Windy Tops

Tag: wellington tramping and mountaineering club

  • Trip: Ohau, Dundas, Ruapae, Puketurua

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    Craig emerging from
    Ngapuketurua (with a slight
    vegetation problem).

    We were supposed to be walking through rivers all weekend according to the original plan, but the weather was so good that we just couldn’t help ourselves, and ended up on the tops. Eventually, we found ourselves moving very slowly thanks to some very overgrown ridges.

    Dates: 30th November – 2nd December, 2007
    Location: Tararua Forest Park, Poads Road to Mangahao Dam.
    People: John, Paul, Craig and me.
    Huts visited: Te Matawai Hut (0 nights), Arete Biv (0 nights), Dundas Hut (1 night).
    Huts seen: Herepai Hut.
    Initial intended route: Begin at Poads Road, wander up the South Ohau River to the old site of South Ohau Hut, wander up past Te Matawai, then down the Mangahao River to Mangahao Flats Hut, and out via the Dam.
    Actual route: With some really good weather, we went from Te Matawai Hut up to Arete, over to Dundas, from West Peak to East Peak, then around the ridge to Ngapuketurua, north-east along the ridge, and down the Puketurua Track to the dam.
    [Photos]

    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.

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  • Trip: Cone, Alpha, Quoin, Eastern Hutt

    Going tramping on a trip organised by Sam is quite a lot of fun. Generally you end up setting something on fire.

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    Sam collecting water
    on Bull Mound

    This weekend we went for a trip into one of Wellington’s two main water catchment areas. For some confusing reason, the Tararuas were in the middle of experiencing several very fine days in a row, which perhaps makes the trip quite rare.

    Dates: 16th-18th November, 2007
    Location: Tararua Forest Park, Walls Whare Road-End.
    People: Sam, Marie, Eddie, Lee (a friend of Sam’s visiting from the Otago Uni Tramping Club), and me.
    Huts visited: Cone Hut (0 nights), Alpha Hut (1 night), Eastern Hutt Hut (0 nights).
    Intended route: Begin at Walls Whare, walk via Cone Hut up to Alpha, continue along Quoin Ridge down the spur, and out via Pakuratahi Forks.
    Actual route: Similar until Quoin Ridge, at which point we split up. Marie and Lee continued down the ridge and ended up drowning (accidentally) in the Western Hutt River. The rest of us followed a spur to the Eastern Hutt River.
    [Photos]

    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.

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  • Hooray! I’m not a nutcase.

    Excellent; It turns out I haven’t lost my mind. On this trip over High Ridge, back in March, we found that one of the signs in Powell Hut had an incorrect phone number for the nearby DOC ranger. In fact, the number didn’t even have enough digits. I exchanged some emails with someone in a DOC office shortly after that trip, who eventually decided I must have been remembering things wrong, because the sign could only have been an orientation map, and the PDF of that map which he had in front of him did indeed have the correct number. Basically I was told outright that people scribble all kinds of crazy things in huts and that this wasn’t a DOC sign, and I shouldn’t take too much notice of it.

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    Well, a few weeks ago, Amelia went past Powell Hut and took a photo for me that proves that I’m not a complete nut-case, or at the very least is consistent with that theory. Eight months later, it looks as if someone’s crossed out the number and written the correct one, but that doesn’t really bother me. (Thanks Amelia.)

    In other news, I joined an informal WTMC group this evening, walking up the Tip Track to the Radar Dome in Te Kopahou Reserve. Bronwyn, Marie and I all compared our identical $40 altimeters. They did quite well staying consistent with each other, whatever that means.

  • Daywalk: Orongorongo, McKerrow, Clay Ridge

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    Near the start of the
    Orongorongo Track.

    Today’s walk was around the Rimutakas, once again centred on Catchpool Valley.

    Date: 11th November, 2007
    Location: Rimutaka Forest Park
    People: Annemarie, Stijn, David, Andrew, and me.
    [Photos]

    This is a fairly standard circuit from the Catchpool Valley road-end. It’s a matter of walking along the Orongorongo Track, almost to the Orongorongo River, but then turning off to the left up the McKerrow Track. The intersection with the Clay Ridge track is a couple of minutes before the peak of Mount McKerrow, and from there it’s a walk down the Clay Ridge track back to the parking area.

    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.

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  • Trip: Paua Hut (and juggling)

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    Approaching a dodgier part
    of Browns’ Track.

