This article was first published in the Tararua Tramper in September 2000
Waikanae - Hemi Matenga Reserve - Kapakapanui Stream Forks - East Branch
25 March 2000
About 8.20am on a fine, cool morning the party of eleven left the Huia St access to the reserve to climb the western ridge.
After about 12 minutes travel north on the ridge, we descended via a known spur east to the Kapakapanui Stream. Then downstream for nearly 30 minutes, sidling a waterfall and farther on a log jam to clamber over.
At the forks, the east branch flow is small with an immediate 2m waterfall to sidle. The valley is narrow and winding with no shingle flats, but rocks are slippery and vegetation close, but not prickly. There were two waterfalls to sidle, the larger one round a narrow ledge. Nearing lunchtime we reached creek forks - not listed by cartographers - to identify our position.
Up the spur between waterways was our route. Bill forged a way through the kiekie belt into open forest where at a small flat we had lunch. Then a steep 20 minutes under the spur crest before meeting the prominent ridge from the south-east, to turn north-west. A few direction changes ahead needed careful route finding as Bill, Bernard, Colin, Phil and I all checked. The route varied between north and west to near bump 611m. Finally, keeping east of ridge scrub in the forest below, we reached the clearing and forestry road by mid afternoon. From here a good view of Kapiti Island.
Easy going now on the forestry road, noting current (weekday) logging of pines, before reaching the bush track to the south. We were back at Huia St by about 4.45 p.m. Special thanks to Alan for guiding newcomer Angela along difficult terrain. Pleasing for me to have with us old friend Phil Harris from "fit-grade" tramping of the 1960's and 1970's.
The group;- Bill Allcock, Rhonda Billington, Colin Cook, Phil Harris, Angela Ibbotson, Gordon McKenzie, Bernard Molloy, Sieny Pollard, Tim Stone, Alan Wright and Peter Jagger (leader and scribe)
The above trip - as far as I know is a first for a TTC party.