Comments, questions, ammendments and additions welcome
This release: 27 March 96
jim.skywalker@stonebow.otago.ac.nz


:
UPDATE:

Bookings now required for the Routeburn Track 

Due to overcrowding, especially in summer, bookings are now required 
for the Routeburn Track huts and tent sites. Bookings can be made in 
advance at Fiordland National Park HQ or the Glenorchy Ranger Station.


Hut destroyed

Beetham Hut in Mt Cook National Park has been destroyed by an
avalanche. Fortunately nobody was using the hut at the time. An
emergency radio is still available at the hut site.


Track Damage

At the beginning of 1994 there were some very major floods in the 
South and West of New Zealand. In particular Fiordland and parts of Mt 
Aspiring National Parks were severely hit. Three huts (East Wilkin, Albert 
Burn and Ferguson Bivy) were destroyed. 

The main tracks are now all open again. 

All tracks have some flood damage. Check conditions and maps locally before 
starting.



CONTENTS
:

         Update
         Contents
         Introduction
         Equipment
         Safety
         The Milford Track
         The Kepler Track
         Copeland Pass
         Urewera National Park
         The Mountain Radio Service
         Miscellaneous Other Stuff
         Addresses



INTRODUCTION:

Tramping = walking in the outdoors. Usually it means carrying your clothes, 
food, sleeping bag and sometimes a tent. Some people call it bushwalking or 
hiking, but its always called tramping in New Zealand.

Sometimes you have tracks - maybe even a road a 4 wheel drive vehicle could 
use. Sometimes you just have a direction like "downstream".

The main areas for tramping are along the Southern Alps of the South Island
and in the National Parks.

Milford: The famous one. Busy and has to be booked in advance. 
         Steep sided glacial valleys, forest. From the North Arm of Lake 
         Te Anau. Up the Clinton, over McKinnon Pass, out to Sandfly Point

Kepler: 3 days, high alpine tussocks, caves and a river valley
        From Lake TeAnau. Over Mt Luxmore, Down into the Iris Burn and
        to the shore of Lake Manapouri

Routeburn: Native forest and mountain views.
           Milford Rd, Lake Harris, Routeburn, Lake Wakatipu

Hollyford: down the river to the Sea. Primeval rain forest.
           From the end of the Hollyford Rd and return. Flying in
           or out is an option.

Greenstone-Caples: beech forest, easy river valleys.

Rees-Dart: open river flats, mountains and tussock.

Cascade Saddle: Very steep tussock faces. Amazing mountain scenery.

Copeland Pass: Hot springs and a high mountain pass. Ice axe and crampon country

Able Tasman Coastal Track: Blue sky, blue sea, beaches.

Heaphy Track: Dont know, haven't done it yet! 

Nelson Lakes National Park: Lakes, mountains, forest.

Stewart Island: Bush, mud, beaches and sea


There are many other routes and tracks. Most bookshops sell guide books.

On most of the popular routes there are huts. They provide a place to 
sleep and sometimes a stove. They dont sell food and usually cost $15 
per night. You can not book spaces except on the Milford Track.

The best maps come from the Government Department of Survey and Land 
Information. You can get them in most outdoor shops and in the main 
cities. The older maps are 1" = 1 mile. The newer metric maps are 1:50000
There are also individual maps of each of the National Parks.

Stove fuel. You can get kerosene, meths and white gas (aka Shellite or 
Britolite or Pegasol) from larger petrol stations. Dont ask for "white 
spirits" you may be given the wrong stuff! Gaz and EPI cartridges are 
at some outdoor shops.

There are busses to most of the trailheads, and hitchhiking is possible, 
(but slow). 

Local guides are available. They are a good idea, especially for trips
away from the tourist tracks and into tiger country.

Be careful crossing rivers. Learn how to do it safely.

Please do not feed the Keas. Take photographs of them instead.

=Jim=

Summit Wind               The Keen Edge of Adventure
PO Box 6211               Email:   Jim.Skywalker@stonebow.otago.ac.nz
Dunedin North             Tel:     +64 3 488 3575
New Zealand               Fax:     +64 3 479 8577

Back  to Contents of Tramping in New Zealand - The Internet Guide.


