Expert trampers warn of dangers of Tararua Range as search for Darren Myers continues

Wednesday, 5 June 2019

As the search for Darren Myers continues, experienced trampers have called for people to take care in the Tararua Ranges.

'You really have to be prepared to deal with whatever weather is up there,' says tramper John Thomson, of the Tararua Range.

As the search for Darren Myers closes on its fourth day, hope of finding the tramper missing in the range grows increasingly fragile.

Myers, 49, was due out from the Mt Holdsworth area on Saturday, but when he did not show on Sunday a search was mounted.

He had been in the Lower Island mountain range since Tuesday, May 28, with his last communication to his wife on Thursday morning via text.

Severe weather had battered the range throughout the weekend leaving fresh snow along the range line, making it harder for searches to scale the large area.

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Missing tramper Darren Myers has not been heard from since last week.

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Myers' disappearance has brought renewed warnings about the dangers of the mountain range.

Thomson, from the Tararua Tramping Club, said the weather was always unpredictable in the Tararuas, - especially in winter.

'The weather is so changeable. It could be fine and sunny, but around this time of year it's far more likely it's not,' he said.

'You really have to be prepared to deal with whatever weather is up there.'

The Tararua Ranges pictured covered in snow (Supplied)

Venturing into the Tararuas during the winter months was not common practice for trampers, according to Thomson.

'Not many people go up at this time of year. Your expectation is that it is going to be very cold - at worse the conditions are totally impossible.

And that's due to the high winds. 'You simply can't make your way if you are in exposed wind. You would be foolish to go up there not well-equipped.'

Sometimes dropping below the snow line allowed people to find shelter. However, the terrain was often not suitable to pitch a tent, Thomson said.

Mykhailo Stepura, known as Michael, died on the Tararua Range while out tramping in November 2016 with Pavel Pazniak.

Even though the conditions were not good, now was not the time to give up hope, according to experienced LandSAR volunteer Joe Hansen.

'We had a case in the past where we thought a guy would not survive, but he did … I wouldn't give up hope yet,' he said.

Those looking for Myers would be battling the ongoing weather and steep terrains to try and find him.

'It won't be much fun, I can assure you of that. It is bad enough being up there on a fine day when the weather has cleared. The fact it is still raining means it will not be pleasant.'

Over the past decade there have been a number of high-profile searches in the ranges.

Just two months ago a mountain runner was saved from the Otaki Forks areas in a hypothermic condition after the weather changed, leaving her unable to reach safety.

LandSAR volunteer Rob Bigwood told Stuff following that rescue that people needed to be aware of how dangerous the mountain range was.

Wairarapa LandSAR members on the top of the Tararua Ranges as part of the search for Darren Myers.

'People can get into trouble so easily. Even skilled outdoors people can be doing everything right and find themselves in tricky situations,' he said at the time.

'Preparing for the worse-case scenario will help bring about the best.'

In 2009, the bodies of Te Papa boss Seddon Bennington and friend Marcella Jackson were found just a kilometre away from an alpine hut that would have provided them shelter in the storm.

Four years later Pavel Pazniak and Mykhailo Stepura were found dead near a hut in the ranges and, more recently, local man John Arthur died due to bad weather conditions near Otaki Forks.

An estimated 22 people have died in the Tararua Range since 1970 due to a combination of steep terrain, difficult river crossings and weather conditions.

Tramper Nikki Joseph said people went into the ranges during winter for the same reasons as during the summer months - the views.

'You can still gets days where it is very clear in winter. The view is different when the mountains are covered in snow. But anyone who goes up there would need to be skilled.'

Experience, adequate clothing and knowledge of how to use crampons and an ice-axe was vital. Knowing when to turn back was also a key factor in guaranteeing safety.

The decision was often 'complex' and required critically assessing a number of factors, according to Joseph.

'It depends on who is in your party, the level of experience, how everybody is coping psychologically, and how fit people are.'

Going into the Tararuas alone during winter was never wise without alpine and training experience, she said.

'But unfortunately people do. Usually tourists venture up and underestimate our weather.'

Experienced Tararua tramper Joe Nawalaniec said he'd been following the search closely, and it would be a 'fantastic miracle' if he was found.

'There's always a chance, even two to three weeks out, where he could be found alive.'

Nawalaniec said that trampers in the past had been found weeks after becoming lost.

Myers' food supply, gear and shelter would be the reason for his survival, but shelter was particularly fundamental, he said.

The Tararuas were underestimated mountains, and the place where Myers' last text message was sent was a very, very confusing place area, he said.

'It's very easy to loose your orientation and sense of direction there. I've been there with school kids and my wife and alone, and I've lost my sense of direction there.'