Jollie Brook Tramp

Where? Lake Sumner forest park, 1.5hrs north of Christchurch

This 2 day tramp is definitely one for the must-do list! The DOC website was initially a bit misleading as it said the track was ‘Advanced/Expert’ but for the vast majority it is a flat walk on tussocky plains with an hour or two of bush bashing and stream crossings just before the Jollie Brook hut.

Our group of 3 were of moderate fitness and made the trek from the Sisters Swingbridge carpark to Gabriel Hut near Lake Sumner in about 3hrs at a leisurely plod. We had initially planned to stay at this hut but after a quick discussion with a couple we met on the way, we quickly changed our minds after hearing about the infestation of mice and rats.

The extra 2hrs of walking to the Jollie Brook Hut was well worth it as it was located in a beautiful clearing right next to the rushing Jollie stream with highwalls of beech forest surrounding us.The walk itself into Jollie Brook was fairly relaxed; however there was at least 15 stream crosses required which tested our balance and meant sodden boots for the remainder of our trek but this was a small price to pay for the beautiful scenery that we encountered.

There was lots of very friendly birdlife in this section of the track, with fantails and robins regularly checking up on our
progress. One even perched itself on my fishing rod and seemed to have no fear of humans. By thispoint we had been walking for 5hrs and began dreaming of our hot dinners and a blazing fire. Finally the tell-tale swingbridge loomed ahead and we began to run towards the campsite. Panic began to set in as it soon became apparent there was a very large group of young people already setting up camp in the clearing. Upon further inspection, we were very relieved to realise they were a bunch of high school kids attempting their silver and gold Duke of Edinburgh awards by sleeping in bivvies and cooking on an open fire. This meant we had the whole hut to ourselves and 7 bunks to choose fromwhich was a relief to say the least as we had not brought a tent with us (rookie mistake).

With the fire coming along nicely us girls went out to the woodshed to chop up some more firewood while we left the boy in charge of cooking; a nice role reversal! Zena and I had a hilarious time trying to chopthe wood with a very heavy steel axe that had a pretty blunt head. We eventually managed to makesome headway once we chose slightly smaller logs and had some help from a strapping young man in the DOE group. Dinner was some delicious South American fare courtesy of head chef Matias; lentils, potatoes, brown rice, veges and spices. Anything tastes good when you’ve been walking all
day but this was a genuinely tasty hot meal that was a very welcome treat.

Despite the relative flash-ness of the hut compared to Gabriel Hut, we still had a rodent related incident. A small field mouse had made its way in to the hut through a gap in the window as it was now toasty warm in our home for the night. Mouse ridding duty went to Matias armed with a broom and we didn’t see any more after this. After a rousing game of cards and stoking up the fire to dry our boots, it was time for a well-deserved sleep.

Waking early at daybreak, we had some breakfast, cleaned the dishes, refilled our water bottles at the stream and set off again. Our goal for the day was to walk to Lake Sumner and do some spin fishing with the two rods we had brought in with us and had a real mission trying to avoid low hanging branches. The effects of the trek from the day before were now taking their toll on two members of the group, with sore joints and feet plaguing our planned quick descent to the lake.

The day turned out to be very sunny and fine so this soon lifted spirits as well as the promise of a hot lunch of Back Country food. Once back at Gabriel Hut it was another 20 minute walk to the lake. With a quick river crossing made simple due to a conveniently placed log, we were on our way, rods in hand. We soon reached the lake which was much more beautiful and larger than expected. After a few fails rigging up the rods, we began making our way around the lakes edge; walking a few steps every couple of casts. We were using lightweight softbait rods and Boothy’s special green and glitter softbaits from the shop. Unfortunately we got there a bit late so the trout weren’t feeding but we did see a couple of fatties cruising in the shadows, away from the sun.

After basking in the sun on the stones for a bit we had a lazy walk back to Matias who had rustled up an incredibly hearty lunch courtesy of Back Country foods. We tried the honey soy chicken and the Moroccan lamb, both of which were stacked full of energising goodies to keep us going. We weren’t expecting them to be so flavoursome but they have really packed in the tastiness.

After putting out the fire and again filling our water bottles, it was time for the home stretch of our trip. With the promise of an Easter egg hunt to get home to, we set off over the plains back towards the Hurunui River. Zena zoomed off ahead in no time and I soon lost Matias as well which made for a solo walk back. This allowed for some solo jukebox time with my Spotify playlist at full volume. Eventually, with aching feet and sweaty backs we finally made it back to the car after crossing the
Hurunui over the Sisters Swingbridge. It was flowing quite fast after a huge dumping of rain Canterbury has had this month but was incredibly clear despite this, with the dreaded didymo on full display.

The final uphill of the track was a battle and we were grateful for the wooden walking sticks we had picked up along the way out of the forest. Our amazing tramp was at a finish but we made promises as we drove out to come back very soon and camp by the Lake this time; after seeing those huge trout we have to return!

This is a very easily do-able tramp for anyone looking to get into hiking; a moderate fitness level is required and some good boots are a must but it’s definitely great fun for a weekend away.

If you need any help with gear to get you on your way, the Complete Outdoors team is here to help with advice and a broad range of fantastic gear to get you out there doing it!