EQUIPMENT:

As a bare minimum you will need:
   a pack 
   a sleeping bag ("pit")
   suitable footware 
   a rain coat

You may also want to bring:
   a stove, pots and pans
   a tent
   a sleeping pad
   a camera
   a pair of gaiters or leggings
   a warm hat

New Zealand conditions are rugged. The climate is mostly coastal, 
rainfall is high. Being in the middle of the "Roaring Forties" winds are  
strong also. The general bush and scrub conditions also take their toll.
Clothes that warm when wet (wool or polypropelene) are essential. Cotton 
jeans are not good enough. You can easily recognise kiwi trampers.They are 
the clowns wearing shorts, possibly with a pair of polypropelene longjohns 
underneath.

It is possible to purchase all the equipment you will need in New Zealand. 
Local brands Macpac Wilderness and Fairydown make high quality equipment, 
easily as good or better than Lowe, Berghaus or North Face. It is also
possible to get cheaper, Asian made, brands.


Back  to Contents of Tramping in New Zealand - The Internet Guide.


SAFTEY:
      
There are two main dangers tramping in New Zealand, drowning crossing rivers 
and hypothermia (exposure). 

New Zealand rivers rise and fall very quickly. Crossing rivers in flood is 
not recommended. Wait a day for them to drop before attempting a crossing.
Use a log or branch for support and cross as a group with the strongest 
member up-stream. There are a number of techniques - learn and practice one 
or more of them. The main tracks have bridges. 

Hypothermia - chilling of the body core - can occur very easily in cold wet 
conditions. Wear appropriate clothing (jeans or cotton clothing are not good 
enough), watch party members for symptoms (slurred speech, tiredness, 
confusion, nausea, collapse) and respond quickly.

Keas can damage equipment, especially tents, with their inquistive pecking.
Wekas occaisionally make off with small bright items like cutlery.


Back  to Contents of Tramping in New Zealand - The Internet Guide.



THE MILFORD TRACK:
From: tchild@autodesk.com (Timothy Child)
Date: 17 Dec 92 02:04:07 GMT

I don't remember the 4 or 5 night options. I did "The Track" 3 yrs
ago with my fiance' and it was  really worth it. We took the guided
trip and spent 3 nights on the track and 1 night in the THC Milford
Sound, and then another night in the THC Queenstown.

Since this was the week before christmas there were spaces on the
guided trip and the DIY trip. The DIY trip is basic hiking, bring
everything except a tent, it's about $15 a night plus the bus and
boat fares.

We started  from Te Anu after spending the night in an
"unforgettable" motel (I wish we could!). The Track office is at the
THC Te Anu and they provide wet weather gear and a small frameless
pack if you need it.  The only things you need to bring are:  camera
& film, underwear, toiletries, bug repellent (try a 50/50  mix of
Avon Skin So Soft and baby oil), socks and boots. Check the weather
forecast before you leave, our forecast was snow at two of the huts.
The previous week they had  over 80cm of rain in 24hrs and a hut was
washed into the river!

The first days journey starts with a bus  trip to the boat. The boat
takes you across Lake Te Anu and you walk 1 mile to the first hut.
DIY trampers walk 4 miles further to a different hut.

different huts. The huts have two unisex dorms each with bunk beds
for about 20 people.

At each hut you get 5 meals a day, breakfast: both cold and hot.
Lunch: sandwiches to go; afternoon tea when you arrive at the next
hut. This is followed by dinner and finally supper. All the food is
either brought in by 4wd, chopper or plane, you won't starve, we
probably put on a few kilos. DIY hikers have to bring their own food
and cook it themselves. Also, each hut has a drying room to dry off
wet clothes. That's important when the east side of McKinnon pass
gets 300" rain and the west side gets 400" rain, a year.

The second days  hike is up a river valley, crossing from side to
side on those "tarzan" wire rope bridges. The lunch stop is at a
covered shelter. This provides a dry place to eat your sandwiches
with hot tea and fruit cake. There are plenty of bathroom facilities
provided on the track, you don't need to find a bush or a tree to
go.  Someone must of worked hard to determine their correct placement.

Watch out for the Keas at the huts and the lunch spots. They can open
zippers in packs and will steal anything that looks like food.  One
woman had her money in a ziplok bag, a Kea took it thinking it was
food. The vegetation is lush; giant fushia trees draped with moss,
tree ferns and beech trees.

Day three is a hike to the head of the river and then up and over the
McKinnon pass. There could be snow on top, but there is hut which
provides  shelter, hot tea and more fruit cake. Check out the loo
with a view. There is a steep decent, 1000m in 4.5Km from McKinnon
Pass to hut #3.

