This article was first published in Tararua Tramper December 2024, pp19-20
Te Hanga Ridge traverse, Kaimai Range
7 - 9 November 2024
This trip was conceived after our Kaimai traverse last December, when we nearly wandered (inadvertently) onto part of the original North- South track in the Kaimai Range that was abandoned in 1987. Closer inspection of the maps revealed an interesting route along Te Hanga Ridge, a rough footpad that is rarely traversed. It had a reputation for rough slow travel, with the 4.5 km traverse taking up to 10 hours. Perfect, we thought.
Four of us arrived in Te Aroha and were dropped off at the road end by Sue and Pete of Biking Hiking Shuttles, whose services we have used on most of our trips to this area. They accompanied us to the start of Hunter’s Track, which ultimately delivered us to Motutapere Hut. Unfortunately Peggy was not feeling well, and had to return to civilisation with Pete and Sue.
Janette, Tim and I set off in deteriorating weather along the ridge to Thompson Saddle. Lunch was taken as we huddled under low scrub, out of the light rain that was becoming persistent. We reached the turnoff to Kauritatahi Hut at around two p.m. From there on, the track deteriorated. One or two slips and some fallen trees slowed us slightly, but we arrived at the turnoff for the 1948 DC3 crash site (New Zealand’s worst air-crash that claimed 23 lives) in good time and reached the hut in the regulation 90 minutes, wet but happy.
In thick, low cloud we could see nothing of Te Hanga Ridge. A GPX file loaded onto Janette’s phone gave us hope of finding the start line for this adventure. Janette's pre-dinner recce revealed a promising lead just behind the toilet. And so we set our alarms for 0630, anticipating a long, bruising day.
Day 2 dawned misty but not raining. I had had a strange dream that we all agreed there would be no swearing on Day 2.
After a quiet breakfast we were off, fully clothed from head to foot to protect us from thickets of bush lawyer and knee-deep swamp. We expected (or rather, hoped) to arrive at Puketutu Hut by five p.m. It is a private hut, and Sue had arranged permission for us to stay there.
To our surprise, we found a well-tagged foot pad and a string of brand-new traps set out along the first part of the Te Hanga Ridge. We think the traps had been set up to protect some amazing stands of juvenile pāhautea (New Zealand cedar) from browsing possums. Despite the trap line work, the swearing ban did not last. All three of us were found wanting as we hit deep boggy sections and clinging vegetation.
By 11 a.m. we were approaching .814, which sported a trig point, A39H. The geodetic survey structure had collapsed long ago. Pleased with our progress, we stopped for a late morning tea about 50 metres from a concrete plinth that marked the location of the Kaimai rail tunnel, some 700 metres under our feet. We were well over halfway to our
Chris Munn (scribe), Peggy Munn, Tim McGuinness, Janette Roberts