Aorangi Crossing

The October Labour weekend is best to use for something other than the often visited Tararua's, so Aorangi crossing with the added bonus of some hut bagging it was. With a long walk back to the car round the coast, originally planned to walk the beach, but on the day I discovered it was way too slow. So did the road instead, and got to see dozer action.

The huts visited in order:

• Washpool Hut
• Pararaki Hut - stayed the night here
• Kawakawa Hut
• Mangatoe Hut

Didn't leave on the Friday night which was best as the start of the walk would not have been easy in the dark. And it didn't take three days.

Saturday 24/10/2015
Drove off Saturday morning from Wellington and cruised slowly in the Toyota Sprinter to Pinnacles car park. Stopped at some spot where the view wandered off into the sea with fluffy clouds and some blue. Almost like being on holiday rather than doing some out of office weekend tramping trip.

Palliser Bay from the side of the road

Left my car unlocked accidentally as I'd gone back for a USB cable. No harm.

Toyota Sprinter and pack

Headed off from the car park on a nice sunny day to the look out. Which does have some good views of the formations.

Putangirua Pinnacles

Some k's to go so five minutes of view, and the platform stayed put, no Cave Creek here. Off back onto the track that connected to the four wheel stuff and gorse time.

Gorse track time

Wandering hard and lost the track so followed an old fence line on the ridge untill the big OT.

4WD ends at big OT

Now it was real tramping time on a track with lots of nice bush and the occasional native nettle. Got some clear spots with views.

Looking North

Looking South

Looking NW

Heading down and thru areas of young sparse trees, some parts of this track are jogging material.

Open forest

And then on up again into an area with large old trees. Much drier under foot than the Tararua's. More like the Northen forests in the South Island.

Hammered bark

Got to Washpool hut which is my favorite one of the weekends walk. Had a relaxing meal and a few cups of tea. Will be coming back here.

Washpool Hut

Washpool Hut interior

The hut book is not full and starts in 2007, so its one of those huts where not many come visit and or many that do don't document there stay.

Hut book starts 2007

Left Washpool hut just on six pm and wanted to get to Pararaki hut before dark, so full speed up the hill scaring a few pigs on the way. 3 hours in the tree.

3 hours

Got to Pararaki hut with plenty of light.

Pararaki Hut

Inside the hut there was a shelf of rat chewed food and rat shit every where, spent half an hour sweeping and cleaning. Outside as the sun was going down and the moon was rising I spotted a bat flying away from the trees, no photo of bat, however this was the chunk of tree and sky where it was.

Bat zone

After cleaning up the rat shit and collecting wood I fried my toes before I slept.

fire and feet

Sunday 25/10/2015
Amazing bird song woke me early and I after food and hut tidy I was on my way by eight a.m.

Pararaki Hut 1966

Off across Pararaki stream and uphill before some sidling past an old enclosure. Interesting sign this, as the trees are back however the undergrowth is trashed with the pig rooting in places.

NZ Forest Service Enclosure

Close up of the sign put here in 1959, when the plants where either not existing or up to a height of two inches.

Close up of sign from NZFS 1959

Check out page 105 as there is a picture of the above exclosure being built.
A lot more Urtica ferox in this stretch of the walk.

Urtica ferox

I like the older trees in this part of the forest, and saw a wee bit of fungi later on.

Tree and green

Ear type fungi

Had two pigs snuffling and rooting there way down the hill and wander past me, they raced off when I moved to get my camera out. The ridge down to the junction is one of the nicest bits of the track, then its an easy pasture like walk to Kawakawa hut. Stopped at Kawakawa hut as it was time for food and a cup of coffee and a cleanup of the Seek Freedom detritus.

Kawakawa Hut

Left Kawakawa hut and after a few hundred easy going meters it was into a creek for the next hour, not enough water to get wet feet.

Stream track

Across a saddle with a view down the valley towards the coast.

View looking down valley toward Palliser Road

Then down into Mangatoetoe stream all the way to Mangatoetoe hut.

Mangatoetoe Hut

Lunch time here and another bit of the Seek Freedom detritus, in fact it had only been left that day.

Interior of Mangatoetoe Hut

A short stay

The walk from here was cow paddock material all the way down until out of the river. Then it was up onto the bridge for road walk time.

Mangatoetoe Stream

Heading to the coast road

The start of the road walk along Cape Palliser road is gravel, and a bit dusty as cars drive past. Much colorful flowers.

Cape Palliser Road gravel bit

Got to Ngawi and its a bit of a dozer action place, where dozers go to retire before becoming scrap.

Dozer Zone

Mind you some looked a bit like scrap and others like something out of a tin of paint.

The green one

Looking North along the coast after Ngawi.

Looking North

Kawakawa Bridge

Road between Kawakawa and Pararaki bridges

Pararaki Bridge

More road between bridges

Washpool Bridge

Road after Washpool Bridge

Sea view

Putangirua Bridge

Finally back at the Pinnacles where the previous day I had parked my car, that was four hours of 23 kilometers of road walking just too do a big loop walk. Next time I will walk back thru the forests.

Pinnacles Reserve

Trip Times
24/10/2015
1210 Left Pinnacles car park
1232 At the lookout
1608 Washpool hut
1758 Left Washpool hut
1938 Pararaki hut
25/10/2015
0800 Left Pararaki Hut
0941 At the forks
0956 At Kawakawa Hut
1033 Left Kawakawa Hut
1236 Mangatoetoe Hut
1320 Left Mangatoetoe hut
1410 On the road, beach was a failure
1547 Kawakawa Bridge
1614 Praraki Bridge
1719 Washpool bridge
1816 Putarangi bridge
1820 Back at the car

Map of Area
NZTopo50 BQ33 and BR33 are required.