Oriwa Ridge: The First Modern Traverse

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ORIWA RIDGE DAVE CAPPER ORIWA RIDGE The First Modern Traverse Members of this club have been drawn to this area The first modern traverse appears to have been of the Tararuas on quite a few separate occasions. made by a party of three Tararua Tramping Club However, as these encounters are widely spaced and members in 1928. They were Messrs. J. W. Butcher, this trip rarely features on trip schedules, this account G. B. Wilson and W. Neill. "High up on the Oriwa is included for historical and general interest reasons. Ridge the party was struck by occasional discontinuous traces of what seemed to be a once well History trodden but very old track. Considerable numbers of As Oriwa Ridge can be used as an access from fallen and partly decayed tree trunks lay across and Otaki Forks to the Main Range of the Tararuas and had largely obliterated the old track." Eight years beyond into the Wairarapa, it is not surprising that after these three Tararua gentlemen had "re-blazed" the Maori people used it as a footpath for advancing the trail there was a violent storm in this area which and retreating war parties. Adkin, in his history of added considerably to the pile of "fallen and partly Horowhenua, states that "an old war trail went via decayed tree trunks". Pana-te-wae-wae and Oriwa to Mt. Waiopehu and on to Arete". Another trail(also mentioned by Adkin) Traverses by Members of this Club seems to have followed Oriwa Ridge and has been Four recent accounts in the (1960, 62 called the Otaki-Ohau track. However, it appears and 64) gave fairly vivid descriptions journal of Oriwa 61, that the name "Oriwa" was not given by the war as it may be found today. However, before Ridge these parties but is a language "accident" caused by interencounters it is known that in 1954 Leon and action of Maori and Pakeha. "Nuts" Bolts traversed the ridge. Leon Sondej was handi- The actual peak of Oriwa is about 3,500 feet high capped by acute stages of advanced appendicitis and lies a mile and three-quarters south-south-east of which seems to prove that he must have been Mt. Waiopehu. It has a broad, flattened top which is "Sondej-fit" in those days. The journal account at "modified" about 10 chains to the north by a remarkthat time lends a sanguinary air to the place and is able bush-surrounded hollow = a lakelet basin. From here reprinted under the watchful eye of the Indecent certain angles this basin shows as an open space and Publications Tribunal! the Maori name of "Oriwha", meaning "the place of the cleft, chink or scar", makes a very apt descrip- ODE TO ORIWA tion. However, the "h" has since been dropped and Adkin suggests the following interesting explanation. September 10/13 The original surveyors who had the task of setting [Editor's Note. - We have heard of "B for Mutton", "B for up the trig station had Maori helpers. When these Bolt and/or Nuts" and now we find that apparently Oriwa helpers were asked the name of the spot they would is "B for and after". We are not in the habit of publishing > such "high" class verse but would ask you. to bear with us usually say "O-riwha" - referring to the natural openand be a little broadminded. And just a hint to the Oriwa ing in the bush at the lakelet. The surveyors "then Ridgers ("Nuts" and Leon), don't let us catch you being adopted the name for their adjacent trig station, but stung by that Bee again.] in the process something less than the true phonetic The Oriwa Ridge is a bush-clad ridge extending value was appreciated and the 'h' was omitted". south from Waiopehu to the junction of the Waite- Wrongly spelt though it is, "Oriwa" reflects the waewae and the Otaki rivers. It is approximately ability of the Maori people to accurately observe and eight miles long. If the ridge were divested of its bush describe a location, and emphasises his close associathe traverse would make a reasonable weekend trip. tion with the Tararuas. A passing storm in 1936 had this in mind and started It is well known that the Maori people used to flattening the bush unfortunately it did not finish cross the Tararuas for various reasons. Various the job and the ridge today presents a picture of routes have already been suggested as war trails, and fallen, tangled and rotting logs, thick second growth it should be of interest to present-day trampers to and blankety blank bush lawyer. It is not a very read details of the first modern traverse of Oriwa healthy place to break a leg or to get appendicitis. Ridge. Two "Tongue and Meats" recently went up to Waio- pehu Hut on a Friday night, then took seventeen of Oriwa. 