A Great Walk

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A GREAT WALK Pat Duffy Theweatherisgettingwarmerandsome hot and cold running tourists. A nice catching, reflecting, and playing on the ofuswill be lookingforaplace togot for spot but a little too early in the day to lenticular clouds turning them orange, a few days over the summer. Perhaps tempt US to stop for more than a quick yellow, purple, andi Ibluei in the lastlight ap place where the scenery is great, the brew. Besides, wel hadjust met at bloke of day. It was almost as if you could terrain isnottoo challenging, thes sense who had walked from Mangaehuehu reach out and touch the clouds. of achievement is very satisfying, and Hutt that morning, provingour objective most importantly, an area where you to reach the next hut in the Rangipo The morning dawned cool and clear can getthefeelingthatyoucouldbethe Desert was feasible. After a brief withagreatball loffireturningthe desert only person there. Germanlesson, anda chatin. Japanese bright orange. The far distance below (we think), we set off wondering what was still pitch black as the sun's rays ast Christmas Michael and I lay ahead. hadnot penetratedthewidevalleyt floor. found such a place in Tongariro Breakfast twasdevouredonthe: stepsas National Park. Wep packed our gear and The signpost states 4 to 5 hours to wewatchedthetrucbiesnegotiatingthe headednorhwithther notion ofwalking Rangipo Hut across an undulating Desert Road. The street lights went out "round the mountain". Not the popular landscape. Itwasquitehotbyr nowand in Waiouru and we set off for northern circuit around Tongariro, but we filled our water bottles before we Mangaehuehu Hut. the southerncircumnavigationofMount left. Rangipo is a desolate spot of sand Ruapehu. dunes andvolcanic ash, the oddhardy The trip to Mangaehuehu is much the tussock, andlilipili (smallroundpumice same asthe desertbut withbetter views We had walked part of the way on a of both the mountain and further afield previous occasion, from the Turoa towards the Karioi pine forest. The Mountain Road to the Bruce Road, and "you could majort feature of this part oft fthe circuit is found the hut spacing and camping the glacial Wahianoa Valley on the spotstobeinconvenient. We decidedto say goodbye southeastern slopes. Wahianoa Valley taket the adviceofacouple ofoldhands to socks is very large and daunting with loose andtacklethetripinadockkwise direction your if gravel sides, and a small river at the from the Chateau towards the Tama bottom. Wereachedi thetopofthenorth you stepped Lakes. ridge of the valley and wondered how in it II we were going to negotiate the steep The track to Waihohonu Hut is a hot scoria-covered sides to the valley floor, walk in summer, exposed to both the some 120 metres below, without losing wind and rain, with no trees or cover to pebbles that eatt thesolesofyourbools. the seat of our shorts on the way. With shelter under. The vegetation is varied Thet trackismarkedbypolesandwithout some trepidation we set off in a zigzag witht tussock, beech, andhebes, aswell them would be quite difficult to find in fashion and then considered what we as Mountain Totara and many other places, especially in the winter snow. had got ourselves into. It dawned on US botanically unpronounceable species. that we would have to clamber up the Wewalkedford about anhourandmade We eventually reached the Tukino Ski- other: sidein theheat thatwasincreasing a short diversion to the Lower Tama fieldroad where we were disappointed even at the early hour of 9.30 am. At Lake. This is a great place to lie down to find that the hut we could see from least there was water at the bottom. amongst the tussock to enjoy the view way back on the track was not Rangipo and have a snack. Hut, but an electronics shed. We Thet trip down was nottool bad and after continuedon acrosstheroodsidling up a couple of minor frights, we made it to From the Lower Tama, the track crosses and downhill for another hour, finally the valley floor DOC saved the day by arelatively flat saddle andcontinues on entering Rangipo Hut 33/4 hours after puttingasmall bridge over the river. As tol Waihohonu Hut. The old Waihohonu leaving Waihohonu. A hot dry trip but we approached it we began to realise Hut nearby, is the oldest huti in the park worth the effort. why. The smell of sulphur was very and has pumice walls almost a metre strongandtheriverwaterwasunsuitable thick. Apparentlythishutwase oneofthe The view over the desert towards the to drink. We both reckoned that you stops ont thep populart tourist trailt thatl led road and distant Waiouru is a treat. could say goodbye to your socks if you from the mouth of the Wanganui River Looking up towards the mountain, one stepped in it. to Lake Taupo. can see thel high peaks and dwhite snow contrasted lagainstthe: skyandbrownish The other side rises an equal distance, Ther new Waihohonu Hut is upper class reds ofthe scoria. Earlyt thate eveningwe andifromthelowervantagepoint looked accommodation by comparison, and were sitting on the veranda at what as if it would take