>From hut #3 there is a 15-20 minute walk to the base of the
Sutherland  Falls. The Sutherland Falls, a scene not to missed, is a
triple decker, and one of the 3 highest in the world. The beauty of
the falls makes you crazy enough to want to walk under it. Don't
bother to resist, the icy cold water is invigorating! Also, from hut #3
you can take a scenic flight over the falls or get yourself flown out
to Milford. They'll also fly your packs out, this all costs extra.

Day 4 was our last day on the track. It's a walk down a river valley
to Milford Sound. You can't say enough about the scenery, the lush
vegetation, and the crystal clear rivers. The track ends with a short
boat trip across Milford Sound to Milford. Our guided trip included
an overnight say at the THC Milford Sound with dinner. It also included
breakfast, and a boat trip on the sound followed by lunch, on the
next day.

Milford Sound, with Mitre peak is one of the most beautiful fjords
I've seen. With near vertical sides, dwarf trees, tree avalanches,
waterfalls and hanging valleys, it's spectacular. Is it worth $690? I
would pay that to go again. It's luxury hiking, a good trail the best
scenary anywhere and good food that you don't have to carry or cook.
The huts are well spaced, the trail isn't crowded, you can just amble
along you aren't herded around in group.

You may be lucky and get an opening on the unguided (DIY) trip. The
"track" is certainly comparable with the Yosemite high country loop
trip which now costs over $80 a night.  If you can't do the "track"
there is plenty of great hiking in the rest of NZ , check out the
book: Tramping in NZ, published by Lonely Planet books.

-Tim.
(THC = Tourist Hotel Corporation)


From: Roald_Euller@rand.ORG (Roald Euller)
Date: 14 Dec 92 20:25:18 GMT

The cost of the Milford track IS high, and has been a bone of contention 
among NZ outdoors types for years.  The walks are essentially guided tours
-- all food and bedding is provided, and nightly lodging is fairly luxurious 
by tramping standards -- hot showers, clean, comfortable, usually in very 
pleasant settings, and so forth.  You will need little more than a day pack 
to carry your lunch and personal effects (don't forget raingear!).  

Originally, the Milford Track was intended to be limited to ONLY guided 
parties, but protests forced the establishment of so-called "freedom walks".  
These are no less structured than the guided walks, ie - you must stay in 
designated huts, and must complete the walk in 4 days (I think), however, 
you carry all your own food and gear just like 'real' tramping.  
Unfortunately, you must book these well in advance, just like the guided tours 
-- I wouldn't count on just showing up in Te Anau (the trail head is accessable 
only by water or air) and expect to do the walk.  In fact, you state in your 
post that you plan on being in NZ next month -- unless you have already booked 
either the guided or freedom walk you may be out of luck.

As far as other enjoyable tramps in NZ, there are many.  My personal favourite
for a leisurely, seaside walk is the Abel-Tasman Coastal Track -- this may the
most beautiful tramp I've ever taken.  You walk along the shore of Golden Bay
(north tip of South Island) past one absolutely stunning beach after another 
-- the only drawback is that it is quite crowded this time of year with 
Germans and Dutch sunbathing in the nude.  Come to think of it that might not 
be so bad after all...

Another really great walk which is not that well known to visitors is the Lake
Waikaremoana round-the-lake track (central North Island).  This takes 3-5 days
depending on your fitness and includes spectacular views across the Urewera
Mountains and provides plenty of opportunity for swimming in the lake.  This 
part of NZ has great historical and cultural significance for the Maori, and 
in fact, the lake and the track are on Maori-owned land.  When I was there 
last year there was a huge family reunion taking place which involved a walk 
around the lake by the entire extended family -- about 80 or 90 people in all!  
Great stuff!

But these suggestions are simply my own opinion -- you can ask a dozen Kiwis 
and get a dozen different answers.

Oh yes, don't forget Tongariro National Park (central North Island) -- great 
volcanic scenary.

Enjoy your trip -- you won't want to go home.


Back  to Contents of Tramping in New Zealand - The Internet Guide.


THE KEPLER TRACK:
From: gascan@dcst16.dc (Bill Gascoyne)
Subject: Kepler Track, NZ (was Re: More Trip Report?!
Date: 17 Mar 1994 00:36:16 GMT

OK, a Trip Report.

Kepler Track, New Zealand, 20-23 Feb. '94.

