Wellington Tramping and Mountaineering Club
Enjoying the great outdoors since 1947
What a trip, what a weekend, what a day! We had a wonderfully smooth sail on the Interislander, and used the time to scour our maps and discuss where we would go! It’s a wonderful feeling to pour over topo maps and evaluate track options when possibilities abound! So exciting! We had been informed by … Read more
Day 1 – It was a beautiful crisp start to the day as we departed Wellington Train Station at 8 am. We made our way to Carterton and then on to the Waingawa entrance of Tararua Forest Park. We started walking at 11.45 am and had a well-paced walk with plenty of breaks and snacks. … Read more
Day one – The tramp started with a meet up at Wellington train station under a reasonably grey sky. The drive was long, so it was hard to pick what the weather was going to be like when we made it to the start point – but we ended up with rain. Steady slow rain. … Read more
My hopes to complete a circuit in the Kawekas over King’s Birthday weekend were compromised by the ongoing impacts of Cyclone Gabrielle. Without being able to confirm road access or track conditions, we were onto plan B: a delightful off-track adventure in a remote part of Whanganui National Park. However, with heavy rain in the … Read more
Day 1: Shields Flat car park to Field Hut Weather: Humid and no windDOC travel time: 1-3 hrs from Otaki Forks plus 45mins from Shields Flat carparkElapsed Time: 3.38hrs, Time moving: 3.09hrs. Distance: 10.51km, Ascent: 744m, Descent: 158mThe trip was planned for a 4-day Anzac break so that a leisurely pace could be taken around … Read more
Route: Return trip from Kiwi Ranch Road carpark to Joe Gibbs HutWeather: Humid, no windDOC travel time: 8hrs Group time: 9hrs (with 3 stops). While others were at home no doubt preparing for the coronation of His Majesty King Charles III, a small group took to the hills on a hut bagging mission to find … Read more
On an unusually warm day in mid May, a chatty crew of six climbers and myself made our way out to Turakirae Head to session a few of the many boulders dotting the South Coast. Antonia was able to source four bouldering pads, which we divvied between us as we ambled the first half hour … Read more
Route: Return trip from Orongorongo carpark to Barney’s Whare.Weather: Fine, no windGroup Time: 3.5 hrs + 45 mins A beautiful autumn day greeted us as we departed platform 9 at Wellington Railway Station. The Harbour was a millpond and as we crested the Wainuiomata Hill we disappeared into the thin layer of fog which enveloped … Read more
Mt Richmond is on my aging list of ‘50 Best Tramping Peaks’ from the Wilderness magazine, way back, hence why I suggested it for the WTMC trip schedule. And on this weekend, it did indeed turn out to be a spectacular tramping peak. There were six of us, plus three from the EM group, on … Read more
I almost pulled the pin on this trip. By the Thursday evening before we were due to leave, the weather forecast had changed daily, if not hourly, for the past few days. And the Interislander had already bumped our outbound sail to a less convenient time for everyone. I was weighing up whether it was … Read more