'Nuff said about that. The air was very hours to get to Waitewaewae Hut, via the full length blue over the Western Tararuas that day, in fact: Oriwa Ridge, it's b long Not meant for humans, b wrong Listen now to my swan song: It's b How's this for a b ramble, A two-day fight through b bramble The b trip's a b shamble, It's b Ripped my tweeds on b lawyer, Its b thorns are made to gore yer, It's aim in life is to annoy yer, It's b Can't see a thing, where's b lamp? We'd better make a b camp Now I've got the b cramp, Oh b This b camp, no b water, Dry b food, a b snorter. Where's O'Reilly's b daughter? Oh b Bush too thick for b deer, Today seems like a b year, B long way to get a beer. Oh b . Fell into Otaki River B frigid, b shiver, No wonder I've got a dirty liver, It's b To get this far and then be stuck, I guess we've missed the b truck; It's just our lousy b luck, It's b "NUTS" in Tramping and Mountaineering, Vol. 5, No. 3, December, 1954. It can be readily seen that the writers of 1954 graphs, just suffering and staggering, pushing, cutting, appreciated a certain quality of "high resistance" onward, forward. Flat Top proved to be a veritable about the place. An extract from the 1960 Journal bush lawyer paradise, for it grew in endless profusion article by this writer showed that it hadn't changed across mountainous piles of fallen logs. At 5.30 it was a bit. all over, and we sank down on our little oasis of "About two o'clock the going began to deteriorate, sleeping bags, for the moon had replaced the sun and one joker was revived by the food-to-mouth method all was quiet." and we crashed on. Now we could really enjoy the Henk Bertholet described conditions in his 1961 log jams, piled high, full of bush lawyer, supplejack article like this: and monsters. Where to go, over, through, under, round? This problem presented itself in an endless "On we went again, with the going varying from kaleidoscope. Hacking, cursing. dropping, climbing, bad to hellish. As the day grew older, our stops slipping, grovelling and crawling. A delightful feature became more frequent, until we rested for a few was the sudden discovery of being completely alone minutes every half hour. Oriwa, Not-Oriwa and in a little room made of bush lawyer and fallen logs. several other unnamed bumps were conquered at the How piquant. cost of sweat, blood and skin, until at last, Table The hours rolled by, the sun stayed, but no photo- Top."

In 1962 Norm. Clarkson used his literary talents it was the bit where the Bush Lawyer was the thickest. to bring a graphic close-up of the local difficulties. The next few hours were just a blur of pushing, "After lunch we reached the land of horizontal. struggling, sweating, cursing, grumbling, and seemtrees, where lawyer and young beech entwine, and ingly getting nowhere." the verdant fern grows in profusion, as it did in the Although all these writers appear to agree about pristine forests. From various points along the ridge the difficulties provided for their enjoyment, they all views unfolded of the Main Range, and soaring above appear to share a remarkable respect for attachment the 'Main Range', the snow sprinkled tops of Girdlefor the place. This report seems to take on the stone, McGregor, Arete and Dundas. An altogether quality of a mild type of reverence such as a rider novel viewpoint. We had little opportunity to be might feel for a difficult horse or a yachtsman for bored, logs to climb over, or under, rotten logs to aj particularly ugly stretch of water. After all, it's only collapse through, logs to fall off, dense foliage a tiny part of the Tararuas! to crash through, gray in a glorious feast of gymnastics. All the SO far included have been written Mother Nature showered her love upon us, passionabout and trips this does not include the encounters ately embracing us with her clinging lawyer vines, the unknown club and who have by and the sun shone from a clear blue sky. What more wandered in this persons, It is known, unclub, could you wish for, apart from an armchair, a pair that Don Jeffs and region. Graeme Hall for our example, of slippers and a television set?" (two of illustrious Chief Guides) descended from the "O" on the He completes his article with the delightful thought map: and completed the trip in the Otaki. The weather and question: "Does any reader have a billiards table was not "Set Fair" on this occasion. and a tomcat in exchange for a pack and a pair of Now in our 21st year, this was included in the boots?" trip trip schedule. Steve Moynihan and Neville B. Taylor In 1964 Margaret Jefferies wrote: suffered the leadership of Dave Capper to see for "Our 10.30 morning tea break on Notoriwa turned themselves. Although they were not disappointed, it into an extended lunch stop, and after filling the was noticed that the track was decidedly easier. It water bottles in case of fire, we trundled merrily on was almost as though Nature had relented and our way. Uncle Nick's Elephant Pit was dutifully decided to present a new aspect. The weather was noted and great care was taken not to fall down it. magnificent. The remarkable bump called Flat Top was observed If you are now attracted to the area, dear reader. also, some distance along the ridge. Which was Flat please remember that on April 10th, 1968, there was Top and which wasn'tI wouldn't'know, but I suspect a violent Southerly Storm!