Rimutaka summit to Wairongomai

Sometimes you know that a trip will be a bit ... ambitious - the uncharitable may even say foolhardy. However, if you have the right contingency plans and are prepared to activate them, then at worst you will have a bit of a story and not too many enduring scars.

This weekend the plan is to see about getting from the summit of the Rimutaka hill road to Wainuiomata via Mt Climie, Mt Bawbaw, Wairongomai hut, Wairongomai Saddle, Papatahi and the Whakanui track. I figure it is a possible goer but prime the support team to standby for possible premature extraction from one of a number of potential points.

What:     Navigation trip
Why:      New territory - fill in some gaps along the range
Where:   Rimutaka Range
When:    11 February 2017
Who:      Solo
Map:      Map

Most people have little in the way of a mental picture of the landscape between the Hutt Valley and the Wairarapa. The higher ridges and peaks delineate the eastern horizon for many of the good valley dwellers and Wellingtonians, but the hills and catchments behind probably don't even register as a possibility. Driving over the Rimutaka hill road there are no views into the interior and even the incline never climbs high enough to hint at the land southwards.

Admittedly I'm guilty of the same level of ignorance but over the last year I've been picking off sections of the Rimutaka Range so here's my version of putting some structure to the landscape...

Ranges are defined by rivers so first think about four rivers: the Orongorongo River starts about two thirds of the way up the park and flows south west. The Pakuratahi River flows north draining the top third of the park (joining the Hutt River at the Kaitoki water works). The Wainuiomata River drains a chunk of the western side and the Wairongomai drains a little bit between the Orongorongo and Pakuratahi flowing east into the Wairarapa. Other water courses nibble around the edges.

This network creates a main range running north from Turakirae Heads to the Wairongomai river. It then sort of hiccups - a range runs north from Wairongomai via Bawbaw to the summit of the hill road in the east and in the west another one runs in parallel from Wairongomai Saddle via Orongorongo and Mt Climie to peter out in various spurs into the Pakuratahi River. Both called the Rimutaka range according to my map - go figure. Around this core structure are numerous ridges and spurs.

All a bit of a simplification of course but enough for what follows.

Summit to Mt Climie

Cups of coffee and a drive in the dark sees us at the lay-by short of the Rimutaka Summit at 5.40 am The near full moon is just behind the ridge. It's not the actual summit but the risk of walking down the road in the dark is not worth making the point.

The forestry track gives an easy gradient and surface to quickly reach the ridge and start the zig, zag and zig down the spur to the Pakuratahi river.  After 40 minutes there's a handy street sign just where I want to turn off to link to the incline road at Ladle Bend. It's also starting to get light.

Ladle bend is on the Rimutaka incline - the old fell railway route to the Wairarapa and a very popular family MTB trip. Today though I am just crossing it - and at a time of day that other users are unlikely to be about.

Back road to Ladle Bend

Pakuratahi - my spur ahead.  Incline comes out of valley to right and heads away on the left

The map shows an old access track on the other side of the river that starts up my target spur towards the Mt Climie road and the range. I cross the bridge, scramble down to the river and across.

Ladle Bend bridge from below

More mist in the pakuratahi

4WD track ?

There's no apparent path into the bush so it's a bit of a grovel but eventually I'm in pines on the terrace working up river. After a while there is a break that must be an old 4WD road but it is fairly overgrown. After a bit there is another old track that crosses the river (marked on the map).

At this point I figure there is little to be gained thrashing along the terrace to where the track starts up the hill so bash straight up through the pines to meet it. It's pretty overgrown but okay to navigate under the pines which is precisely not very long at all. Just as it turns sharply to climb the spur, it turns to hell.

Track up the hill under the pines

Morning sun just touching Kaumatua range
From elbow on marked track on spur in the middle of a gorse patch (7.10am)

The old track is covered in gorse, blackberry, cutty grass and 2m scrub. And the bush either side is not much different. I am soon regretting wearing shorts and short sleeve top. It's slow, painful and there's plenty of blood shed.

