I don’t think many of us could quite trust the more-or-less perfect forecast as the trip weekend approached, and a few times were we reminded that there had been many WTMC attempts at this area of the Ruahines, all thwarted in some way or another by bad weather.
Well, it seems we finally lifted the curse on this trip and suffered some unbelievably perfect Autumn weather. Blue skies, pleasant temperatures, snow only as a distant decoration, and a comfortable hint of a breeze up top.
We spent Friday night at Holiday Park in Dannevirke and, after an early coffee stop, drove the hour to Kasmir Road end to Moorcock carpark. There is a steep hill just before the carpark, but the WTMC van, with some gas and skilful pothole navigation by Calum, took it in its stride.
Our group of 12 combined made good progress up to Longview Hut, where the MF group (who had raced past us at Dannevirke) had stayed Friday night. Ellis had stuck around after a sensible piece of decision-making, and welcomed us for morning tea.
From there, we split into two groups covering the same ground but in opposite directions. There had been very keen interest in the trip so splitting in two meant we could take a full van of 12 and divide ourselves between Howletts and Daphne Huts overnight. Anna led the group staying at Daphne and Ashley the group staying at Howletts.
Team Daphne
From Longview Hut we took the unmarked ridge to the meet the Daphne Hut track. The route was very easy to navigate in the conditions but would likely be more challenging in not so perfect conditions!
Now properly T-shirt and sunscreen temperatures, we stopped for lunch before the forested descent, and our eagle eyes (cellphone cameras) discerned some specks ambling along the western ridge to Howletts.
My hopes of feet remaining dry were laughable as we traversed the river up to Daphne mid-afternoon. Numerous river crossings and rock hopping are unavoidable, but a truly picturesque river valley!
Head chef Calum (awarded the Club’s ‘worst cook’ title in 2025) redeemed his reputation with a lavish tagine, with couscous-chef talking a big game. Damp-ish wood required vigilance to actually be an effective fire, but it did the bare minimum for our s’mores, another culinary success from Calum. Some friendly competition followed as Matthew brought out his cards to determine the team president and scum.
Having reached the assumption we have the hut to ourselves, in stumbled three trampers after presumably traipsing the river in the dark. They were kind enough to cook outside as we prepared for bed. Being quite the precious sleeper I couldn’t tolerate the Formula 1-esque snoring and chose to finally try the much-romanticised-idea of sleeping under the moon and stars, next to the babbling river. Serene it was, until my air mattress evaporated the heat from under me. Lesson learned.
A 0600 start to re-soak our not-at-all dried boots across the river and scramble 700-odd m up to Howletts for breakfast. Fern oceans and a streaming orange aura through the trees from the rising sun made the effort worthwhile, and soon we passed the Howetts crew coming down. A cute hut is Howletts, offering a perfect breakfast vista.
Coming back from Howletts Hut along Daphne Ridge to Longview was no doddle, being an ever-changing combination of invisible opportunities for twisted ankles, mud, and scree. Brave and stupid me without gaiters suffered the full wrath of the leathery undergrowth we had been warned about.
Descents were steep once we left the ridge, matched with some equally steep climbs! Still, the views of Sawtooth Ridge and Taranaki made up for it, and soon we were on the home stretch from Longview, where the Howletts party awaited us. They didn’t have to wait long – we made great time the whole tramp, easily besting the estimates from previous trip reports.
Howletts group
Departing Longview, our group headed up Otumore towards Howletts. Gut-punchingly steep at times, we snaked our way through tussock, flax, dracophyllum and leatherwood. Finally, on the tops, the ridgeline unfolded before us, rippling green and golden against blue sky.
Despite the sun, it was a little breezy, and we put on jackets and gloves, before battling our way through waist-high scrub. We occasionally lost the path and plunged through bushes to find it again. Our legs became criss-crossed in scratches as the afternoon wore on.
Finally, we rounded the last hump and came across the hut nestled in tussock grass.
Howletts Hut is currently painted an eye-catching red and, despite being advertised as an 8-bunker, comfortably sleeps 10-11, featuring a mezzanine with room for two cozy mattresses in addition to its eight platform bunks, and a spare mattress for the floor.
The hut lacks a table, so we spent the afternoon chatting on the porch and enjoying the views out across the East Coast. As the evening cooled, the moon rose, buttery yellow against a hazy horizon.
We retreated to the bunks and played several rounds of Dutch before turning in for the night. No snorers here!
Sunday morning, we enjoyed a blazing orange sunrise, and a more leisurely start than our fellow Daphne group – we had barely left the hut when we crossed them. After advising them to put on long pants for their traverse over the tops, we plunged down towards Daphne. We hopped across the river and stopped for a snack and quick chat with the MF crew who had completed Sawtooth Ridge the day before.
From Daphne, we waded downstream, before plodding 600m or so uphill to the unmarked ridgeline near pt 1189. We crossed the flat expanse of golden tussock under a hot sun, and enjoyed cold water and many lollies over a long break at Longview, as we knew the Daphne group would be a little behind us.
From Longview, it was a quick skip down the hill to the carpark.
Drive back to Wellington
The Daphne Group had kept motivation up on the final stretch by divulging our favourite post-tramp snacks, prompting a mutual decision to stop in Dannevirke at a servo. A fatal piece of decision-making resulted in choosing the Mobil next to Maccas, recently mobbed by swarms of teenage footballers, and this was no longer a quick stop. My thanks again to our drivers Ashley and Calum for their dedication to the drive home, tolerating the jabbering gingers in the back the whole way to Wellington!
Trip stats
Daphne Group (moving time not including breaks)
Saturday (10.7 km)
Kashmir Rd to Longview Hut 1 hr 15 min
Longview to Daphne Hut (via unmarked ridge) 2 hr 45 min
Sunday (13.7 km)
Daphne Hut to Howletts Hut (via Daphne Spur) 1 hr 40 min
Howletts Hut to Otumore 3 hr
Otumore to Kashmir Rd 2 hr 15 min
Howletts Group (including breaks)
Saturday
Kashmir Rd to Longview Hut: 1hr 15 min
Longview to Howletts Hut (via Otumore): 4hr30 including a lunch break
Sunday
Howletts to Daphne Hut (via Daphne Spur): 1hr20
Daphne to Longview (via river and unmarked ridge): 3hr30 including a morning tea break
Longview to Kashmir Rd: 1hr