Nov 17 2023

Signal Hill tramps

Published by under Trampers,Year round

Distance Chingford from carpark: 20 km.
Follow Old Main North Road to Cleghorn Street which has the best view of the harbour. Walkway sign.
Walk starts starts at the gate on right, up McGregors Hill. Beyond stile Pine plantation on 3rd stile at summit.
Gravel road 10 minutes to end. Locked gate. Last stile. Signal Hill road.

15 Nov Signal Hill Harbour View With Hikers. Square Small Janette19. 15/11/2023. Hikers. Cleghorn Street to Signal Hill. Leaders Pam Clough and Jay Devlin

23 keen hikers gathered on a beautiful day at the Bottom of Cleghorn St where we made our way up the gravel road to the beginning of our walk which was firstly over farmland. Continue Reading »

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Jul 26 2023

Signal Hill Centennial Memorial, Ravensbourne, Big Easy

Published by under Both Hikers & Trampers

18 km from car-park to Logan Park or Marina.


24. 26/07/2023. Big Easy. Hikers. Grade 2.5, $5, 19km, Leaders: Pam Clough, Jay Devlin.

23 enthusiastic Hikers parked opposite the old Ravie Pub in very cold windy conditions as we started our walk to the Otago Yacht Club, where we took shelter for morning tea.

Alex

Taking shelter – Photo Alex

We then made our way past the stadium then down Butts Road to the beginning of the Big Easy Track behind Logan Park High School.

Alex Griffin 1

At the start of the Big Easy Track – Photo Alex

Alex Griffin 2

Photo Alex

The track is a zigzag gentle climb for 3.6ks to the Plateau where we stopped for lunch in very cold windy conditions so needless to say we didn’t linger too long to enjoy the lovely views of Dunedin.

Dunedin City from Big Easy - Photo & Caption Michael Webb

Dunedin City from Big Easy – Photo & Caption Michael Webb

Jay organising afternoon coffee - Photo & Caption Michael Webb

Jay organising afternoon coffee – Photo & Caption Michael Webb

After lunch we followed the track and various steep streets back to Ravensbourne 11.3kms all up.

Alex Griffin

Photo Alex

Coffee was at Sunnyvale where we enjoyed a roaring fire.

Leaders were Pam and Jay.

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Mar 29 2024

Upcoming Trips

Published by under Both Hikers & Trampers

Link to Trip Organisation Guidelines for leaders and trip participants.
Link to Track Grading information.
Link to Copy of Trip Programme for printing.
Gradings are provisional and may change following recce. Distances are for road travel from Mosgiel car park. Costs may change with fuel price fluctuations and distance changes. This page has all current updates.
Last updated 29/03/2024.


Wednesday 3 April.
Combined. Sinclair Wetlands. Grade 1.5.
$10. 35 km. Leaders: Dave Roberts/John Gardiner Sarah McCormack,Gwenda Farqharson, Ady Whitson /Linda Partridge Jay Devlin.


Wednesday 10 April.
Trampers. Mt Charles. Grade 4.
$8. 27 km. Leaders: Graham and Carol Thurlow.
Hikers.       
Friends Hill Waihola Cycle Track .  Grade 1.5. $8. 29 km. Leaders: Margaret Maxwell/Kay Seddon.


Wednesday 17 April.
Trampers. Yellow Ridge/The Gap. Grade 5.
$12. 41 km. Leaders: Ross Davies/Neil Hodgkins.
Hikers.       Bullring/Ben Rudd/Flagstaff. Grade 2.5.
$5. 15 km. Leaders: Max Wilson/Mike Webb.
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Dec 09 2023

Tomahawk Lagoon and nearby tracks/areas

Published by under Beach,Trampers

Ocean Grove, also known as Tomahawk, is a suburb in the southeast of the New Zealand city of Dunedin. … The suburb was known as Tomahawk until the 1930s, the name not being a reference to the weapon, but rather possibly an anglicised form of the Māori words tomo haka, meaning “dance by a gravesite”.

No. 23 on old hardcopy list of 113 club tramps. “Karetai Rd via Monument from Lagoon. Year round.”

Distance from car-park: Tomahawk: 19 km; Smaills Beach: 22 km;  Paradise Road: 26 km.’

DCC List: 41 Peg Track. Otago Peninsula
Accessed from Oregon St. 3.5 hrs ret. Tramping track – unbenched. Managed: DCC CAM, private land.
Description – This track provides a link between Ocean Grove and Highcliff Road. Access to the track in Ocean Grove is off Oregon Street. An attractive walk around Tomahawk Lagoon then climbs through gorse and native bush. Turn right towards Soldiers Memorial through paddocks with gorse sometimes obscuring the rock walls.

