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You may have recently heard of the wilding pine problems around the country. Unfortunately the Molesworth has a fair dosing of this problem, there's a few dotted around the flatlands but once you get into the highcountry it becomes more apparent in areas. Some of these infections are from past windbreaks, some are from the neighboring Leatham and some are seeding from seedlings.
Despite great efforts on ground and heli to eradicate them they are pesky, resilient, and are scattered far and wide. It such a shame to see a beautiful alpine environment overcome with these and other native species suffocated - the Leatham is an example of this.
Former manager Jim Ward understood the problem well having managed the Molesworth for 24 years and was managing and advocating for more to address this issue. Alongside this Jim also had a very progressive future for the Molesworth in mind, a concept that would build on what they had started, "a station for the nation" which is a very refreshing idea considering how difficult it is to access a lot of our land. I spoke to Jim briefly a few years ago and he had great ideas for bike trails linking hard to access areas up through spectacular countryside alongside many other great concepts. It is very disappointing that he did not succeed with his vision.
Seven Sharp interview with Mark & Jim about the future of the Molesworth - view.
The future of the Molesworth - view.
At a very early stage is Birdcage Hut, with the first heavy base layers laid down and the initial details emerging.
Situated towards the head of the Cass River near Lake Tekapo Birdcage Hut is nestled against the Haszard Ridge on the valley floor at just under 1100 metres above sea level.
This hut is a derelict one...
After this latest snow dump we feel so lucky to have spent time just before it immersing ourselves in the Molesworth. Access in winter can be a challenge, snow and ice on the passes and we just heard that the rivers in Rainbow got blown out after the last rain/snow storm I imagine these are impassable now as they get gauged out very quickly.
It's very cool to see others just as passionate about the area as us - when we turned up it made me laugh to see another ute had skis in the back (although they had biked in) nothing was going to stop them going in! It would have been a very long...
I'm getting into the finer detail now on the Poolburn Dam painting. The morning mist rising off the cool water as the sun warmed it was a challenge. It adds a great mood and is only visible for such a short time early in the morning so I really wanted to include this...