Kapakapanui

I have ample time to speculate about the relative damage caused by various plants. Gorse is like a bunch of train bullies - basically pricks but you can push through without too much blood. Blackberry is the viscous street thugs that stand their ground and rip you to shreds. Bush lawyer is the stealth assassin that sneaks up and slits you with a shiv - that or vicious Velcro.

This continues to 525 when with much relief the canopy lifts and some animal tracks make going easier. Further along a couple of  'Up and go' containers indicate that someone has been this way - probably straight up from the river. It's a bit of a mixed bag up the spur. Tracks come and go, no marking that I can see until near the top, a bit of scrubby clearings to contend with and a few more knobs to get around than I was expecting.

Kapakapanui on horizon - looking down
through tunnel gully reserve

The sun gets hotter, the views get broader and towards 857 the trail gets stronger. 4.35 hr after kick off I am taking a breather in the moss on 857 before the saddle to 828.

Overall it's not the most efficient route. Doing it again I would probably aim for the saddle by 399 and gain the spur that way. Or preferably start near Goat Rock rather than the hill road. In any event it takes 5.10 hr to get to the Mt Climie road.

There's a trig at 831 - three MTBers are chatting as I wander up. The talker keeps droning as if I don't exist and only one of them acknowledges my greeting. I'm used to a bit of interchange with the people you meet and the casual rudeness sort of jars.




The views from Mt Climie are a bit of a consolation. Whiteman's Valley, the hills around the incline and southwards my route for the day with the scarred face of Mt Matthews in the distance. It's sunny and warm. After stopping for photos it's just after 11 and 5.40 hrs since starting. Mentally I tick this off as phase one of three for the day.

First glimpse of the Hutt Valley

Mt Climie looking north - 857 towards left, incline somewhere in the distance

North from Climie - little notch on horizon at left of centre is the destination

Mt Climie to Bawbaw

There's no obvious route into the bush but after crossing the low astelia covered top and ducking into the mossy trees a route pretty quickly develops. There are footprints and various types of markers. Someone has tied way too many green plastic bags to trees - we'll call him Mr Numpty. Ironically, they are recycling bags.

Looking back towards Mt Climie

It's mostly pretty straight forward - the ridge doesn't have very dramatic ups and downs so it is a little tricky keeping an eye on progress and there are patches of regrowth and scrub that are unpleasant. There are also grassy clearings with long dead tree skeletons - vertical and horizontal. A couple of spurs to the west look like they get traffic but keeping an eye on the compass these are easily avoided. I suspect the travel along this section is a little harder than I remember but the reason for such relatively rosy tinted hindsight will come clear soon.

A pause in a grassy clearing

Forest remnants 

 

Not as easy going as it looks

The Markers thin out and pretty much disappear, I think around 825.

Looking back to Mt Climie

825 ... probably. Spur runs down into Pakuratahi catchment

Looking south range around Bawbaw on left

Getting closer

The climb up to 791 is obvious.  The ridge then becomes quite flat and wide - at some point I have to strike east to find the saddle between the Pakuratahi and Wairongomai catchments - the link between the two arms of the Rimutaka Range. The canopy is high so there is no view and  I don't see anything to indicate a trail - after what seems like a suitable distance I take a punt and a compass bearing. Soon enough a strong trail develops into the saddle through open forest.

I'm running the sums now - it will be touch and go to reach the hut in daylight, I'm running low on water (although there are some streams marked near my route) and the cell phone is on the blink (I said I would check in at some of the high points).

The saddle is relatively gentle as are the head waters of the Pakuratahi, you could probably drop down to a stream relatively easily. There are a tonne of animal trails - I don't think many hunters bother coming in this far.

The climb up Bawbaw starts easily then for the last 100m becomes steepish, the trees more stunted and the trails fade away. Part way up the camel back runs dry.

On the east most knob on Bawbaw there's a break in the low tree canopy where I can just pop my head out and get a view of where I've been. End of phase 2 and about 11.45 hrs since starting. I don't bother heading across to the other knob.