Day One it was overcast and drizzly.  We started out across a medium size dam or
spillway and into temperate rain forest.  Very interesting vegitation and bird
life.  The trail is very well constructed and maintained, about a meter wide or
more, with drainage ditches to one side where appropriate.  It occurs to me that,
in this climate, the trail would probably wash away very quickly were this not true.
I also notice that the switchbacks are shorter and steeper than those in the Sierra
Nevada.  Perhaps this is becausethe train was constructed in the late 80's, and
because it need not accomodate stock animals.

Our guide stops us beneath some sheltering cliffs to don our rain gear, since the
rain has begun in earnest, and it'll get worse once we cross tree line.  Tree line
is very abrupt, and above it there's still considerable vegitation in the form of
grass; again, this is most unlike the Sierra Nevada that I'm used to.  A 45 minute
hike through driving rain brings us to the first hut.  Upon hearing the word "hut"
I had expected a round, single large room.  Wrongo!  This is a large house with
several rooms, running water, and natural gas for cooking, but no electricity.  From
subsequently purchased post cards and guide books, I see that the view from here
would have been spectacular, but because of the weather we missed out on this and on
exploring the nearby caves.  There are about 15 people in the hut, plus our group of
seven.

Day Two dawned cloudy, but without rain.  We had a leisurely breakfast and started out
mid-morning.  That day's hike was mostly along a ridge.  This feels more like hiking
around the Bay Area in the fall.  We came across a couple of shelters, and one was
guarded by a jealous kea, NZ's alpine parrot.  Big bird!  Very approachable, seemed
to like mugging for the camera.  The high point of the Kepler Track was along here,
about 1400 meters (4500 feet?) as I recall.  The views are spectacular!  Around 
mid-afternoon we begin to descend below treeline again, down into a valley (again with
the short, steep switchbacks) with nice views of waterfalls, and a big landslide from
1984 known as the Big Slip.  The caretaker of this hut is named Ian, and he will also
be our caretaker at the next hut.  The caretaker (I forget his real title) is responsible
for collecting the money and keeping the peace etc. at each hut, and during the day 
they take care of trail maintainance.  Here the blackflies are fairly fierce (but 
not as bad as Sierra mosquitos on a bad day), and they will remain so for the rest 
of our trip.

On Day Three we hiked past the Big Slip through a valley with more or less grassland 
and scrub forest to our third hut by a lake.  Day Four was a short hike through more 
temperate rainforest to the end of the trail.  Since there is a trailhead (with a 
really large swinging footbridge) halfway through this leg, many people don't bother 
hiking the last 7 miles of the trail, but I found this to be one of the most enjoyable 
portions of the trail, high above a river and more or less flat.

New Zealand is a really great place to backpack.  Try it!


Back  to Contents of Tramping in New Zealand - The Internet Guide.



THE COPELAND PASS:
From: frankv@pec.co.nz

Don't even think about doing this without an ice-axe. You should also
be able to use it properly. At any time of the year it's possible that 
you'll need to cross ice and/or snow.

Don't ever wear crampons unless you know how to use them.
--
Frank van der Hulst 


From: Bruce Rendall 

Last I heard access to Hooker Hut and the upper Hooker Valley was 
"closed".  In the flooding during December a "gut" on the access route 
was scoured out to a greater depth than previously.  DoC were advisng 
people without extensive alpine experience to stay out of the area.

Even if you did choose to go up there, take an ice ax and crampons.  
There are already too many tourists making silly crossings (e.g., no or 
inadequate equipment, sponging of groups, following in footsteps, 
dropping rocks on following groups).

We went over in early December and had a German pass us on the way up, 
then drop rocks on us.  We met him at the Copeland Shelter.  He then 
followed our steps over the snow, before disappearing ahead of us once we 
got to the other side.  Not as bad as other stories - the guy who sponged 
food, then used a friends stove while he was asleep.  They awoke to the 
ceiling lining on fire and the offender (Nationality unknown) hightailing 
it out the door. 

Bruce Rendall                            


From: hugh_grierson@trimble.co.nz (Hugh Grierson)

The new gut has made the standard track from Mt Cook Village to
Hooker hut impassable.  The slip occurred on a section of track
between the Hooker glacier terminal lake and the hut.  Looking at
it from the eastern Hooker track it appears that the new route
from MCV to Hooker hut would involve skirting the edge of the
terminal lake then continuing up the glacier moraine until past
the slip, then climbing the steep lateral moraine wall from the
glacier to the shelf on which the hut is located.  Finding the
best place to do this would be the key, as the moraine walls
are unstable and difficult at best, dangerous at worst.  I'd
wear a helmet.

