This trip started off bright and early with the group meeting at the train station at 7am on Saturday morning. The trip leaders had been keeping an eye on the heavy rain forecast all week and it wasn’t meant to start pouring until late afternoon – so we wanted to do as much walking as possible before the weather packed in. The M group kindly dropped us off at the trailhead on Kiwi Ranch Road in Kaitoke just before 8am. And the plan was for us to pick the van up at Waiohine Gorge on Sunday afternoon.
In less than a minute of starting our walk, our group of 4 EM trampers already began enjoying our first taste of the notorious Tararua Forest Park mud. Our plan for the morning was to head up Puffer Saddle, go along Marchant Ridge, and then loop down towards Smith Creek Shelter. The walk up Puffer Saddle was enjoyable; not nearly as strenuous as the name implies!
We kept our eyes peeled, as we walked along the ridgeline, for the remains of an old hut that Jeremy (our trip leader) had read about in another trip report. Just as we reached the turnoff to head down towards Smith Creek Shelter, we came across what we thought was an old concrete chimney and remnants of cladding. Due to the long week of rain the area had experienced ahead of our trip, our descent down to Smith Creek Shelter was slow going as we carefully navigated the slippery tree roots.
We arrived at Smith Creek Shelter in good spirits and right on time for lunch. After a quick survey of the shelter, we all agreed that lunch down by the river might be more enjoyable. Jeremy had done some research and knew there was a sandy spit right along the river that would make a perfect spot for lunch. After a small backtrack we found a little path that led out to the spit and we enjoyed a nice break.
With an eye on the grey sky and the threat of rain at the forefront of our minds, we decided to keep our lunch break relatively short. We packed up for what we thought would be an easy walk along the river to Tutuwai Hut – which the signage indicated would be a 2 hr 30 minute walk from Smith Creek Shelter.
However, the afternoon turned into more of an adventure than anticipated! Within 10 minutes of leaving, we came across a mysterious memorial cricket wicket and a semi-abandoned campsite. Spurred on by the ghost of Joe Gibbs, we reached a swing bridge to cross Tauherenikau River about 20 minutes after that. After crossing the bridge, another sign told us that Tutuwai Hut was a further 2 hrs 30 minutes away. Would we ever reach the hut we wondered? Or would it forever be 2 hrs and 30 minutes ahead of us?!
The track from the swing bridge to Tutuwai Hut was slow going – a combination of an undulating track and slippery conditions. However, the track was easy to follow and well-marked. So even though it took us about 4 hours to reach the Hut from Smith Creek Shelter, we were never worried that we had lost the track or had taken a wrong turn somewhere. There were a few stream crossings to tackle along the way, and we were all glad that the rain held off so they remained navigable.
We arrived at Tutuwai Hut at around 5pm, somewhat over our estimated 5 – 7 hours of travel time and somehow (beating all the odds) still dry from our knees up! We had a lovely surprise waiting for us at the Hut. The M group had travelled more slowly than anticipated in the morning – so half the group had stopped at Tutuwai Hut while the other half had carried on to Cone Peak with a plan to return to the Hut for the night. The group we found at Tutuwai Hut had already taken care of the firewood and organised the hut so there was little for us to do except to get changed into our hut clothes and start dinner prep.
Our trip dinner consisted of an amazing mac and cheese (with so much cheese) and fresh veggies. By dinner time everyone from the M group had returned – just beating the heavy rain and thunderstorms (which started at around 6pm and lasted all night). While cozy in the hut with the sound of driving rain on the roof we played cards all evening.
Somehow our luck continued on Sunday, as the rain stopped just before breakfast. We all got a bit of a sleep in before packing up and leaving the hut at about 9am. One of the M group members decided to join the EM for the walk out.
We walked to Cone Hut in about 1 hour 30 minutes – the track was much flatter along the river here than it had been on Saturday afternoon. There was no point trying to keep our boots dry, as water along the track was knee-deep due to the rain overnight. There were some small stream crossings which we made short work of – stream crossings become much less nerve wracking when the whole track is basically a river!
We had a quick snack break at Cone Hut and then we were off again – up the short, but steep, ascent to the tops and then along the ridge.
We stopped for a lunch break on some fallen trees, tucked out of the wind, and then set off at a steady pace towards the Waiohine Gorge road end. The mud was ever-present, but manageable. It was only steep and slippery right towards the end of the day, as we descended towards the swing bridge at Waiohine Gorge.
We made our way out of the woods and over the swing bridge, popping out at the Waiohine Gorge DOC camping ground early on Sunday afternoon. We quickly got out of our muddy damp clothes, found the van keys and headed off to Kaitoke to pick up the M group.
All in all a fantastic couple of days out in the Tararua Forest Park mud, with great company!
Statistics
– Kiwi Ranch Road end to Tutuwai Hut via Dobson/ Marchant ridge and Smith Creek Shelter – 8hrs (including breaks)
– Tutuwai Hut to Waiohine Gorge Rd via Cone Hut – 5 hrs (including breaks)