The Hauroko Burn Hut is spaceous and the lake is cold and beautiful. The sandflies are in plague proportions so washing is a choice between freezing or self flagellation!

I have developed a technique of washing around swarms of sandflies:

1. Wash face & hair.
2. Take off shirt but not dirty trousers.
3. Use soap and wet flannel and move around lots, cursing the beasts loudly.
4. Dry quickly and put on polyprop shirt with hood up.
5. Remove boots and dirty (and now wet) trousers and repeat "3".
6. Dry quickly and put on longjohns or trackpants.
7. Do feet properly, now the rest of the body is protected.

Day 8: (Saturday 13/03/04) -- Hauroko Burn Hut to New Plymouth
The Jet boat "Namu" (sandfly) duely arrived shortly after noon and we were treated to a truely scenic trip, including a stop at the falls coming from (I think) End Peak.

Lake Hauroko is 32km long and the deepest lake in New Zealand as well as one of the most spectacular of the Great Lakes - can confirm the latter, but not the former! From Lillburn Rd Jetty we were driven to Tuatapere lunch, and then on to Invercargill for a night on the town. We can recommend the Italian pizza restaurant, with a most captivating waitress....