The track from Mt Cook Village to Hooker hut used to be an
easy 2 hr walk.  It would be at least a couple of hard hours
more now.

I think DoC's advice re experience is sound.  There are too many
ways to die in the mountains and the Copland has claimed a few
even before these additional difficulties.

>Even if you did choose to go up there, take an ice ax and crampons.  

Indeed.  And know how to use them.

Be prepared to be completely self sufficient.  There won't be many
people on the pass this summer.

-Hugh

Back  to Contents of Tramping in New Zealand - The Internet Guide.


TE UREWERA:
Tramps in Te Urewera: (note spelling...means burnt penis by the way)

Te Urewera National Park is the largest stand of native forest in the 
North Island of New Zealand (over 200,000 hectares of park, plus a lot of
adjacent Tuhoe land and pine plantations).  Called "Te Wao Nui o Tane" (The
Great Forest of Tane (Tanemahuta, forest god)) Te Urewera is the traditional
home of the Tuhoe people.  

The Tuhoe people are called The Children of the Mist because they reckon they are
descended from a rendezvous between a mountain and the Mist Maiden (I forget their names).
The presence of the Tuhoe in these mountains give the national park a unique atmosphere.  This is, to me
anyway, the most awesome thing about the park.  The mountains are steeped in a history that
includes the last of the NZ wars (against the prophet and founder of the Ringatu faith Te
Kooti Rikirangi), the travels of the Tuhoe before the arrival of the pakeha, and the myths 
and legends of the people and the mountains.

The name of the area Urewera (burnt penis), is a source of great amusement to schoolboys 
everywhere.  The story goes that a chief lying beside the fire, having forsaken sex because
of an upcoming battle, became ... shall we say "aroused" during the night and his penis found
itself in the embers of his camp-fire.  In his book "Season of The Jew" (about Te Kooti),
Maurice Shadbolt decides that the moral of this story is never to choose war over sex...
...make love not war ay?

Rua Kenana
   Rua Kenana was a Tuhoe prophet early this century, recognised by a hui of Tuhoe/Ringatu elders
   at Tawhana as the prophesised successor of Te Kooti.
   Rua was a pretty huge influence on the area and he organised the building of "Rua's Stock Track"
   which runs from Maungapohatu to Gisborne on the East Coast of the North Island.  Rua built this
   road to open up the Urewera for trade.  The "6-foot track" from Maungapohatu to Matahi (in the
   Northern part of the park) was built for the same reason, and was 6-foot wide so that carriages
   could travel on it.    Both tracks are now used for tramping on.  The 6-foot track goes from near
   Maungapohatu to the end of the road at Eight Acre camping ground, Ive never used Rua's Track so 
   I'll leave commenting on that for someone who has.


Tracks:

 * Ruatahuna, Maungapohatu to Eight Acre.
   Following the six-foot track and the Tauranga valley.

   The Waimana/Tauranga river is traditionally the path of Whakaari, which used to be a
   mountain in the Huiarau ranges near Waikaremoana, but fled North with her sister Motuhora,
   carving out the Waimana/Tauranga valley as she went.  She ended up as White Island, the
   active volcano you can see offshore of Whakatane.
   
   More recently, the river ("Tauranga" inside the park) takes its name from the wanderings of
   the tohunga Taneatua, of the Mataatua canoe.  Taneatua apparantly was a chap with a naming bent
   because he also named Tawhana, Matahi, Te Nana, Te Wera, Horokai and Kaikanohi.

   From state highway 38 (the only main road through the park) at the Papatotara saddle
   (about 10 km East of Ruatahuna) follow the old pack horse track to the Maungapohatu farm.
   You pass two huts on this bit of track, wether you want to stay in them depends on how
   fast you want to do the track.  Personally I'd do it real slow but I'm a bit lazy.
   The first hut is Kanohirua (six bunks) and is only about an hour and a half off highway
   38.  When you reach the Kakawahine clearing (Tuhoe land) the track veers off to the North
   and Waiawa hut (about 2 and a half hours from Kanohirua.
   The track continus from Kakawahine to the Maungapohatu farm, and past the farm to Mako
   Mako hut (4 to 6 hours).
   To do this track you must cross the Tuhoe farm "Maungapohatu" near Ruatahuna, you have to
   get permission to cross this land.  Write to: The Secretary,
                                                 Tuhoe Waikaremoana Trust Board,
                                                 Private Bag,
                                                 Rotorua.