From Bawbaw, saddle from 791 on left, Pakuratahi head waters in middle, range to Climie on horizon

North along eastern range from Bawbaw

Range south to Mt Matthews on left

I wonder briefly where the name Bawbaw comes from - later, all the internet can supply is that it's a mountain in Australia and could come from an aboriginal word meaning echo. 

Bawbaw to Wairongomai

My recollections of this section are a little disjointed - possibly a matter of psychological self protection. It takes a lot longer than expected owing to several varieties of nasty scrub. The map indicates that navigation is likely to be tricky with a complex ridgeline and large flat area.

The slope down off Bawbaw is broad with more surface features than the map suggests. I figure the idea is to cut across east far enough to drop down into the saddle before 640. In the event I drop down too soon and end up scrambling over a steep knob and pottering through a couple of wee gullies before finally finding dense bush around the saddle. The good news is a trickle to get a few mouth fulls of water.

Southern Wairarapa from south side of Bawbaw - spur up to 640 in mid ground

Looking back up towards Bawbaw - note mixed bush and scrub with windfall

From here on the bush is interspersed with areas of windfalls, tight regrowth or scrub and occasional open spaces to get a breath and a view.

Coming off 640 the navigation gets quite complicated. It's a flat shapeless ridge top with lots of scrub and a lovely swampy clearing full of cutty grass. There are some glimpses of 564 but little to give a hint of the best path of travel. It's also almost impossible to follow a straight line bearing. At least I find a stream to full up the camel back.

I can't find anything much in the way of tracks but suspect that I might have found easier going by dropping off the flat top into the bush in the east.

The bush opens up to give a view of the saddle before 564. Low scrub through the saddle rising to nasty looking taller scrub (2m) before there are any trees you might be able to walk through. It's going to be slow work. There are a number of goats browsing and the scrub is infested with pigs.

The rough scrub is like a pot scour on legs that have already taken a battering. It's a painful grovel up the ridge before finally gaining the trees. At 564 it's 9pm and dark so I crack out the head torch and have one final go at the cell - it's working. I figure that I'm not about to do another day like this so arrange to exit out the Wairongomai in the morning.

From ridge below 564 - back to Bawbaw showing twin knobs
scrubby saddle in foreground

Now is the small matter of navigating off the end of the ridge down to the river and the hut 400m plus below. In the dark.

I'm aiming to hit the track about 300m down stream of the hut. In summary, it's fine at the top but I can't see any ground trail and soon am taking bearing changes based on the altimeter. It's very slow stopping incessantly to check the compass but things go surprisingly well managing to thread between the two streams and get to the flat spot at 200m.

Weta motel with residents

Something that looks like a wooden pencil case nailed to a tree leaps out from the dark as an alien shape. On closer inspection it turns out to be a weta motel with a few in residence. Someone has been here before and there's a funnel on a tube nearby collecting some sort of fall out from the canopy. There's also a bit of a ground trail that I follow for a bit. I think I've lost it when another funnel emerges from the gloom - this one with a VUW tag on it. Soon after I lose the trail for good so just bash straight down, onto the flat, through a stand of Buddliar to stumble onto the track.

It's a little tricky finding the hut as the track markings are a bit ... economical but at 11.30 after 18 hours on the go it's a thorough relief to stumble through the door and wake up the two people inside.

In deference to the fact that they have been in bed for a couple of hours I exchange pleasantries, brush the worst of the rat droppings away and crawl quietly into my pit. I chew on some salami and cheese before letting fatigued muscles twitch into a solid sleep.

Wairongomai hut to the Wairarapa

With my revised plan there's no hurry in the morning. It's the right choice to pull the plug on the original day two plan. Once embarking on the section of range to the Papatahi Crossing track there are not really any exit options.

The morning light reveals the effects of scrub bashing on unprotected legs and the benefits of garters. My marino bike top, although comfortable, is not up to the punishment and has another large hole on the shoulder to match one earned last weekend (and corresponding hole in the skin beneath).

The perils of not wearing trousers when bush bashing

My hut companions are good company. He works for DOC locally so I pick his brains about the TTC suggestion of a track along the southern part of the Rimutaka range and we have a good yack over breakfast. They came up the river so can give me some pointers about what to expect (2 hours of wet feet). They have also studied the log book which indicates that the hut is not frequently used but that people take various adventurous routes to and from it.

