King's Birthday 3-5 June 2023

Leader: Tony Quayle

Kylie, our Pukeokahu Wonder Woman, arranged access through Mangaohane Station and the Awarua Block, allowing us to cover in two days what would normally take twice as long if we were using public access routes. And that’s not all - she and Roger accommodated us at their farm on Friday and Sunday nights. And turned on another wild food feast!

Saturday morning, suitably fed, we drove to, and through Mangaohane, almost to its southern boundary. A short walk across the farm land took us into the Awarua Block, where pasture was replaced with a wide expanse of tussock and scrub that continued all the way to Ruahine Corner. Easy gradients along a quad bike track made for a straightforward, albeit slippery in places, walk to the Forest Park boundary, the airstrip and the attractively-sited hut. For roughly half our group, this was their first visit to this iconic location.

With no one else there, six of us ‘mature’ trampers scored bunks in the hut, while the young and young at heart set up tents nearby.

We rounded off the afternoon with a brisk wander along to the spectacular limestone outcrops of Potae, pausing to view the equally spectacular Blue Slip along the way.

Sunday’s plan was to walk west across the Makirikiri Plateau and Waiokotore headwaters to Ohutu Ridge, visit the new Clearwater Hut, then head north via Ohutu trig to intercept yesterday’s quad bike track which would take us back to our 4WDs.

Getting across the main Waiokotore valley took a little longer than anticipated, as the well-cut trap-line we were following descended to the stream some distance below the limestone bridge that’s traditionally used. Having reached the stream the track turned immediately back uphill, with no sign of a track on the other side of the stream. A bit of exploration was required. Fortunately it wasn’t too difficult to pick our way onto the next terrace, where we intercepted another track that initially headed in the right direction, before swinging left and heading down-valley to who-knows-where. Backtracking a little, we waded through the dracophyllum along vague game trails heading in our desired direction. The next headwater gully was easily crossed, towards a relatively clear spur that provided an obvious route onto Ohutu Ridge.

Some of us decided to have lunch before tackling the climb, while the rest forged ahead. Obviously our refuelling helped, because we caught up with the tail enders of the first team just before topping the ridge. And they still hadn’t had lunch.

Several of us were keen to visit the new Clearwater Hut, so set off to bag it while others ate their lunch behind a large rock that offered some protection from the chilly westerly. What a nice little hut Clearwater turned out to be, beautifully sited beside the last remaining scraps of iron from the old NZFS tent camp chimney in a tussock basin surrounded by magnificent kaikawaka forest. We took a nifty little shortcut route (discovered on a previous trip) out of the basin, arriving back at where the others had waited just as the last of them were heading off north towards the trig.

Unfortunately, when we regrouped at the trig, it became apparent that a small contingent that had continued on before the hut baggers returned had followed the ridge-top quad bike trail off down the western flanks of the ridge towards the Erewhon irrigation scheme weir. Thanks to cellphone contact we were able to turn that group back in the right direction and dispatch particularly energetic Rob and Stephen to guide them and help with pack carrying.

It was dark by the time we were all down off the Ohutu on the correct route back to our vehicles, but the navigation was easy. However, with a gloomy forecast and everyone tired from a longer-than-expected day, we abandoned plans to spend Sunday night at Kuripango ahead of an assault on The Tits, and proceeded back to Kylie and Roger’s for another comfortable night. Instead of scrambling up rocky Kaweka hillsides in the rain, Kings Birthday Monday was simply a leisurely drive home.

Thanks everyone for a fun weekend, and especially Kylie and Roger for organising the trip and accommodating a rowdy Parawai crowd for a couple of nights.

Those on the trip were:

David Williams, Elisabeth Hynes, Graeme Richardson, John Peterson, Kylie Gilbert, Marcia Goode, Marian Cox, Mark Robertson, Nisa Promchot, Owen Cox, Paula Richardson, Peter Davis, Rob Dey, Roger Gilbert, Stephen Bowler, Sue Pate, Tony Quayle, Yingjun Shelton, Lyndsey Griffiths