   Alternatively:
   If you have 4-wheel drive transport available you can drive from state highway 38 from the
   Huiarau summit along the logging access road to Maungapohatu.  10 kms from highway 38 a gate
   marking the beginning of Tuhoe land is reached, on the right hand side of the road there is a
   sign showing the track to Mako Mako hut.  From here to Mako Mako is about 3-4 hours walk.
   The track runs around the base of Maungapohatu (the sacred mountain of the Tuhoe people),
   crosses Rua's track and joins up with the 6-foot track which you follow to Mako Mako.

   From Mako Mako you follow Rua's 6-foot track , past the turn off to the Paetawa track,
   to Te Panaa hut (6 bunks i think), read the profound little poem i wrote on the out-house wall.
   Mako Mako to Te Panaa hut takes about 5 hours.  Spend the night listening to Kiwi and Moreporks.
   Kiwi, by the way, do NOT say "kiwi" - they scream "Nyyyeeeeeahhhhh !!!".  But i suppose that would
   be a silly name for our national bird.

   The track from Te Panaa winds through some great rainforesty stuff, then rises above the
   Tawhana Flats and follows the side of the ridge for a while, passing a very
   old carved ponga post on the way.  Say "Tena koe" to the ponga and scuttle away.

   Then walk North down the Tawhana river to Tawhana marae at the abandoned settlement of Tawhana 
   (the meeting house, Nga Tau-e-maha, is one of the funkiest coloured
   meeting houses you are ever likely to lay eyes on, and somehow a little more 'sincere' than
   those at Whakarewarewa).  Read Jeffrey Sisson's "Te Waimana" for the story of Horopapera Tatu,
   the guy who developed this farmland.  
   At Tawhana the Tauranga river joins in and the path follows this river North through Tauwharemanuka
   (Tuhoe farmland) to the ford at the stony flats near Eight Acre Campsite.

   You can either walk out of the park from Eight Acre, or get someone to meet you at Eight
   Acre (if they have a normal car) or at the Southern end of Tauwharemanuka if they have a
   4-wheel drive.  If the road's wet a normal car may not get to Eight Acre, it's about an
   hours walk from there up the road to "The Lions Hut" (which incidentally is relatively
   luxurious and can be booked if there's not schoolies there), where cars may have got held up
   by the ford.  A hint: cross the ford a bit upstream !!!!
   You COULD leave a car at Eight Acre, but I wouldn't.

 * Lake Waikaremoana track:
   This track is probably the most popular in the park.  The tracks are generally pretty good
   and the lake is just loooovely.

   Continuing the theme...first the legend:   Many years ago a tohunga tried to kill
   his daughter after she disobeyed him.  The daughter was turned into a taniwha by the gods and she
   hollowed out the lake while she was thrashing around trying to escape to the sea.  The name of
   the lake "Waikaremoana" means "thrashing waters" and the various arms of the lake are suppossed
   to be the different ways she tried to escape.

   You can circumnavigate the lake in either direction.  Either clockwise starting at the carpark at
   Onepoto or anticlockwise starting at the Hopuruahine carpark.

   From the Hopuruahine carpark to the first hut, Whanganui, is only 2 hours so you might decide
   to continue for another 2 hours over the (reasonably steep) saddle to Te Puna hut, which is 
   very nicely placed in a little sheltered bay on the lake.

   Follow the lake side around over several streams (which apparantly can flood quite badly) past
   Patekaha Island (actually now a peninsular, once a very famous fort, then a burial ground).  The
   peninsular is Tuhoe land and is still tapu so don't trespass.  The track continues to
   Marauiti hut, 3 hours walk in all.

   The track from Marauiti to Waipaoa hut is approx 4 and a half hours.  About half an hour
   after leaving Marauiti you get to a ranger station at Maraunui.  The station is only staffed
   over the Dec-Jan period.  A couple of hours later you reach the turnoff to the Korokoro
   waterfall.  It is a one hour return trip to the falls and it's well worthwhile.  Waipaoa hut
   is very popular with fishers and swimmers and has a wee wharf so if you have access to a boat
   you can get there direct without all that nasty walking through the dirty bush.

   From Waipaoa up to the hut on Panekiri bluff is 4 hours.  This is quite a hard stretch.  The
   track becomes very steep for a while and with a bit of rain or mist can be really slippery.
   The hut at Panekiri seems to be perched right on the edge of a cliff and has the most AWESOME 
   views when the weather is clear, both across the
   lake and the park and down the coast as far as Napier.  The hut also apparantly has rats.  We
   didn't see any though, just a mild earthquake.  I would have preferred the rats.
   The hut is at 1180 metres and it can get really cold, especially if there is a mist or a bit
   of a wind.