a while to climb. this is probably why your annual hut seemed to be about cloud base level. Actually the track sidles up the valley pass is not valid during the summer Completely sheltered in the wind wall and the effort is minimal in season. It is a modern Lockwood style shadow of the mountain, we were comparison to the effort that would be hut with gas cooking, gasl heating, and captivated by the sight off the: sun's rays required to climb the opposite side. TRAMPING & MOUNTAINEERING to the rain on the roof and the warmth of the fire, believing we were indeed fortunate to be in such a setting. Wed awoke to an overcast day ands set off for Whakapapaiti Hut with the intention of going on to the Chateau that day if all went well. The track was undulating, and ranged from good easygoing with boardwalks, to head-high gorges, steep, muddy banks, and rock scrambles. A notable feature is Lake Surprise which is reached after a moderateclimbfromtheMangaturuturu River. Thev vegetationisamixtureoflow scrubby beech, tussock, Mountain Totara, andMountain Daisies. We also found and photographed a lonely Mountain Buttercup, the only one we saw on the whole trip. Itv was an easy walk out downthe valley past many good camping spots. Eventually the track forked and we entered a magnificent beech forest Upper Tama Lake in winter Brian Johnston acrossthelower: slopes ofthemountain. You realise that civilisation can not be ThetriptoMangoehuehu Hutwasquite soil is composed of ash deposits that far away when the track becomes a straightforward from this point. The wash out easily once the vegetation is smooth gravel highway and tourists vegetation slowly reappeared and damaged. We reached the Turoa begin to appear and gaze at the eventually weenteredabeechi forest A Mountain Road at the 12 km point. This unkemptlocalsi from thel bush. Thet final short walk through the trees and their section of road was the coldest part of part of the walk is on the Silica Rapids welcome shade, brought US to the hut. the trip. We were pleased the tourists track and terminates at the bottom of driving their cars ignored US; we didn't thel BruceR Road. Wewalkeddowntothe Thesetlingisenfirely differenttoanything want to be tempted to accept a ride. start of the track where all this had else experienced on the way around begun 4 days ago, continuing up the the mountain. This hut is situated on Thet track left the road at the 15 km mark trackafewmetres to make suret that we the edge of al large swampy, tussock- anddroppedoffe acrossarockyface. An had completed the whole circuit. The coveredclearingintheMontaneForest. undulatingwalk broughtustot thetopof camera did its thing for the last time, The view is to the south over the area aspectacular waterfall Looking down perched on the signpost, faithfully between Waiouru and Ohakune. The we could see the track disappearing in recording the event for posterity. weather at this spot seemed to change the distance and we began our abruptly, from a clear sky, to scattered negotiation of this slippery obstacle. Thenext "hut" wastrulygrand, a chateau overcastandtheoccasionalrainshower. The fancy footwork was not made any by all accounts, and after a quick wash fancier by the rain and slick rocks, but and change of socks we observed the We arrived on New Year's Eve and after a few hair-raising moments, we requirement to remove our boots, and Michael and I celebrated with a good made it to the bottom. A short walk dropped our packs outside in the meal, someparty.rackers, andcoloured through a shoulder high washout reception area. Feeling good now that streamerswehadbrought: C alongforthe opened out to a swamp with a we had "done it", we went up to the occasion. Unfortunately nobody else submerged track and the occasional barman with the bow tie and fumeduptoourportysov wereadthehut boardwalkr raft. Thel hut was a welcome cummerbund, bought a beer, and logbook a couple of times and chose sight nestled in a grove of trees in the recounted the trip while we waited for our bunks. We retired early, content to distance and we arrived mid-morning our transport to arrive. The sight of leave the New Year revelling and first withthesuntryinghardtobreakthrough. these two blokes, in their stocking feet footing to the possums. MangaturuturuHutisamuchlovedhut, and polyprops, with a cloud of stream with framed photographs on the walls, rising from their clothes as they driedi in Wellrhodforainiguess Dawnbrought andalargewindowlookinguptowards front of the fire, probably continues to plenty of it, and we set off to the mountain. There is a memorial amuse thet tourists when theyre-tell the Mangaturuturu Hut with the rain and stoneseat outside, builtbytheWanganui story of their mountain adventures and wind in our faces. We found the track Club in memory of club members who the "men in the mist". easygoing through open tussock and have died while climbing. beech forest. There are lots of board Both of US agreed that it had been, a walks to protect the environment ast the With one last leg to go we settled down great walk. TRAMPING & MOUNTAINEERING