Scottish Rock Garden Club Forum
General Subjects => Travel / Places to Visit => Topic started by: HamishBrown on January 05, 2015, 07:23:56 AM
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Had a few days up Sudden Valley with the family. There is a marked track up this valley but it is not well formed and is quite hard going. However, the alpine area at the top of this valley is well worth the effort and the plants are just wonderful. We camped for two nights about half way up the valley after the gorge. On the second day we walked up to the head of the valley.
View from tent site looking up the the head of the valley
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Some beautiful plants in the sub-alpine zone.
Celmisia semicordata
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Parahebe linifolia
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Dolichoglottis scorzoneroides
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And in the Alpine Zone
Stellaria roughii, a native chickweed that was common among the scree
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Leptinella pyrethrifolia
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Ranunculus godleyanus growing among loose scree right in the head of the valley near the snow bank
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Viola cunninghamii
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View looking back down the valley
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On the second day, while the family slept I took a pre-breakfast walk up a side valley and found some more nice plants.
Helichrysum intermedium growing on the side of a outcrop
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Leucogenes grandiceps
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Myosotis traversii. I was worried I might go the whole trip with out seeing a Myosotis but was thrilled to find this.
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Where exactly is Sudden Valley Hamish? I don't know the name or that area much at all actually. It looks very good though.
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Beautifully captured photos Hamish! If only our chickweed had such class ;)
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Your photos are superb, Hamish! Doing real justice to the great plants.
I wanted to know more about this place and found this : http://backcountry-bibles.blogspot.co.uk/2013/05/sudden-valley-arthurs-pass-national.html (http://backcountry-bibles.blogspot.co.uk/2013/05/sudden-valley-arthurs-pass-national.html)
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Very interesting trip and beautiful pictures!
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Thanks for your comments all.
Tim, our native chickweeds are real characters. Check there is another good example of a native chickweed (Colobanthus canaliculatus) on this post (http://www.srgc.net/forum/index.php?topic=11701.msg302589#msg302589 (http://www.srgc.net/forum/index.php?topic=11701.msg302589#msg302589)). They form lovely little cushions on rocks and grow in association with many other low growing alpines
edit by maggi to improve link :D
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Thanks for that link Hamish, I missed that somehow. Really great to see mountain scenery and plants like that. With Robert's forays in California and all the other journeys into wild places this is the 'Royal Geographical' section of the SRGC website ;) - gives the alpine gardener a lot to ponder on and dream about :) Look forward to seeing a lot more (I have quite a professional interest in the Apiaceae which NZ has so many unique examples of).
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Today's earthquake epicentre was not far from Arthur's Pass. I drove through the pass on December 12th. Lovely weather. I must do this again, but not as a tourist.
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Today's earthquake epicentre was not far from Arthur's Pass. I drove through the pass on December 12th. Lovely weather. I must do this again, but not as a tourist.
Kim R. was telling me about the tremors last week - do hope that all will be well for all in NZ.
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This was yesterday. I had coffee and a date scone in the Arthur's Pass Store on December 12th. As you can hear, no damage done. http://www.stuff.co.nz/national/64684438/major-60-earthquake-west-of-arthurs-pass (http://www.stuff.co.nz/national/64684438/major-60-earthquake-west-of-arthurs-pass)
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Hi Tim. There was not a lot of apiaceae up Sudden valley but here is a photo of Anisotome filifolia you might enjoy.
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Nice photo Hamish; Anisotome filifolia is a particularly difficult thing to photograph. I m impressed.
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Thanks Hamish - nice to see. The Apiaceae is a pretty large (and it has to be said, often weedy) family but the mountain species are very attractive. As I learn more about them more just opens up in front of me, but I would like to gain a clearer idea of the NZ species so will keep looking through these threads. There is an equally fascinating but little known range of genera and species in N. America and here they were important plants for indigenous peoples and not just the moas, as presumably in the past in NZ :-\ (perhaps rabbits now ;))
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The iconic NZ Apiacaea genus is the Aciphylla or spear grass. They are characterised by rigid pointed leaves and species range in stature from 1.5 m to to cushion plants. I only saw one Aciphylla up suden valley and didn't get a very good photo of it. There is a nice photo of Aciphylla simplex on this post http://www.srgc.net/forum/index.php?topic=12572.0 (http://www.srgc.net/forum/index.php?topic=12572.0) and another of Aciphylla glaucescens on this post http://www.srgc.net/forum/index.php?topic=11701.msg304432#msg304432 (http://www.srgc.net/forum/index.php?topic=11701.msg304432#msg304432)