Check out the latest news and trips reports below or view the archives using the menu on the left. If you want to know more about the newsletter including submitting stories, see Newsletter>Publication Details. To learn more about the club, check the top menu. Some links will take you to the old website, but content will eventually move to this site.
There’s something very appealing about traversing a mountain range – crossing from civilization on one side, via snowy ridge tops, to civilization on the other side, without having to retrace steps to come back to the same familiar road end. And when you can do a key swap halfway to make transport easy, what could … Read more
After a relatively quick ride to WTMC Ruapehu Lodge, we had the general introduction – we were asked to kindly not to put the lodge on fire and told when we were expected to be ready for the tramps. The lodge is much more comfortable than a road end since road ends don’t have spring mattresses, … Read more
The Ashburton Lakes landscape is noted for its relatively unmodified, huge, harsh and vast inter-montane wetland system of wide open valleys, twelve lakes, and braided rivers. An area surrounded by tussock lands and bordered to the west by the Southern Alps it was never a place of interest to me, except as a place to … Read more
The WTMC hosted the 2016 Bum Sliding Competition at Mt Ruapehu on Saturday 5 November. There was a large turnout of enthusiastic riders (5 total) and many spectators lined the courses to watch (3 total for the last 10 minutes). The weather was described as ‘atmospheric’, meaning mist, rain, snow, and wind in various combinations … Read more
Being an Irishman I am accustomed to inclement weather letting an occasion down and was hoping that this wouldn’t be the case over Labour weekend. Luckily enough the weather Gods took pity on this group of mostly beginner kayakers and offered pleasant sunshine and reasonably calm waters for three days and 68 km of kayaking … Read more
This was a sunny Sunday day trip into the Tararuas. We had a late start (due to Aimee arriving late with the van!) So after asking my team to be at the Railway Station at 8am sharp, I made them wait for 15 minutes. But we were on the road by 8.15am, and it was … Read more
What better way to end off a good year of tramping/climbing/biking/kayaking than by celebrating over a few good beers with your WTMC pals? Sign Up for the 2016 Christmas Beer Tramp is open! It’s on Sat 17th Dec, and our intentions are below. We aren’t doing a paper sign up sheet, please sign up using … Read more
Did you know that WTMC has Paua Hut on the banks of the Orongorongo River in the Rimutaka Forest Park? And that the hut is available for private booking by members and non-members? Location Paua Hut is accessed from the Catchpool carpark approximately 45 minutes drive from Wellington. The hut is 2 – 3 hours easy walk from … Read more
Kapakapanui (1102 m) is known for its fine views across Kapiti and into the Tararuas and our group of five was looking forward to seeing it for ourselves. With Kapakapanui being so close to Wellington (inland of Waikanae), we had a leisurely start and left from Wellington Railway Station at 9am on Saturday and then … Read more
The Kaikouas are an impressive sight from Wellington’s south coast on a sunny winter’s day. Several times most years WTMC groups try and climb one of the large peaks that appear too rise up out of the sea. On one such trip in early October our objective was a 1870 metre peak simply called ‘Snowflake’. … Read more