First light at Wairongomai hut 

About 8.30 I head out and down river. I'm expecting a lot of river crossings, a few deepish pools to avoid and not brilliantly marked track exits from the river. And that's pretty much what I get. The track is well formed and fast apart from a bit of a scramble up the true right of the last gorge and the last kilometre or so is in the river bed. Dry feet are not an option.

The sun cracks through and a stiff wind whips water off the river and slashes it down the river bed. It pushes me around a bit and it's border line getting the rain coat out. It is a nice walk though and I would recommend it as a day or over-night trip (unless a slightly ratty hat puts you off). With any rain though the river might get dicey.

It takes about an hour twenty to get to the car park which is a large domain with access provided courtesy of the farmer. The support crew is waiting by the river after very decently disrupting a Sunday morning for the early extraction.

After a big breakfast in Featherston it's back over a windy Rimutaka hill for a lazy afternoon.

Postscript

The original weekend plan was too optimistic for me on the day but is doable. With a more sensible starting point in the north phase one would have been more straight forward; and better path finding south of Bawbaw would have made for a shorter day. Better clothing choice would have made things a bit more comfortable too.  A lot of new countryside ticked off though and I now have a far better understanding of the northern part of the park.

Only thing is that there is still a chunk of range unvisited - and we can't be having that.

Coming ....

Coming ....

Arrived - note the ventilation on the shoulderes

South Saddle to Tapokopoko

Mike has organised a trip to Paua hut in the Orongorongos with options for the adventurous and not so adventurous. I have some ideas about a reccy along the ridge south of South Saddle in the wake of a suggestion from Tararua Tramping Club that a track be put through.

As usual, punters express interest then can't make it and on the Saturday morning Mike isn't quite up to the early start. Accordingly, the main assault party which is planning to climb to South Saddle then follow the ridge south to 797 and down the spur to Waerenga hut consists of me. This suits fine - the company would have been welcome but a smaller party opens the door to some variations that I have up my sleeve - depending on how the day pans out of course.

What:    Nav and Paua Hut chill out
Where:  Rimutaka Range south of South Saddle
When:   28 January 2017
Who:     Solo nav, then chill out with Angela, Mike, Toby, Jo, Rodrigo
Why:     Pick up a new section of the Rimutaka Range
Map:      Map

It's a little overcast but promising to be a good day as I leave the carpark shortly before 7.30 am. There's little of note on the way in.  I run into a ranger who is relatively new to the area, he's interested in my plans for the day but hasn't heard about a possible track along the ridge. He asks me to look out for a pair of secateurs he thinks he left on a post near the Turere bridge loos (I check but can't find them).

The main assault party

The river is a little up  and the course has changed since I was in last - there have been some big flows through which have cut new channels. Dry boots are not going to be a goer today.

I head up around Big Bend where I figure to introduce the first variation on the original plan. According to the map there is a bit of a face developing into a spur on the true right of goat stream. I scramble up into the bush and soon come across a respectable track running up river I follow it for a bit and it comes to a hut (probably the second north east of Goat Stream). I decide to back track a little and head up in order to be closer to Goat Stream. Sure enough I skirt around another hut a little higher up the hill and near the stream bed where a home made marker indicates a route to South Saddle - this is going to be easier than I thought!

There is a good foot trail which, as usual, is hard to decipher in parts but it is pretty good and there are a generation of markers including relatively recent ones for pest control.

This tree had five or six markers on it - go figure!

As I gain height the goat stream catchment on my right reveals its steep, eroded faces and later on there are occasional views back to Wellington. The going is pretty good.

Looking up into Goat Stream catchment

Looking down Goat Stream - my spur on the right

Across top of Goat Stream towards Wellington

Although overcast, the sun is cracking through at times and I'm feeling the heat. Around 500m the spur joins a big spur that runs up beside Matthews stream. There are a lot of pest markers around and it looks like there is a route up that spur (this had been my plan A). There is also some home made markers indicating a sidle route to South Saddle. I'm a bit tempted but am in climbing mode so keep following the steepening spur to the main ridge.

