike. So, knowing it would be a hot and humid day, we got out of Noumea by 6 AM and had all gathered at the gate before 8 AM.  A new guy, Fabrice, joined me, Paul and sorta new guy Robert.  Fabrice is a bit out of our age class, but that turned out to be a good thing,  So, off we set .... on a 75 minute wrong way start to the hike, gaining 112 meters in the wrong direction.  By the time we figured out we were off track, we returned to the very start of the trailhead and officially started the hike at 9:30.  Not ideal.  The hike is hard (for us older guys).  There is no shade anywhere and it is relentlessly vertical, usually at a 30% incline,  I don't mind admitting that Paul and I considered not summiting and after a twisted ankle fall, I was ->  <- that close to calling it quits.  

But we decided to have lunch there, at about 650 meters (a bit more than half way up) and we sent the oldest and youngest guys on up ahead to summit and Paul and I dragged behind.  BUT WE MADE IT!  The odd thing was that the top 100 meters of the mountain was completely encased in dense fog/cloud and so what should have been a spectacular view instead was just a sea of white.  Didn't matter to me and Paul, we could now check Mont Tonta off our list.  Good fun with good people and I had a lovely river bath back at the base of the mountain.  There is nary a drop of water along the trail so if you ever do this hike, especially in the heat, take LOTS of water.  I went through 3+ liters on the way up and had to pace myself to conserve a bit for the return.  I also placed a geocache at the top (linked here) in an old maintenance or sleeping hut.  Up until 1970, radio equipment for the Tontouta airport was stationed here and there remains not only the former access road (very slippery and nowhere near driveable) but lots of old pieces of junk metal and such.

Hiking (almost) to Camp Bloc

Distance: 18.2 km.  Elevation low/high/total: 18/154/561 m.

Difficulty:7.1/10  Scenic: 7.8/10

A relatively flat but semi-lengthy hike past the Marmites de diable.  Photo album is here and the gpx is here

A somewhat overcast Sunday morning made better by the fact that six other folks joined me for a day hike!  In addition to usual suspect Paul, who brought two grandkids of his - Djamila, age 16 and Donovan, age 12, we also had Robert, Tim and Andy.  In a light drizzle we commenced at the Dumbea river crossing by about 8:30 AM.  The river was high enough that we had to wade, shin deep, to begin the hike and then it was 3 hours of nice hiking.  The trek to the Marmites is mostly broad and flat, interrupted near the end by a path failure and a tricky crossing of the hill side.  That the rocks were wet and slippery and one wrong move would cause a twisted ankle or head first fall made the going a bit slow.  But we reached the crystal clear pools of the Marmites de diable in pretty good time and everyone had a grand swim.  We decided to give it a shot to make the next 5 km or so to get to Camp Bloc - no idea what's there, that's just how it's labeled on the map - but we got maybe halfway there from the Marmites and decided we'd gone far enough.  We were 9 km into the hike and the path was non-existent in many places so very tough, and treacherous clamoring over rocks.  We returned to the Marmites for more swimming and then, of course, 12 year old Donovan wanted to do the BIG JUMP into the biggest Marmite (pool).  A fun day and I think a good introduction to our day hiking.  Total distance hiked was just over 18 km and we were back by 4 in the afternoon.

Pic N'Ga

Distance: 4.5 km.  Elevation low/high/total: 36/262/243 m.

Difficulty:4.4/10  Scenic: 8.0/10

An easy 4.5 km round trip hike to the highest point on Isle of Pines.  Pics are here and the gpx is here

We came to the lovely Isle of Pines for  five days of rest and relaxation.  What we got was a lot of rain.  But, on our next to last day there was a break in the weather and so we took advantage to head out on one of the few hikes on the island.  Fantastic views the higher you go and from the top you see almost the entire island.  Found a geocache up top, took fun photos, had lunch and carried on.  One of the vacation highlights.

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.

La forêt de Thy

Distance: 13.8 km.  Elevation low/high/total: 18/248/646 m.

Difficulty:5.8/10.  Scenic: 9.1/10

A hike into an area that is generally avoided.  But the payoff - a fantastic "baignade" made it worthwhile.  Click pic for album, the geotrack is here

First hike in a month and a very nice one.  the region is not one that is often hiked apparently.  But we had an uneventful time and ended up at a baignade (swimming hole) that appears to have been in use since the early 1900s, likely established a "resort" area for mining crew.   (Note added after some research: The spot is apparently called the "Grosses Gouttes" and we found a written record of Scouts visiting there in 1935, but no discussion of who built the place.  We also got more confirmation that this is a dangerous place to visit given tension with the nearby tribes). There are steps and concrete sitting area built into the hillside lining one side of the natural pool.  No one else was there except us and a sizable number of very hungry fish.  The hike is relatively flat; the flora is as diverse and interesting as anywhere I've seen on the island.  We saw giant taro,a bamboo forest, picked and ate wild raspberries and even passed through a birch tree grove.  Definitely worth a return visit.

