To say it has been a bit wet is something of an understatement with biblical amounts of rain across the country throughout the summer, and this is before the devastation caused by cyclone Gabrielle. This coupled with some ill health last year and being busy in general meant that I haven’t done much tramping in recent times.
All of a sudden the weather started behaving itself and with the promise of a fine weekend and no pressing commitments on my part it was time to stop making excuses and dust of the tramping gear,
These days I prefer companions to walk with but don’t like the strictures of tramping club trips so usually walk with a one or two friends. On this occasion no one was available but I thought to hell with it and decided to go anyway. I had also just brought a new hiking tent and thought this would be a good opportunity to test it out. The new tent would also mean that I didn’t have to stay in any huts which can get uncomfortably busy at this time of year. The tent by the way was a 1-person trekking pole tent called a Lanshan 1, which acquitted itself very well.
The target of the trip was Totara Flats which is located in the local Tararua mountain range. The flats are just that and are surrounded on all sides by steep mountains and are the largest such area in the Tararua range.
I set off from Wellington on Saturday but due to some terrible traffic and general disorganisation on my part didn’t arrive at the Holdsworth Roadend until 3pm which was much later than I had intended. The weather was lovely and warm with not a hint of rain.
I set off up the aptly named Gentle Annie Track which climbed around 400m and after an hour and 20mins I arrived at the junction to Totara Flats. I don’t like walking in the dark so had a quick drink and a handful of scroggin and set off down the track. The terrain from here was rather boggy for a while before becoming drier but much steeper and more gnarly. After about 40 mins and 400 vertical metres the track abruptly stopped descending and started gently ascending again.
Near the start of the walk at the bottom of the Gentle Annie
This next section was my favourite stretch of the track with easy walking through lush primordial vegetation. I would like to have lingered a bit more but was conscious of the time, so pressed on. I did meet one lady on this section of the track who said that a party of about a dozen or so were heading towards Totara Flats Hut which made me thankful for having a tent.
The easy walking was never going to last and sure enough the track started heading steeply down descending around 400m until it arrived at a swing bridge. I do like a good swing bridge and this one didn’t disappoint and must be one of the longest in the Tararua’s.
From here the track flattened out and followed the side of the river for a while before arriving at yet another swing bridge crossing the Waiohine River. This bridge was much newer than the previous one and looks to have been built only a few years ago.
From the bridge it was only a short walk to Totara Flats Hut which is situated in a wooded area close to the river but which also has a few nice grassy tent pitches. The hut was already busy and this was before the large group arrived so I thought better of it and decided to walk another 10 minutes or so to the flats proper which is a nice broad grassy area and found I had the place to myself.
All in all, it took about 4 hours to get there. It was starting to get dark so it was time to set the tent up and get dinner going. It took a couple of hours for the adrenaline to subside and for sleep to kick in but eventually it did and I slept like a log.
The next morning I was up at first light and was greeted to a beautiful crisp autumnal day and quickly set about my daily caffeine fix.
I wasn’t in the best of moods the previous day but a good nights sleep and no time constraints put me in a much better frame of mind which was further enhanced when I was serenaded by a couple of wonderfully inquisitive Fantails. The birds were to be a feature of the day.
Compared to previous trips I noticed a marked increase in birdlife and birdsong which was wonderful to behold. I can only put this down to the ongoing 1080 poison drops in the area. These drops are rather contentious with some people and doubtless cause some collateral damage but the baits effectiveness in keeping predators down is there for all to see.
I walked out the same way I came in so there were two gnarly climbs instead of two gnarly descents, which certainly got the heart pumping.
Again, the weather was delightful and I took plenty of tea breaks on the way back. At each stop Fantails would make an appearance and were most entertaining.
After around 5 hours I arrived back at the roadend and the conclusion of the trip.
Both days were fine but I enjoyed the second day much more than the first simply because I had more time to appreciate the scenery and wildlife, which for me these days, is what it's all about.