There is nothing remarkable about the top of the spur - it rounds off into messy bush. You can fight to the edge of the slip face for a view east but I don't bother back tracking to see if there is a view over the saddle. The pest control teams have been through though and there are traps and tape markers for a way along the ridge which makes the going a bit smoother for a short while until they run out (I think less than half a K past 701).

An occasional clearing gives views in all directions and are not as difficult to navigate as those further south. I'm even treated to a fine view of Mt Matthew's backside. The wind sculpted beech, weathered stumps and epiphyte festooned trees testify to the weather conditions that predominate.

From 701 the occasional view south west gives a perspective of the main ridge and the various important spurs including the original target for the day (from 797 to Waerenga hut). I'm thinking though that there is plenty of time to potter along a bit further.

797 with the spur running west to Waerenga hut

After 701 the ridge dips into a saddle then climbs. I can't find much in the way of tracks - even animal tracks seem a bit scarce. Consequently I vacillate between walking the knife edge on the ridge top, picking through scrub above the steep western slopes or grovelling through steep slippery bush on the eastern side. At one point I dislodge a boulder which smashes down through the bush for a long while before dropping out onto an eroded face where it booms and crashes its way out of ear shot. I continue to sidle picking hand and foot holds with care.

Unnamed knob with the spur down true right of Mukamuka stream running to the left

The ridge leading to 797 provides views down Brown's stream to Turere Bridge where I can just make out tiny dots that could be people enjoying the patches of sun on the river bed. It's a fantastic perspective on the valley below. The ridge also provides the on going challenges of windfall clearings with tree trunks rotting into deep grassy scrub.

Looking west the clouds are gathering and the patches of sun are getting smaller. Still, it's a damn sight more pleasant than a previous time up here.

Down Browns Stream towards Turere Bridge

Not the easiest country to navigate

Mt Matthews in centre - ridge north running to the left

Point 797 is every bit as unremarkable as I remember it. I take a breather and, as it is only 11.20, notify home command that I'll keep going past 797 to Tapokopoko to descend Paua Ridge.

This now marks territory that I have traveled on a trip up the spur from Waerenga hut then south to 743. The top is rounded and covered in fairly thick bush. I don't identify anything marking the top and take a compass bearing to find the continuation of the ridge.

I soon find myself in a 'clearing' which is pretty unpleasant to work through and it's a while before I can make my way into more open bush. I'm not sure whether I have twice missed an obvious route (quite possible) or whether there is no easy passage.

Once the ridge is a bit more distinct there is often a bit of a trail along the south eastern side but it is pretty overgrown so not exactly speedy going.

A brief window to Palliser Bay

Approaching 768 the top of the ridge gets kind of complicated. There is an open notch or gully which is apparently traversed by many animals and provides a by pass behind 768 - last time through I missed 768 in the clag and had a bit of trouble making sense of what my compass was telling me. This time there are no troubles apart from a brief struggle through a clearing. I startle a deer which bounds off from less than 20m away - it must have been deaf given the noise I was making.

 Shortly after I break out onto a virtual lawn leading towards Tapokopoko.

Notch along the ridge near 768 

A glimpse of a sunnier Wairarapa

I take a break sitting on the grassy slope looking out towards Wellington. Figuring it's a short hop now to Tapokopoko I reach for my map only to discover an empty pocket. I'm more irritated than concerned. Up until now I thought my Merino cycle top was an excellent tramping shirt. Apparently maps can work their way out of the back pocket even when squashed in by the hip belt. Aside from the question of litter there is now the small matter of finding and navigating down the spur.

I follow an animal trail up the clearing which rapidly degenerates into a thrash through scrubby bush - I did this last time too - there has to be a better route! After a bit of a climb the bush opens and the ridge flattens - I'm pretty confident that I will recognise the human detritus that marks the top and sure enough soon see ample signs of previous visitors - official and otherwise. It's about 1:10 now so plenty of daylight to get lost and found in.