    This weekend, Stacey and I joined a short (easy-rated) WTMC weekend walk to Paua Hut and back. Many people on the trip had a higher than average interest in juggling, which meant that this trip doubled as a juggling trip, whatever that amounts to.

    Dates: 3rd – 4th November, 2007
    Location: Rimutaka Forest Park
    Huts visited: Paua Hut (1 night).
    People: Bronwyn, Stacey, Sally, Danielle, Danniel, Chris, Andy, Harry, Geraldine, Gail, Deborah, and me.
    [Photos]

    I think the basic plan was to walk for a few hours towards Paua Hut, learn to juggle, and walk back again.

    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.

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  • Daywalk: Kapakapanui

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    Looking at Kapiti Island
    from Kapakapanui

    Yesterday I went on my first ever daytrip with the trampey club, which was a nice little milestone. We went for a walk around the Kapakapanui loop track in the Tararuas. This track begins at the Ngatiawa road-end, east of Waikanae. It climbs (and then descends) about 1000 metres, and is probably about 10 kms in length.

    Date: 28th October, 2007
    Location: Tararua Forest Park, Ngatiawa Road-End.
    People: Bronwyn, Mike, Michelle, Éamonn, Peter, Sarah, Becky, Sally, Claus, Jo, Annemarie.
    Huts visited: Kapakapanui Hut (0 nights).
    Intended route: Start at the road-end, follow the loop track clock-wise up to Kapakapanui Hut, continue to Kapakapanui Trig, then continue back down to the road-end.
    [Photos]

    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.

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  • Trip: Doubtful Hut, Lake Man Biv, Top Hope, Hope Halfway Shelter

    This trip was a while ago now (last Easter), but I never wrote a trip report about it at the time. I thought I might try to document some of it now while it’s still in my memory.

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    Lunch at Lake Man Biv

    Dates: 6th – 9th April, 2007
    Location: Lake Sumner Conservation Park.
    People: Dirk, Dave C, Emile, Dave J, Justin, Dave B, Paul, Lisa, Kathryn, and me.
    Huts visited: Doubtful Hut (0 nights), Lake Man Biv (0 nights), Top Hope Hut (1 night camping), Saint Jacobs Hut (0 nights), Hope Halfway Shelter (1 night, camping).
    Intended route: Walk west along Doubtful River towards Doubtful Hut, up a spur and sidle around a bit to Lake Man Biv, over a convenient saddle in the Doubtful Range, then south-ish down a spur on the other side to Pussy Stream. Turn west at the junction with Hope River to Top Hope Hut. Visit nearby hot pools (half an hours walk further west), then head east and south-east along Hope River, past Saint Jacobs’ Hut. Continue along the river to Hope Halfway Shelter, then back to the road. (And walk or hitch several kms back up the road to collect the van.) This route is approximately the same as one that’s currently promoted on the DOC website.
    [Photos]

    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.

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  • Trip: Purity, Pourangaki, Kelly Knight

    I’d seen some weather maps during the Friday afternoon before we left on this trip, suggesting that a massive splodge of rain was heading for the approximate area of the central North Island. This was to be my first attempt at a club trip rated as medium-fit, and I had completely forgotten to bring my umbrella. How embarrassing. I wasn’t the worst off, though. Alistair forgot to bring his shorts.

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    Dates: 5th – 7th October, 2007
    Location: Ruahine Forest Park, Purity Road-End.
    People: Captain (and gourmet chef) Alistair, Dirk, Paul and meeeee.
    Huts visited: Purity Hut (0 nights), Pourangaki Hut (1 night), Kelly Knight Hut (0 nights).
    Intended route: Camp at the Purity road-end on Friday night, then walk up past Purity Hut, Wooden Peg and Iron Peg. Turn South-East and carry on to Ohuinga, then head North down Broken Ridge, ending at Waterfall Hut for Saturday night. On Sunday, head up to Mangaweka via Trig Creek, back past Iron Peg and Wooden Peg, Purity Hut, and then out.
    Actual route: Similar initially, but due to some weather issues we picked up the track down a spur about half way between Iron Peg and Ohuinga, to Pourangaki Hut. On Sunday, we continued along the track up over Pourangaki, and down to Kelly Knight Hut for lunch, then back to the Purity road-end.
    Electric shocks: One.
    [Photos]

    There was no rain at all as it turned out, but the wind was a huge factor.

    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.

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