Burn Hut – Tararua Forest Park

Day 1: Mangahao Lower No 2 Reservoir to Burn Hut Weather: Dry and warmDOC travel time: 3-4 hrs Group Time: 4 hrs Departing Wellington at 9am, it was a 1 1/2hr drive to Shannon, where we had morning tea. After this, there was a 45 minute drive up a narrow gravel road to Mangahao No … Read more

Burn Hut

Saturday 9 May 2015 Departed Wellington 08:00 am Mangahao Lower No2 Dam 10:25am Burn Hut 2:25pm (6km, 300m to 800m) Near vertical hill. Grabbing tree roots and toeholds in the muddy earth. Right leg starts crammping during climb. Raining as we hit the ridge  tramping out of the forest. Three of us Claire leads with … Read more

Burnt Custard in Burn Hut

View more photos from Sarah Craig had this to say about the weather: I can confirm the presence of a Black Hole slightly to the west of Kapiti Island. It is the only feasible explanation, after tracking three fronts across the Tasman that suddenly parked themselves on top of kayaker until he quit. Points north … Read more

Burn Hut

On a dreary Saturday morning we contemplated alternative routes as we made our way to Levin. A southerly was forecast and there was already snow on the coastal foothills of the Kapiti coast. As we ascended the windy road to Mangahao Dam 2, the sunny calm weather convinced us to stick with our planned trip … Read more

Who really wants an uneventful tramping weekend?

After having come into contact with WTMC for the first time only 2 Wednesdays earlier, here I was at Wellington train station meeting a bunch of random people for a weekend in the Tararua ranges.  First good sign was a newish, sturdy looking WTMC van in the car park with 2 or 3 people milling … Read more