Riviere We Puci

Distance: 5.8 km.  Elevation low/high/total: 105/135/103 m.

Difficulty:3.6/10.  Scenic: 7.3/10

A solo hike this time, in the vicinity of the Pont des Japonais.  This river (We Puci) is better than the one crossed by the Pont (Pirogues).  Click pic for photo album, the geotrack is here.

Just needed to get out for a simple hike so decided to return to the region near the Pont des Japonais.  I'd identified a different access point from which I could hike along the Riviere des Pirogues to return to the great swimming hole near the Pont du Japanais we'd found last year.  But ultimately I failed at finding the entrance track.  Instead, I found a different track and just 4-wheel drove towards the river, which turned out to to be the Riviere We Puci,  until I didn't feel safe driving further.  But I was able to get within a 100 meters of the river so it was grand.  Two swimming holes provided welcome relief from the rather warm conditions and next time I'll explore further upstream.  The trail is narrow at times and long pants, or at least protection for the shins is suggested.  Besides the vistas, there are still lots of old RR track beams and crumblingcreek-crossing wooden bridges and even an old RR car all along the trail.

Vallee N'Go

Distance: 11.5 km.  Elevation low/high/total: 75/453/586 m.

Difficulty: 5.1/10.  Scenic: 5.2/10

An easy 11.5 km stroll.  Click on picture to view album.The geotrack can be downloaded here. A slightly longer track, showing the access road to hike start is here.

After a lengthy much-needed vacation off the rock, I returned and easily convinced Paul to accompany me on another hike.  We knew this one would be relatively easy but ... but it was still great to get out on this lovely day. Before setting out, we did a bit of four wheel driving in Frog and some exploration around the tree farm behind which this walk started.

We made the hike a bit more interesting than would happen by sticking to the main track ... which is essentially comprised of various old mining access roads, in various states of disrepair.  We hiked up one of the early hills tot he nearby windmill farm and found a great set of views and worked up a sweat.  Afterwards, it was all downhill to we finally recrossed the N'Go river which we first saw where we left Frog.

La Couvelee

Distance: 7.5 km.  Elevation low/high/total: 53/267/495 m.

Difficulty: 7.0/10.  Scenic: 6.9/10

An "upside down" hike compared to usual in that we parked up the mountain and bushwhacked down to a river.  Click the pic for a photo album and the geotrack is here.  A more complete geotrack with the route to the top of the hang gliding take off location is here.

The next river valley over from Dumbea is called La Couvelee.  That there is a hike there is not well advertised.  Nevertheless, we tracked it down and Paul and I set off for our more-or-less-regular bi-monthly hike.  the day was not promising, weather-wise, so we diverted from the start of our hike to explore the nearby mountain top which is an authorized hang gliding take off location, complete with specialized track and wind sock.  The drive up there was a bit dicey, but then that's why I got a Land Rover.  Need to upgrade my tires though, some of the slipping and sliding along the rain-coated cliff edge road was a bit panic inducing.  Up at the summit, the weather whistled by and we enjoyed the mist and drizzle.  

The hike itself started a bit further down the mountain and was unusual in that we started off hiking down the mountain, literally bushwhacking our way for a about a kilometer through dense brush and trees with nary a trail to follow.  The geotrack shows how different our return route, bushwhacking uphill, was from the downhill part.  In all, not a long hike but our legs got pretty beat up and it was exhausting enough fighting uphill at the end of the hike that we feel we got in a full day's worth.  And the swimming down at the river was sa-weet!

Chutes de la Madeleine - Sentier Botanique

Distance: 3.5 km.  Elevation low/high/total: 238/259/37 m.

Difficulty: 1.6/10.  Scenic: 8.9/10

A short but fun and scenic hike to a waterfall and a botanical stroll.  Click pic for album, gpx file is here.

It's New Caledonia Day weekend so we had a couple of extra days off.  With the choice of either an extra French lesson or a hike with the 'rents, Iris chose the hike.  We chose a relatively easy one and one that we attempted once before but got rained out.  While the weather threatened initially, it turned out to be beautiful. So we drove to the Netcha area and walked to the Madeleine waterfall (Chutes de la Madeleine) and strolled along the Botanical Path (Sentier Botanique).  Just lovely and peaceful.  Highly recommended as a hike with kids.  While it costs (400 XPF), that also gets you admission to Netcha which has a lovely swimming area a few km away, though we opted to skip that as it's not quite swimming weather yet so early in the spring as it is.