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.

Tapokopoko - Orongonrongo Nav trip

What: Nav trip
Where: Ridge around Tapokpoko in the Orongorongos
When: Saturday night and Sunday 21-22 May 2016
Who: Solo
Why: Practice navigation in poor weather, explore new area (for me) in the Orongorongos

My last wet weather nav trip ended up in disappointingly good weather so this weekend, with a foul forecast and miserable week in Wellington, looks promising. The target is the Rimutaka Range south of Mt Matthews. There are a number of trip reports on the web that provide an idea of the terrain and it certainly looks like a more formidable test than last week (links to a few reports: trip 1, trip 2, trip 3).

It's 5.45 on a Saturday night and dark already as I leave the car at the entrance to the Catchpool road - the automatic gate locks at 6pm but I'm not sure I will be out on time, so better to walk the extra few km and know that I can get home afterwards. Provided the car doesn't get burnt down by some of the interesting nightlife that frequent the Wainuiomata Coast Road, of course.

There's another chap heading in without pack - he has ferried his car out and is on the way back in to pick up the rest of his party, who have made heavy weather over McKerrow - I don't seem him again so hope he got them out alright.

It's about 15 minutes to the car park and then another hour to Waerenga Hut. It's a mild evening with no rain but I'm conscious that there has been plenty of rain and the river gauge is on the way down from a significant spike. The regional council has some useful river gauges available - virtually real time on-line (link to Orongorongo river gauge).

Unsurprisingly there is no-one else on the track and I potter along with the river crossing very much top of mind. Descending to the river a grey shape swoops silently through my headlight providing a momentary distraction - probably a Morepork. At the bottom, the moon is peeping through clouds so there is a good bit of light about as I wander out on to the river bed to see what the crossing looks like. No worries - barely calf deep albeit somewhat wider than last time I'd been here.

Waerenga Hut is empty at 7pm so I lay out my kit on the verandah, sort gear for the morning, make a cuppa, then hit the sack.  There's a bit of rain during the night but the moon comes through now and then and the skies are clear by morning.

It's pitch black at 6am when the alarm goes. Porridge for breakfast, then pack up and stash unneeded kit for collection later. This leaves a lighter pack for lugging up hills and thrashing about in the scrub (with bivvy bag and sleeping bag I can sleep out if it comes to that).

Death by fungi - fungicide?

The head torch is necessary at 7am but there is soon enough light to follow up past a couple of huts and onto the spur. There's some marking and ground trail - quickly found and lost again. But it's pretty good going - straight up. I'm taking a pause with my hand on a punga when I notice that there is a weta on the trunk - it has been overtaken by a fungus, seemingly in mid stride with white fungal mass emerging from every joint in its armour. After a few attempts to capture it on the phone camera, the photo here is the best I can manage.

Periodically there are ancient markers to be seen, and someone has made an effort near the top to mark the way with blue tape, but I lose it as the spur levels out on to a broad, flat, and completely overgrown ridge at spot height 797. It's 8.30 and there's no view for the trees but it seems to be a nice day.

Another old rain-gauge(?)

It appears pretty much untracked but various animal trails are apparent and I come across the first of many remains of rain gauges [or leaf collectors?] rotting into the landscape.

I take a bearing and head in the direction of the ridge south. It's a real mix of trees, scrub and grass initially with the reward of a view east into Palliser Bay.

It's good going where there are trees but open spaces are covered in scrub and deep grass which is slow. I'm soon covered in nicks and scraps from the bush lawyer, hidden logs and the rough grass.

Palliser Bay - the beach by Lake Ferry on the left.

Off to the left of the ridge I find a deer superhighway - the ground is churned up with the number of hooves that have been through. It makes going a breeze, until they decide to head off somewhere else, or through dense undergrowth. Occasionally there are windows where you can pop up to the ridge and look west towards Wellington.  At one point I startle a large deer about 30m away - judging by the ground there are plenty more around here somewhere. When the bush clears it is frequently to give way to areas where large trees have fallen and the remaining trunks are dead. There's a bit of clambering required.

Wellington in the distance - Orongorongo River with Cattle Ridge behind below. 

Dead trees and root plates - slow going.

Emerging from the trees I find that the weather has clagged in and that's the last of the views for the day. Navigation has also just got a bit harder.

Half an hour later

I sidle around spot height 768 without noticing it and find frequent deep grassy clearings which are tough and slow going. Sometimes there is opportunity to drop off the east side of the ridge and travel through the taller trees on that side.  It gets colder and is raining by the time the top of Tapokopoko rolls around. It is distinctive, with an old DSIR sign marking their research area. There are also markings for the descent down Paua Ridge. It's 1020; a little under 2 hours from spot height 797 - slow going indeed.

Tapokopoko

The route south from Tapokopoko promises to be tricky and it is. The ridge top is broad and it's hard to judge distance and to keep a straight bearing. I manage to drop into both streams heading south off the ridge and waste a lot of time climbing out and getting back on track. Eventually I navigate to the grassy saddle at 700m but drop in a little low and have quite a struggle getting back to the ridge-line through the deep grass and tree trunks.

By the time I get to spot height 743 I'm soaked through, somewhat battered and cold. It's 12.45 and raining, so I abandon any thought of heading up to the Peak and back and follow some obvious markers onto the spur down to Peak Stream.  Things go well, although the ground trail is easy to lose and the markers sporadic. I manage to find some very old markers with no obvious ground trail around them but shortly after discover I am on the wrong side of an erosion gully (marked on the map). Oh well, I'm not about to climb around or across it so continue down then drop into the stream at the bottom, which soon drops into Peak Stream 200-300m above where I was supposed to emerge.

It's not getting any warmer so I make as good time as I can down the stream to join the four wheel drive track around 2.20 and head up valley to Waerenga Hut with a short detour when I should have stopped following the 4WD track which was heading to some private huts. The rain is intermittent but the river is lower than the previous day so it looks like I will get home tonight.

Back at the hut at 3.20 and the rain has set in again.

Cold and wet but back where I started this morning - Waerenga Hut

I pick up the kit stash and head off, arriving at the car park 45 minutes later and the car 15 minutes after that. A lone jogger is the only person I see on the track, giving me quite a start. To my relief the car hasn't been burnt down, so with the sleeping mat laid out to keep the worst of the wet clothes off the car seat it's a short trip over the hill and home.

I had pretty tired legs the next day and my knees look like I'd been fighting cats in the blender but all up - a good miserable trip that tested my nav skills and confirmed where they are wanting. About 7K on Saturday and 21K on Sunday