Windy Tops

Tag: bagged:totara flats hut

  • Trip: High Ridge and nav to Mountain House

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    High Ridge.

    It’s been a while since I’ve been out with the WTMC, largely due to other things happening. I decided it was time to change that, and found a scheduled trip to High Ridge. I hadn’t been to High Ridge for around 12 years. The previous time was a memorable experience for multiple reasons. It’s a navigation trip, and also one that can work in moderately wet weather as long as it’s not prohibitively windy, so a forecast for some rain in the Tararua wasn’t a huge concern. The forecast had rain clearing about mid Saturday.

    Dates: 11th – 13th January, 2019
    Location: Tararua Forest Park, Holdsworth Road End.
    People: Peter, Heather, Tony and me.
    Huts visited: Holdsworth Lodge (0 nights), Mountain House Shelter (1 night), Powell Hut (0 nights), Totara Flats Hut (1 night).
    Route: From Holdsworth Road up to Mountain House Shelter on Friday night. Then beyond Powell Hut to .1330, and south-west along High Ridge to Flaxy Knob, and nav down to Totara Flats Hut for Saturday night. Then follow the old track north-east of Totara Flats Hut, along Totara Creek. Near the headwaters of Totara Creek, navigate up spur to above Mountain House Shelter. Then back to Holdsworth Road.
    [Photos]

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    This post is a trip report. You can find other trip reports about other places linked from the Trip Reports Page, or by browsing the Trip Reports Category.

    We arrived at the end of Holdsworth Road at about 7.45pm, combining transport with another group who were aiming to navigate up the Atiwhakatu river catchment.

    I pulled my camera out and quickly discovered that not only were the recently charged batteries flat, but my spare camera batteries were also flat. That served me right for grabbing and charging some random batteries I’d found lying around, and trying to use a camera I’d not tested for a couple of years. My weekend with electronic devices was not going to be simple, but right now there was no time to figure things out.
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  • Trip: Powell, Totara Flats and Sayers

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    Saturday night sunset
    on Totara Flats.

    This is meant to be a tramping club trip, though really it’s just Éamonn and me. We’re the “social” trip, but I think people bailed on the social idea when it became clearer that we’d be pack-horses for everyone else who’s converging on Totara Flats from various directions. Between us we’ve decided the most “social” way of getting to Totara Flats will be up to Powell and over High Ridge. I’ve decided my hobby on this trip will be collecting Department of Conservation Asset Numbers. Asset number bagging is set to be the next big thing once everyone’s gotten bored of hut bagging, and I figure I’m getting a head-start on the crowd.

    Dates: 10th – 12th December, 2010
    Location: Tararua Forest Park, Holdsworth Road End.
    People: Éamonn and me.
    Huts visited: Holdsworth Lodge (0 nights), Mountain House Shelter (0 nights), Powell Hut (1 night), Totara Flats Hut (1 night), Sayers Hut (0 nights).
    Intended route: Walk to Powell Hut on Friday night, then over High Ridge to Totara Flats for Saturday night, then back out to Holdsworth Road.
    Actual route: Powell Hut on Friday night, but to Totara Flats via the more direct route. Over the Waiohine to Sayers Hut on Sunday, the up to spot-height 772 and along ridge to the north past 768, and eventually back to the track above Totara Creek. Then out to Holdsworth Road via Pig Flat, and down to the Atiwhakatu Track.
    [Photos]

    [Download GPX file] [View GPX on NZTopoMap]
    This post is a trip report. You can find other trip reports about other places linked from the Trip Reports Page, or by browsing the Trip Reports Category.
    5267715733_b325f6bb97_m-5830903
    The Atiwhakatu Valley
    from near Rocky Lookout.

    Friday, 8pm: We’ve arrived at the Holdsworth road-end, the weather’s not too flash. Best to get going.

    8.55pm: It’s not quite raining yet, but a strong nor-westerly is blowing. I’ve just been nearly blown off my feet near the Rocky Lookout. Not at the lookout, but on the track below it. The wind just came screaming alongside the ridge out of nowhere. It’s eerie and discomforting.

    This’ll be bad for Steve and Richard, who were planning to walk and swim down the Waiohine Gorge. We’ve checked the book and they signed in at Holdsworth Lodge earlier today, headed straight for Waiohine Forks. We’ll be okay for ourselves, by comparison. I have the rain all sussed since I bought myself a brand new tramping umbrella earlier today. It’s in my pack, and may just prove to be the best $14.99 I’ve ever spent.

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  • Trip: Walls Whare to Totara Flats, and Cone Peak

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    Near Cone Peak.

    A few times now, I’ve wondered just how many degrees of separation there are between people who visit New Zealand’s back-country. Maybe a few people know nearly everyone, and the whole network is very closely connected. Maybe there are geographically localised networks.

    Dates: 12th – 13th June, 2010
    Location: Tararua Forest Park, Walls Whare Road-end.
    People: Steve, Megan B, Hans, Christine, Kevin and me.
    Huts visited: Totara Flats Hut (1 night)
    Planned route: Up past Cone Saddle, over Cone and down to Neill Forks for Saturday night. Then back up and around Totara Flats, back towards the road.
    Actual route: Straight to Totara Flats for Saturday night, up over Cone and back to start.
    [Photos]

    [Download GPX file] [View GPX on NZTopoMap]
    This post is a trip report. You can find other trip reports about other places linked from the Trip Reports Page, or by browsing the Trip Reports Category.

    We chased rainbows through the roads of the Wairarapa, and rain finally began to come down on us as we arrived in the parking area at the road-end of Walls Whare. There’s a nice camping area here, but it’d be somehow silly to use it this time given we were arriving at around 9.30am on a Saturday morning. Being a trip organised on behalf of our trampey club, our group consisted of Steve, myself, Megan, Hans, Christine and Kevin — a chap who mostly goes out with the Alpine Club whom Christine had managed to rope in on short notice. Apart from Christine, none of us had met Kevin before, but going tramping with people is a great way to meet people.

    Our intent was to get in to Neill Forks Hut for the evening, which I was looking forward to because I haven’t been there before. We shared our van with another trampey club group of people coordinated by Megan S, and their idea was just to walk to Totara Flats alongside the river, stay for the night and walk back. As we drove up a couple of TTC members were about to leave, taking a retired Search and Rescue dog for a walk in to Tutuwai and back to Cone. This was good weather for tramping, despite the rain setting in.
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