   From Panekiri you follow the bluff along to Bald Knob, and another awesome view of the lake,
   then to Te Rahui trig and down a fairly steep track to the Armed Constabulary Redoubt at
   Onepoto, (used by "the good guys" in the war against Te Kooti Rikirangi) and on to the 
   Onepoto carpark.

 * Whakatane river track, following the mythical path of Motuhora (Whale Island) when she
   and Whakaari came North.  4 or 5 days
   Turn North off highway 38 at Ruatahuna, past settlement of Mataatua, then follow track to
   Tawhiwhi hut (3 hours), Ngaherimai hut (1 hour), Hanamahihi hut (3 and a half hours), Junction
   hut (3 hours), Ohora hut (3 hours) and finally to the road end at Ruatoki, another 3 hours.  While
   at Ruatoki, go and have a look at the mission house, it's really cool (when not populated
   with scoolkids.You can drive out from Ruatoki to state highway 2 and Whakatane etc.

 * Granny's track...follow the Waimana valley road up past Matahi, track leaves just past Ogilvies
   bridge on the left, easy one day walk.

 * Track from Waimana/Tauranga valley over the hills to Ruatoki in Whakatane valley, very steep.
   takes 2 or three days.  Track leaves Matahi-Eight Acre road just South of Matahi bridge.
   Last time I went past the beginning of the track was pretty hard to spot.

 * Manuaha to Waikareti
   3 days.  State highway 38 to Manuaha hut to Sandy Bay Hut (on
   Waikaremoana) to Park HQ.  Water must be carried days 1 and 2.  Includes
   Mount Mahuaha, highest peak in Urewera Park (1403 metres) views to Mount
   Ngaruahoe, Mahia Peninsula, Mt Maungapohatu.  VERY cold.
   Day 2 is not a track, route marked by slats on trees, a tramp for
   experienced trampers.


Huts:

Huts in the Urewera are nowhere near the standard of Fiordlands.  Hey, call me
a snob but i like it that way.
Huts USED to be free (ahh, the good ol' days y'know) but now cost $4 each per night, ($2
per night for a young'un 11-16 years) buy tickets in advance..either from rangers (Dept of
Conservation, DoC) in Northern park at Waimana road HQ or at Aniwaniwa in Southern park (near
Waikaremoana), or at DoC shop in Whakatane. (they sell great maps and track notes too).
Maximum stay at any one hut is two consecutive nights.  The wood stoves in the huts aren't much
good for cooking so you have to carry a gas stove.  Buying a hut ticket doesnt guarantee you a
bunk in a hut, so you have to take a tent or fly as well.
There is usually a water tank at the huts, unless they are beside a stream or lake, but see
below:


Public Transport

I know there is a minibus which goes along highway 38 each Monday, Wednesday and Friday.  This
bus travels from Wairoa to Rotorua and back.  From my DoC sheet the APPROXIMATE times it passes
the ends of the track are:

Wairoa to Rotorua
Onepoto                           8:50 am
Hopuruahine (concrete bridge)     9:50 am

Rotorua to Wairoa
Hopuruahine (concrete bridge)     5:00 pm
Onepoto                           6:00 pm


A Base To Travel From:

If you want a sizable base, where you can buy gear and food and talk to the DoC
chappies, I guess you are limirted to either Whakatane, Rotorua or Gisborne.  Being completely biased,
I'd recommend Whakatane.
Motuhora (DoC reserve Whale Island) and Whakaari (active volcano White Island) - whose
paths you may follow in Te Urewera - are offshore and may be visited on DoC trips and private tours
respectively.
An extensive track system, "Nga Tapuwae o Toi" (The footsteps of Toi Kai Rakau, first settler in NZ
circa 800 AD, whose pa Kapu te Rangi on the hill above Whakatane), gives a great walk through native
bush from Whakatane through Mokorua and Ohope Reserves, along Ohope Beach (touristy or surfyish), across to
Otarawairere (serene) and round Kohi Point (steep) past the mouth of the Whakatane River (landing (and nearly
sinking) place of the Mataatua canoe (the one the ancestors of the Tuhoe arrived
in) in circa 1350 AD), past the fortifications of several pa
including Toi's (from Kapu te Rangi you get great views West to Mayor Island, East to Mt Hikurangi,
South to Mt Tarawera), down past the rather pitiful Wairere falls and back to Whakatane conveniently close to
the Whakatane Hotel.
Mokorua Reserve: kiwi, bellbirds, tui, long tailed and shining cuckoo, NZ Falcon, fantails, morepork and wood
pigeons.  Predominantly rewarewa forest (several rare plants so be nice)
Ohope Reserve: tui, bellbirds. wood pigeons, fantails.  One of the best remaining coastal pohutukawa forests,
also manuka, rewarewa and kawakawa.
Kohi Reserve:  tui, bellbirds, wood pigeons, fantails, the hugest seagull colony, shearwaters, pied oyster
catchers, pied stilts, terns, gannets, shags.  Rewarewa and pohutukawa (including one awesome filling a
gully, it looks about a million years old)  High Risk Fire Area !!

