Winchcombe Biv – Tararua Forest Park

Fri – Waiohine Gorge car park to Cone Hut
Within minutes of starting our journey to Cone Hut, in an attempt to avoid getting wet feet, I had somehow managed to fall (timber-like) sideways into the creek. I hit my knee, there was blood and a bruise-in-the-making, and I needed a minute to recover. Not a great start!

The rest of the walk in was thankfully uneventful, and took us a tad over two hours – lengthened a bit by all the wiggling we had to do to avoid the deep mud patches and the Friday night catch-up chitchat we were enjoying. Cone Hut was empty and provided a comfortable shelter for the night. We debated on a leaving time, deciding to set off at first light, so we could keep our options open later in the day.

Sat – Cone Hut to Winchcombe Biv
We started the morning with a climb – first to Cone Saddle, and then on to Cone itself, and exited the bushline to a cold, windy and slightly white landscape. The DoC sign at this location is somewhat intimidating – stating that it is 6-9hrs walk to Mt Hector. It is a long ridge, with a deceptively long section along the tops beyond the Biv. So we were already thinking that we would most likely stay at the Biv for the night. The weather wasn’t ideal for an exposed section of tops travel in the dark.

Travel along the ridge mostly takes place in a goblin forest and there is a good marked track. There are lots of steep “ups and downs” to keep it interesting. Just before we reached the open section on Neill Peak, there was a track junction where an old track (still with a few orange triangles) heads down to Neill Forks Hut. One to explore another time.

The open section was chilly, so we decided to push on and find a more sheltered lunch spot. A bit further on there is a big slip, which looks daunting at first, until you realise you don’t have to cross it. Instead, you can travel via the bushes and tussock on the non-slip side of the ridge. Not much further along, the sun had almost come out and we found a sheltered section. We had fantastic views here of Tunui and Tuiti (Tararua peaks) while we munched on our cheese and crackers.

We didn’t linger, as we were all starting to cool down. After an hour or so more “ups and downs” along the goblin-forested ridge, we came out onto tussock landscape and saw a sign indicating it was another 30m to the Biv. Travelling in the direction we had been going, you could easily pass straight by without realising the Biv was there. After a short conversation we all confirmed that we were happy to call it a day (even though it was only about 2:30pm) and stay at the Biv.

Luckily we were the only arrivals that day. We laid the two mattresses out and spent the afternoon sitting in our new bedouin-style home drinking tea, playing cards and eating delicious chocolate cake that had been made by Caryl. Later we cooked up a delicious chilli with mashed potatoes and rinsed it down with more chocolate cake and some M&Ms.

Caryl and Tiffany both made it out to the thunderbox (long drop with no shelter), and back again, before it started to hail. I timed my visit less well. We were all glad to be snuggled in the Biv, even if it was a bit mouldy. The ventilation system – a fan – had stopped working. A call had already been made to DoC about this. We heard that Backcountry Trust volunteers visited the Biv a week after our visit to fix the fan and do a bit of a clean-up. Thank you Backcountry Trust!

Sun – Winchcome Biv to Waiohine Gorge car park via Cone Saddle
It wasn’t raining when we got up the next morning and we watched a beautiful sunrise as we started our return journey along the ridge. We made quick progress and were at the Cone Saddle junction by lunchtime. Again, a quick lunch stop as it was still very chilly.

In the last 20 minutes or so of our return trip to the Waiohine Gorge carpark, we came across the EM group who had been to Tutuwai Hut for the night (via Mount Reeves). It was great to see other WTMC-ers out in the hills enjoying winter tramping too!

Timings:
– Waiohine Gorge car park to Cone Hut – 2hrs 16mins, 5.7km, 545m elevation gain
– Cone Hut to Winchcombe Biv (via Cone Saddle and Cone) – 6hrs 47mins incl breaks, 10.7km, 1017m elevation gain
– Winchcombe Biv to Waiohine Gorge car park (via Cone and Cone Saddle) – 6hrs 56mins, 13.6km, 369m elevation gain