  • Classification – Hard
  • Time – Approximately 45 minutes.
  • Parking – Limited at Highcliff Road. No dogs.
  • Dogs – No

Boulder Beach From Top Of Highcliff Track Pam (square) (100x100)43. 06/12/2023. Trampers. North of Tomahawk. Grade 3. $7. 22km. Leaders: Esther Willis and Julie McKenzie
As hoped, the weather was kind to us, as this tramp would be wasted without being able to savour the spectacular views.

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Sep 02 2023

Bethunes Gully, Mt Cargill, Buttars Peak, Organ Pipes, Old Main North Road, Brown House Corner, Norwood Street, Bethunes Gully.

23 km from carpark. Cars meet at Bethunes Gully.
Click Mount Cargill history for background information. No. 11 on old hardcopy list of 113 club tramps. “Bethunes Gully to T.V. Mast Organ Pipes. Wiggins. Year Round.” No. 100 on old hardcopy list of 113 club tramps. “Bethunes Gully – Brown House – Signal Hill – Chingford Park Year Round”.  A broad gravelled track from picnic ground. NB. Opposite Brown House corner is an RSA Memorial to First World War servicemen and the old Junction School.


26. 30/08/2023. Hikers. Bethunes Gully to M Cargill. Grade 2  Leaders: Bill and Bruce

32 hikers assembled at Bethunes Gully carpark on a beautiful if slightly brisk morning. We set off just after 10.00am and after negotiating our way over and around a fallen Pine tree stopped in a semi-sunny glade for morning tea amongst the Pines – these trees must be amongst some of the tallest and straightest in the country.
The track was in pretty good order for winter – minimal mud but slippery rocks and bridges further up the track required extra care – apart from a couple of minor slips we managed to complete the day intact.

Photo Alex

Photo Alex

Not long after morning tree it was decided to split into two groups with Jill Dodd volunteering to lead the second pack – there was still only a 10 minute gap between arrival times at the top of the mountain.

A little look at the top Caption and photo Helen

A little look at the top Caption and photo Helen

Bethunes Gully Caption Ady

Bethunes Gully Caption Ady

The birdlife along the way was in great voice and Katrina even identified a Kingfisher welcoming us onto the track. The native bush section of the walk is quite beautiful complete with an abundance of ferns, some majestic old Rimus, clear streams and even the odd waterfall.

Almost there Caption and photo Helen

Almost there Caption and photo Helen

The steps at the top of the walk are real thigh killers and we were all very relieved to finally arrive at the summit and a well-earned lunch. The 360-degree panorama of Dunedin, the peninsula and surrounding districts is stunning and well worth the effort! The temperature was up around 15 degrees and led to many layers of clothing getting tucked away into packs.

Photo Barbara

Photo Barbara

Photo Barbara 1

Photo Barbara

There was a discussion during lunch re the grading of the walk and while officially it is a 2 the majority agreed that it was more like a 3 – Ady told me during coffee that it felt more like a 6!

Group trip heading down. Caption and photo Jenni

Group trip heading down. Caption and photo Jenni

After a fairly uneventful trip back down we adjourned to the Blacks Road Grocery cafe – this slightly quirky cafe was a lovely place to conclude a very enjoyable day – coffee and treats well deserved!

Blacks Road Cafe - very cool afternoon tea venue Caption and photo Jenni

Blacks Road Cafe – very cool afternoon tea venue Caption and photo Jenni

There was a lot of learning in my first hike as the group leader, particularly around identifying the appropriate pace to set and the timing of breaks. I couldn’t have asked for better support from the more experienced members of the group as I negotiated my way through the various stages and protocols on the day. Special thanks to Bruce, Jill and Jenni but many others chipped in to keep me on the straight and narrow.
All in all a lovely day and living proof that age is no barrier to serious physical achievement.
Cheers Bill

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Jun 03 2022

Street Walk – Willowbank-Opoho area.

Report: Combined Trampers and Hikers

Opoho Odyssey 1 June 2022
In pleasant temperatures 35 Trampers set out from the Botanical Gardens carpark to enjoy our Opoho odyssey. Our first stop was for morning tea at Tannock Glen which is an established rhododendron dell off Warden St.

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Morning tea at Tannock glen (photo & caption Helen)

Then we meandered through various streets and Ross’s well researched commentary about various points of interest was much appreciated. (This history will be available for anyone to review on a separate link). Neil added a few memories of his misspent youth in this suburb and talked about his family links to the area.