Rotorua, despite smelling very bad, is good for tourist stuff, Whakarewarewa is a pretty good
introduction to Maori culture.

Gisborne has awesome weather 


Other Cool Tramps In The Area:

Mount Edgecumbe/ Putauaki, above Kawerau (get permission from Tasman Forestry)
Mount Tarawera (3 or 4 routes to summit)
Lake Tarawera, Tarawera Falls, several more in Tarawera Forest (Pinus Radiata)
Nga Tapuwae o Toi (around Whakatane)
Nga Tapuwae o Taneatua (near Taneatua township)
Lathams track (near Awakeri hot springs)
Matata walking track (Matata)
Heaps around the lakes (Rotoma, Rotoehu, Rotoroa, Rotoiti)
Blue Lake, Green Lake, Lake Okataina near Rotorua


Back  to Contents of Tramping in New Zealand - The Internet Guide.


THE MOUNTAIN RADIO SERVICE:

In the South Island it is possible for trampers to rent a two-way radio. 
The radios have their own channel, and can also use the National Parks 
official frequency.

A weather forecast is broadcast every evening, and trampers may give messages
to be passed-on. The radios can be used to summon help in an emergency and
provide a means of communication between parties. 

The service is a voluntary one, run by a group of HAM radio operators 
and trampers. There is a local contact in Christchurch, Dunedin, 
Invercargill, Hokitika and TeAnau. 

Back  to Contents of Tramping in New Zealand - The Internet Guide.


MISC OTHER STUFF:
In pub\misc at ftp.otago.ac.nz there is tramping.zip. This file contains some
of the text from this faq, and some photographs of tramping in New Zealand 
in MS-Windows .bmp format. (It will be an html document when it grows up).
Also planned are climbing.zip and adventur.zip




ADDRESSES:
In an Emergency Dial 111 
Ambulance, Fire, Rangers, Police
tel: 111
radio: HELP


Alpine Guides Ltd
PO Box 20
Mount Cook
(mountain guides and instruction)


Federated Mountain Clubs of NZ
PO Box 1604
Wellington
New Zealand
(maps, guidebooks)


Macpac Wilderness Ltd
PO Box 8399
Christchurch
New Zealand
(manufacture equipment, clothing)


Milford Track  
Fiordland National Park
C/- Department of Conservation
Te Anau
New Zealand
tel: 03 249 8514
(track, hut bookings)


NZ Alpine Club
PO Box 3040 
Wellington
New Zealand
fax: 04 384 4413
(maps, guidebooks, accomodation)


NZ Mountain Guides Assoc
PO Box 10
MT Cook
New Zealand
(registered mountain guides)


NZ Mountain Safety Council
PO Box 6027
Te Aro
Wellington
New Zealand
(instruction courses, safety manuals)


NZ Outdoor Instructors Assoc
PO Box 1065
Nelson
New Zealand
(teaching qualified instructors)


Southern Alps Guiding
Charles Hobbes
PO Box 32
Mt Cook
tel: 03 435 0890
fax: 03 435 0890
(alpine guides)


Summit Wind
PO Box 6211
Dunedin North
New Zealand
tel: 025 357 321
(field safety assist, gear hire, transport)


Wilderness Shop
101 Stuart St
Dunedin
New Zealand
tel: 03 477 3679
fax: 03 477 3679
(outfitters hardware and survival equipment, sales & service)



Comments, questions, ammendments and additions welcome
This release: 27 March 96
jim.skywalker@stonebow.otago.ac.nz

Tramping in New Zealand - Internet Links.

richard keightley 16-Oct-96

Comments/Suggestions

enzed HOME page