Ohau - Mangahao loop

I have not quite finished with the Poads Road end. Due to previous bad planning and lack of fortitude there is an orphan spot height lurking on a scrubby ridge between the North Ohau and Mangahao Rivers. This area has shredded some of my best kit in the past and I sometimes hear its distant voice  taunting me in the night.

Flights of fancy aside, if I'm going to complete this mission, I have to find ways to mop-up spots like this. In a eureka moment during the week I devise a route to pick it up plus a couple more on a nearby ridge - and it actually looks like it could be good fun (as opposed to the familiar grim battle to wring the last spotty dregs out of the range).

What:    Weekend navigation trip
When:   15-16 December 2018
Where:  Around Tawirikohukohu
Who:     Solo
Map

It's shaping up to be a fine morning (7.10 am) as I leave the car at the Poads Road end. I put up with the familiarity of the route to the gorge knowing that before long I'll be in new territory.

At the style just before the track dives into the bush, I stop to survey my intended route onto the plateau across the river. I've tried going through the forestry and had mixed success - the place is a mess and it's hard to find a good way across the river. This time I'm aiming to cross further up stream and climb directly to spot 332.

Pt 332 top right, forestry track on left

I follow the fence line down to a terrace above the river. There's another style at the bottom and a little to the left an old vehicle track off the terrace and down to the river.

From the top style - bottom style to the left

On the other side, there's a wee scramble out of the river to skirt just below the carnage from a logging track. The bush is reasonably open and I find it easy to make a way up, eventually stumbling onto blue tape markers and a foot trail to the top (I assume this indicates there is an easier route out of the river).

Top of spur - 332

At the top I lose the markers but find a ground trail, then manage to veer off and follow some red tape markers which start heading down hill. Taking a bearing I just follow my own way for a bit knowing I will pick up the good track in due course.

The track is pretty much unmarked but once it starts climbing the spur to Square Knob it is solid and mostly easy to follow. There are even the occasional glimpse west to a fine day.

A nice day over Levin ...

The Main Range is expecting some weather from the NE though 

Nice trail - after Square Knob

From Square Knob the ridge follows an arc around to Tawirikohukohu delineating the northern boundary of the North Ohau River catchment. The trail breaks into scrub after 794 giving views of clag starting to form around the shoulders of the slopes above.

Looking up towards Tawirikohukohu from near 794

Looking towards Levin as the clouds start to gather

1047 just catching the clag

The trail gets a little more overgrown but still pretty good going as it sidles around the north side of Tawirikohukohu and onto my ridge. The catchment to the north and east is Johnston Creek. The Camelbacks circling above it try to look benign but I know they have a leatherwooden heart.

 

Looking over Scrub Dome to Pyramid Knob and Camelback

It has taken almost three hours to get to the top so I'm going pretty slow today. I head along towards my highest point (1047) - on the way, a look back treats me to the sight of my least favourite ridge in the Tararaus.  I have a not so fond memory of the beating it gave me on my first sortie into the Camelbacks.

The ridge of despair  

Near 1047 looking SE at the Main Range - center are two spurs explored on an earlier trip 

1047 is at the top of a spur with a good trail down to the river (I missed the bottom of this spur on another trip).

Spur to 940 and the river

Down ridge towards 830 - Island ridge on left in distance

Camelhead on right, Marquee on left
(reservoir one peaking around the hill on right) 

As expected, the trail gets a lot less defined after this. It's not too bad but there are some scrubby sections. The cloud finally comes through with its threat and it starts raining on the way down to 830. My lightweight shirt is quickly saturated so I pause at 830 under a developing canopy to add a layer.

The navigation is a little tricky around here but I sort myself out and truck on for 773, my last spot on this ridge. It is not a particularly defined spot so I overshoot to ensure I've got it then take a bearing down the steep slope to the river.

You could probably ride the ridge down to its foot at the mouth of Johnston Creek as it's well defined and the bush looks good. But not today - it would take me out of my way and leave me in a gorge on the wrong side of the river.

I successfully pick up a wee spur that drops me to the river for an easy crossing just along the track from the Harris Creek bridge. On the way I lean on a ponga which promptly breaks in three - landing on my head and cascading fine humus through my hair and down my back.

It's 3pm. Earlier in the day I had in the back of my mind the possibility of knocking the trip off in one day but I've decided to have two easy days instead. The forest here is lush and mature so it's nice to just amble along the familiar track. There are no footprints from today so I'm hoping for an empty hut.

It's called a track dahl ...

Rounding a corner I see a shag on a branch above a deep pool - I stop to watch. It's aware of me and is visibly in two minds; flexing its wings and glancing anxiously back it shuffles and makes a number of false starts before finally launching into flight.

In daylight with no injuries I am pleased to be able to take the river route rather than climb over the slip. It's a dramatic scar with the folded bed rock exposed and old alluvial deposits on top.

Mangahao Flats Hut

Once again the hut is empty. But this time it's 4.20 on a now sunny afternoon so I have some daylight to hang out wet clothes and read something from the hut 'library.'

I'm minding my own business when I see a deer on the flat below the hut - about 20m away. I wander onto the veranda and it turns to stare at me. After about 20 seconds it trots to the forest edge and turns again. Not great survival traits - I could have shot it three times by now. At last it turns to trot into the trees - until I bark and it comes back. It stares again then opens its mouth wide and barks back - pausing once more to say 'how do you like that then!?' Finally it has had enough and trots into the trees - but not too far and we keep barking at each other for another minute or so until I get bored and go back to my book.

