A Weekend at The Beautiful Lake Angelus | New Zealand

New Zealand is in a nationwide lockdown.

There is nowhere we can go apart from work – apple packing is classified as essential work – and the supermarket. At least the sharehouse I’m at now has a huge backyard facing the sea, if not we would have gone crazy in the small house.

What do you do with the time that is supposed to be spent exploring the country? Play switch, do yoga, meal prep for the following week, and write and vlog about your wonderful excursions pre-lockdown.

So here it is, clearing my backlog of trips – a weekend tramp to Angelus Hut two weeks before the lockdown.

This trip happened in Mar 2020. Post may be updated periodically.

Lake Angelus

Lake Angelus, perched high between Lakes Rotoiti and Rotoroa of the Nelson Lakes National Park, sits in a basin at 1,650 m.

The alpine lake is actually made up of two tarns, with a little serviced hut between them. 

During winter, both tarns freeze from the cold, and the air can get frigid at night. The water in the tank would have frozen too, from my experience at Kepler. In fact, winter is not an ideal time for non-experienced hikers – you need crampons and ice picks if the snow is thick.

Lake Angelus is a side trip off the Travers-Sabine Circuit, a multi-day hike that covers the most beautiful sights in the national park, including the world’s clearest lake – the Blue Lake.

Getting to Nelson Lake National Park

The gateway to the park is from St Arnaud. Drive 1 to 1.5 hours from Nelson or Blenheim. You’ll pass SH63 from Blenheim, and that takes 103 km. As for Nelson, it’s a cool 81 km off SH6, then SH63.

Angelus Hut (and campsite)

If you would like to sleep in the hut – there are 30 bunks – you must book early. We camped by the lakeside on an early autumn night and that turned out chilly but not freezing. Camping in late Autumn to early Spring must have been impossible if there were thick blankets of snow.

Peak season (Oct-Apr)

• Hut – NZD 30
• Campsite – NZD 15

Prices are halved for the off-peak season (May-Sep). You can use backcountry passes for the hut during peak season. A ranger was on duty during our visit. He checked our bookings and gave everyone a briefing in the evening.

Tracks to and from Angelus Lake

There are four routes for your ascent and descent from the lake.

We parked our car at Mt Robert carpark. For our ascent, we went with the Pinchgut Track, while for our descent, it was the Speargrass Track. Both tracks start and end at Mt Robert carpark. The Pinchgut route zig-zagged up to Mt Robert with spectacular views – making it great for an ascent. In contrast, the Speargrass route is milder and works better as a descent. This route is also much safer for bad weather descent.

Both routes took us about eight hours, including lots of time for photos, snacks and rest. 

Travers-Cascade Track and Mt Cedric Track are other tracks with steeper ascents and drops. The first route requires you to track on the perimeter of Lake Rotoiti from Mt Robert carpark via the Lakeside Track before branching up to Lake Angelus. Mt Cedric route diverts from the multi-day tramp via Sabine Hut with an incredibly steep ascent from 480 m to 1532 m within 3-4 km. These two tracks are not frequented by trampers targeting Lake Angelus only.

Pinchgut Track – 12.2 km, 6 – 8 hours

The route starts from Mt Robert carpark with a steep zig-zagged path up from a forest. 

80% of the route is on the mountain ridge, where there is no shade – prepare to be severely cooked if you do not have proper sun protection!

The path turned rocky – scrambling needed over huge awkwardly-balanced rocks – towards the end of the track, then a slippery scree descent-turned-muddy-grass route to the lake/ hut.

Bring enough water as there are no water sources for this route.

Speargrass Track – 11.2 km, 6 – 8 hours

This is an easier route as it is not as exposed as walking on the mountain ridge.

The path passes through shrubs, rivers, small cascades and a forest before it ends at Mt Robert carpark.

Speargrass Track was muddy when we were there, probably from the numerous streams and small cascades adjacent to the route. It was a spectacular mud-travagent as we tried to navigate the slippery-muddy-descent-of-doom.

We spared some time having lunch and swimming in the ice-cold streams that day. Water from the stream tasted sweet – though drink at your own risk! We had ours untreated at a relatively high elevation, and there weren’t any cows or sheep around.

The Weather

How do you book your alpine hut/ campsite without knowing the weather beforehand? And what happens if the weather turns treacherous on the day of your hike?

A catch-22 situation. 

We booked our campsite a week before our hike, just to have a clearer idea of what the weather may be like. But that also meant we risked not getting any bookings.

The booking site allows for cancellation with a forfeit. You may write to DOC to postpone the trip if the weather is dangerous – they may allow for that.

Lake Angelus and its surroundings are nearly free from light pollution. Those into astrophotography will have a good time here snapping photos of the night sky.

Camping Necessities

If it is the hut you choose – a sleeping bag is all you need. The huts in NZ have mattresses and are usually heated by a stove.

Those going with the campsites have to bring their tents and sleeping mats, on top of a warm sleeping bag. Make sure you keep your boots inside or the dew will get them.

For food, bring along easy-to-cook and light meals like ramen noodles, cabbage and carrots and hard-boiled eggs. You have to carry your portable fuel, stove and utensils.

I had bread and crackers with hot cocoa for breakfast.

Pointers

• Arrive early, start early. Allow plenty of rest time during the drive and the hike.
• Sun protection. Sunscreen, hats, arm shields
• Layer with warm clothes. It could get chilly when the wind is strong, but warm again after the strenuous climb.
• Never leave valuables in the car. You won’t be seeing your car for the next two days.
• Bring toilet roll. So you won’t be the one asking for the paper.
• Snacks. Chocolates. Cookies. Trail mix.
• Camera and a sturdy stand. Night photography, mountainscapes 
• Hiking off-season. Do not hike unless you have experience in alpine conditions. Hiking in shorter daylight hours on snow and ice and the cold presents another set of challenges. People have died attempting it.