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Jack Lovelock’s home (photo & caption Phil Keene)

Then it was off down the zigzag to Knox College which while not strictly in Opoho has strong links to the suburb because countless staff and students lived in Opoho and worshipped and preached at the local Church in Farquharson St. Knox College actually opened in 1876 to train and house students wanting to become Presbyterian Ministers. It is now a hall of residence open to all Otago University students.

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Knox College (photo and caption Pam)

It remains a very well maintained beautiful historic building. Our guide Alec gave us an extensive tour through the various wings and a detailed commentary about the history. In the exquisite dining room which looks straight out of Harry Potter, Phil gave us a tune on the magnificent concert grand piano.

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Dining room, Knox College. Beautiful oak roof, dining chairs and tables (Photo & caption Pam)

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Beautiful Knox College Chapel (photo and caption John)

We all really enjoyed this tour as many had never been in this building.

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Admiring the stairway artwork (photo & caption John)

It was also great to climb via steep steps onto the ramparts where we got extensive views over Dunedin.

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Parallax – Looking up the Knox Stairway (photo and caption John)

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View North from Knox Tower (photo and caption Pam)

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Jim and Lester at bottom of Knox stairs, greeting us on our return (photo and caption John)

We were invited to have our lunch in the quadrangle outside the building and could wander through the well-maintained gardens which was a pleasant interlude.

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Lunch in Knox College quad (photo Helen)

After lunch we divided into two groups and the 13 hikers set off for the top gardens and visited the aviaries. Then it was an interesting walk through the Northern Cemetery. This is a major historic landmark in Dunedin and we saw notable graves and tombs. Neil was also able to point out graves belonging to his (and Graeme Souters) great grandparents.

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Neil and Graeme Souter in front of their Great grandfathers grave in the Northern Cemetery (photo & caption Margreet)

Most prominent in the cemetery is William Larnach’s tomb which was designed by R.A.Lawson and is a miniature replica of First Church.

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The Mausoleum of William Larnach (photo & caption Margreet)

The Sexton’s cottage which is maintained by the Southern Heritage Trust is also very historic.

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In front of the Sextons Cottage (photo & caption Margreet)

Of interest as well are the more than 1000 heritage roses; about 500 of which were poisoned with herbicide in 2016. Heritage Roses Otago have worked tirelessly to replace the damaged plants with cuttings and many of the graves now sport new plantings. We also stopped for a few minutes to visit the memorial to Thomas Bracken who wrote the National Anthem of New Zealand.
To finish it was a walk through more tracks in the top gardens and back to the cars.

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Massive tree between northern cemetery & gardens (photo & caption Ady)

We enjoyed coffee in the café in the lower gardens.

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Afternoon coffee (photo & caption Margreet)

Distance covered was about 8km. We will now hand over to Ross and Wyn to give a short account of their afternoon hike which was no doubt more strenuous!!
Neil and Margreet Simpson

We were the other group, 22 in total, that set off on the more strenuous hike. The 58 steps to the higher part of Arden Street immediately after lunch was a cruel start. We contoured around to Chambers Street which we descended a short way to find the 41 steps up to Taine Street. And then it wasn’t far to the 52 steps to Montrose Street which turned the corner into Maybank Street. Once we reached Blacks Road, it was down a short way to Grey Street and then down, down James Street to North Road.
We enjoyed the flat walking up North Road but all too soon came to Baldwin Street and another 273 steps.

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Baldwin Street poem There’s a pigeon … (photo & caption Phil Keene)

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Who doesn’t love Baldwin Street? (photo & caption John)

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We knocked the B…. off (photo & caption Phil Keene)

Photos at the top gave plenty of time for getting our breath back before we followed the footpath to the 85 steps down Calder Street to Primrose Bank which led us to the North-East Valley Community Garden. It was a lovely place to chat with the locals and enjoy the afternoon.

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Impressive N.E.V. Community Garden (photo & caption John)

From here, it was all up; first up Dalmeny Street, where some tried to figure out if it was better to zig and zag, or to just take it straight. Eventually another 58 steps brought us to Evans Street, and a little further up Evans Street 137 steps took us to Signal Hill Road, just above the bus terminus. By this stage we were starting to feel the effects of altitude; breathing was becoming harder.