It's pleasant to have dinner in daylight and hit the sack early.

In the morning the sky is blue and the sun is just catching the top of the hill across the river. I head out a little after 7am.

The plan is to head up river a short distance, cross just after the next stream on the true left and climb 500 odd meters to pt 1025. Last time I had quite a challenging climb to 1040 straight across from the hut so I'm expecting this to be tricky.

A different deer exchanges barks from the other side of the river as I wander up.

There's a bit of a bog at the base of the hill but once on the slope it's just what you would expect form the contour lines. I quickly find myself following old pest monitoring markers up a wee spur - there is no sign of a trail and the tracking tunnels have not been used for a very long time. Still, I'm hoping it will lead to the scrub and that someone may have trimmed a way through in the past.

No such luck - I see no more markers above about 700m. But around about then there are a few breaks in the canopy to reveal a gorgeous day and the Tararua tops naked to the sky.

Main range around Dundas etc

Mangahao Flats Hut is a tiny dot in the center somewhere

There's a bit of scrambling through scrub towards the top but it is much easier than my recollection of the next spur over. Approaching the crest I'm surprised to be able to pick out the hut below - I hadn't realised you could just about see the top of the ridge from the hut.

A little before 9.20 it's warm and calm on 1025 with bird song drifting up the hillside. The flax is in flower with surprisingly bright colours - bright yellow pollen on the anthers, and shades of orange, green and bronze. For some reason it reminds me of 1970s wallpaper. I take my time, send a few texts and generally find excuses not to tackle the spur down the other side.

1040 - the next knob north

Horowhenua / Manawatu 

Tawirikohukohu (center)

I have a few options now - I could take the easy route and potter along the ridge top to descend the marked spur to North Ohau hut. The ridge might be a bit of a bash but there is a marked trail down the spur. But I've been that way before so I decide to take the spur off 1025 - it looks steep, gnarly and scrubby but is new territory.

There's no track on the spur so I work down to a wee knob for a last view backwards. The spur splits in three and I want the ugly one on the left. I can't see it so I set the compass and worm down through the scrub.

Looking back towards 1025

Between 800-900m the spur has little shape and I find myself climbing down a steep face with mucky drainage slots choked with rotting vegetation. I can see a wee knob below with good trees but can't see what the slope does. I drift right to discover that left would have been smarter. There's a bit of a scramble across a face above a basin using shrubs as hand holds - but I find a beautiful hebe in flower so no complaints from me.

Aim for the left side of that knob below

Hebe (as least I think he be)

The spur proves to be a good choice - quite entertaining in the way it switches and turns, the vegetation changes and the the shape comes and goes. This probably means that most normal people would have hated it.

I take a bit of pleasure in sticking with it right down to the junction between two streams - despite easier looking routes to the right. It's midday so it's taken a little over two hours to make way down.

North Ohau 'River' and unnamed stream

There are a few deep pools to navigate on the way down river and it's a pleasant wander taking about half an hour to get to North Ohau Hut. The log book says a couple of parties have been through in the weekend which is pretty busy - it also says there's been a dead rat in the water tank so I hold off topping up.

After a spot of lunch I follow the river down stream - for a change, the sun is shining directly into the narrow valley.

Last time through here it was getting on in the day and I saw a black fantail - no such luck this time. I find I'm following foot prints and estimate they are a few hours old so I'm not likely to catch up with them.

The North and South river branches meet at 1.30 at the foot of Deception Spur (a nice route up to the ridge). I find I am now following fresh footprints.

Deception spur

I soon catch up with the owner of the feet who has come up river; decided he won't make the hut and wisely decided to backtrack. We exchange a few words and I leave him to it. The older foot prints precede me.

It takes about 35 minutes to get to the track and another 40 to get to the farmland. I pass two couples walking up the track on the way.

I keep a steady but not fast pace across the flats as it's pretty warm. Across the river the clear-felled hillside looks like a shaved badger.

 

At 3pm I'm back at the car and ready to sit in the traditional Sunday arvo Kapiti traffic jam. But first that luke-warm ginger beer.

Postscript

Only three spots down leaving 42 to go. But I'm pleased to knock of 1025 which I was not looking forward to. 

Crossing the Ohau River near the bushline is the best route onto the spur up to Square Knob that I have found yet. I suspect I missed an easier route out of the river but it was pretty straight forward anyway.

The route from Square Knob to 1047 and then down to the river is a good option for getting to Mangahao Flats Hut. Bear in mind the river can be fierce though. I don't think there is a lot of value in following my example down the ridge to 830 and 773 - although it would be kind of fun to combine this route with an exploration of Johnston Creek.

The scramble to 1025 was better than the previous one to 1040 - but you sort of get what you deserve when you navigate in such a crude fashion. If you can read a map you would likely not bother with the spur off 1025 but I enjoyed it. 

The new boots are getting less painful each trip - river travel is a good way to sort things out. Also wearing them to work which you can get away with in the week before Christmas.

With a bit of luck - the next blog will be a successful foray along the Karamea / Leslie rivers in the Kahurangis.