Sign marking ecological study area

Top of Tapokopoko

I remember from the map that the spur is quite well shaped most of the way and that it flattens then jinks right towards the bottom. As it happens there are markers from the top and I am soon following a good ground trail. It is pretty easy going most of the way - occasionally the spur broadens and I lose the trail but things go pretty smoothly. At one point a trickle runs out of the ridge and someone has carefully built up a wee pool and left a trowel beside it. I clear the leaves out and use the trowel to do some repairs but have enough water for now.

Paua oasis

Around 250m the ridge jinks and I neglect to. I find the marked stream but make the mistake of following some markers that someone has laid running towards Nettle Stream. This ends up with a steep scramble down a scrubby face and a short plummet into a ditch full of gorse. It's nice to be standing on the flat 4WD road but I'm not sure which direction Paua Hut is in - the shape of the valley floor doesn't tally with my memory of the map so I set off in the wrong direction for a while before common sense reasserts itself. The cloud has gone and the afternoon is now baking hot as I trudge up the valley.

Paua hut is located at the foot of a spur in open beech forest. The forest ends abruptly in a cliff providing a shady balcony to sit and gaze up the sunny river bed. This is exactly where I find the rest of the party reclining in the shade. It's about 2.30 so there is plenty of afternoon left for relaxing.

The numbers have dwindled to the point that Jo and Rodrigo are the only non-family members present. They have come in along Cattle Ridge and down Browns Track and appear to have spent a bit of time browsing and drowsing after their exertions. They still have plenty of energy though so Mike wanders up river with them leaving Angela and I to chat the afternoon away - very pleasant indeed.

Anglela contemplates the river

While we are sitting a hunter staggers out of Greens Stream below us and totters off up valley. He's either drunk or carrying something very heavy. We can't quite make it out but he plumps himself down by the river and spends an awfully long time composing himself. He takes his boots off and dunks his feet in the river and just sits there. Eventually he starts fiddling with his gear and then finally stands up and props his pack up. There's a brief struggle and then he's standing again before wobbling off and around the corner.

Throughout all this we are hoping that Mike and co will return and be able to tell us what was so heavy - no such luck. We have started dinner by the time they get back and it turns out that they kept wandering all the way up to Matthews Stream. In the course of this they confirm that the best swimming hole is in the river just below Paua hut - Jo and Rodrigo head down for a dip while Angela and I get on with our respective dinners.

Toby has spent the entire afternoon in his tent and barely emerges in the evening before turning in for the night. What has that boy been up to!?  The rest of us eat and enjoy a clean skin bottle of wine that Jo has brought - a very approachable shiraz is the verdict. Angela, Mike and Toby are in tents so with three in the hut that's about the perfect number to my mind. The night is quiet with a bit of wind in the trees and plenty of stars should one have been inclined to venture out.

In the morning Angela and Toby have to shoot through first to make another commitment so the rest of us have a leisurely breakfast before tidying up. Paua Hut is owned by the Wellington Tramping and Mountaineering Club and can be hired (members free - $7 for others). It has water, loo, gas and assorted crockery so you don't actually need to bring much kit (all the more space for pate and wine).

Jo, Mike, Rodrigo, Paua Hut

It's after 10 by the time we head out and amble up the river to Turere bridge. There's plenty of other people about including a family hunting group who had bagged three deer. There's another large group or two at Turere bridge and a fairly steady stream of people coming in. We take it easy and follow the main track apart from a short detour along the other side of the stream for the last half K or so.

Jo modeling suitable footwear for river travel

All up another successful weekend. I covered my quota of new territory and still had time for more social activities. The ridge south of South Saddle has some brilliant views and challenging terrain. Admittedly, a track would bring more people into a sensitive and, in places, fragile environment and there are parts off the ridge where it would be a challenge to establish a stable track. However, on balance I think the area can sustain more visitors and I think there is still enough near-wilderness experiences north of Mt Matthews for the more adventurous. 

Whether the powers-that-be will be convinced it is a good idea and if so whether there is funding for construction and upkeep is another thing entirely.