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Quote from Ross- only one more “bunch” of steps (photo & caption Pam)

We turned into Northfield Avenue to admire the house that Neil grew up in, before descending another lane to Signal Hill Road. Not far down the road we came to the house that Margreet lived in briefly in her younger days, next door to the house that we now live in. It’s a small world.
We detoured from there around Grandview Crescent which does have a very grand view, down one last lane to Warden Street (10 more steps), identified where the track down the hill to the Big Easy goes off the top end of Blacks Road, and zoomed on back to the cars and then the café at the lower Gardens. Some of the other group were still lingering and luckily they hadn’t eaten all the cakes.
It was a pleasure planning and leading the trip with Neil and Margreet and a constant surprise learning about the parts Neil’s family have played in the history of the suburb we call home.
We learned a lot about the Opoho history preparing for the trip, and shared bits of it as we went along. Some have asked for a copy of our notes, and these are available via this link here Opoho Historical Background Notes

Not all these places were pointed out as we went around, but I’ve left them all in for anyone interested.
On the more strenuous hike, we covered about 10 kms including the morning, with about 345 metres of climbing, and a moving time of 2 ½ hours. And did we mention the steps? 628 steps up (not including climbing the Knox tower).
Ross and Wyn

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Jun 03 2022

Opoho – Historical Background Notes

Published by under Uncategorized

Opoho – ‘Here my head is level with hills and sky’ – (Janet Frame)

[These historical notes were prepared by Ross for our wanderings around Opoho on 1 June 2022 on a tour led by Neil and Margreet Simpson and Wyn and Ross Davies. Only parts of it were recounted as we zoomed around, and some asked for a chance to read a bit more about what was talked about. What follows is the whole lot.]
Name of Opoho
Maori have been present in the area for 800-900 years. Two groups of Maori ovens have been found on the contours of the hill, said to have been used by people of the Ngatiwairua.
Poho is said to have been a Ngatiwairua chief in the 1700s, head of a family occupying a small kaika (village) by the outlet of the stream which flows down the hill into what was once Pelichet Bay (now Logan Park). O-poho simply means ‘Poho’s place’ and it came to be applied to the neighbouring stream – Opoho Creek.
Later it was adopted by one of the early English landowners for a subdivision on the middle slopes beside where the stream flowed (the Logan Park side), and gradually the name became applied to the whole suburb (on both sides of the ridge).
Opoho Odyssey Part 1 – Botanic Gardens Top Car Park to Knox College
Lovelock Avenue
Formerly Cemetery Road because of the Northern Cemetery halfway down. Renamed Lovelock Avenue in 1968, after Jack Lovelock who lived in Opoho while studying medicine at Otago University. It was the street he ran down every day going to university. Jack Lovelock kept running, and broke the world record for the mile in 1933. He went on to win the gold medal in the 1500 metres at the Berlin Olympics in 1936 (the first Kiwi to win an Olympic track event).
Signal Hill Road
The most enduring street name in Opoho is Signal Hill Road. It appears on all the maps. The top of Signal Hill provides a good view of the harbour and may have given the Maori a place to watch for hostile war canoes and signal from. With European settlement, the same hill was used to signal immigrant ships and perhaps to announce their approach to Dunedin residents. It remains one of the best-known landmarks in Dunedin.
Opoho Road and Trams
The original Opoho subdivision, called Estate of Opoho, to form Opoho Township was created by Captain Boyd in 1873. We’re going to wander some of the streets of this Opoho Township this morning, making our way down to Knox College for a tour at 11am. Opoho Road was the southern boundary of the Opoho Township, originally called District Road. It was the first access to the suburb from the Gardens although there was also a road to Dundas Street down Lovelock Avenue. Opoho Road was too steep where it meets Signal Hill Road for the trams, so a new loop was created through part of the Upper Gardens where the road now goes. It was the steepest line attempted by electric trams. The terminus was at the corner of Signal Hill Road and Blacks Road, and that was steep too. At least two trams ran away from the terminus when the brakes failed – with serious consequences. The tramline opened in 1924. Continue Reading »

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Oct 04 2021

Botanic Garden, Logan Park, Northern Cemetery, Chingford

Published by under Hikers

25.  29 September 2021. Hikers. Otago Museum and the Fashion FWD Exhibition and a Springtime Walk. M. $5.00. Leaders: Jenny Finnerty, Noi McCunn
On Wednesday 19 hikers set off on a walk, starting at Botanical Gardens and walking to the Museum park for morning tea.
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Morning tea in the Museum Reserve – photo Noi

We then went to have a wander around the Fashion Gallery Trail in the Museum after which we walked through the varsity to the St David Street zig zag.
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Walking through the varsity – photo Noi

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Otago University Clocktower Building – photo Noi

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St David Street steps – photo Noi

Things had changed since I was a kid because Arana Hall had expanded and so now there is a locked gate at the top but lucky for us a lady swiped us in and swiped us out on the other side. Had a bit of tiki tour through studentville to Dundas Street but took a wrong track but ended up at the Cemetery.
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Bush track up the hill – photo Noi

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Bracken View – photo Noi

Alex took us to the gravesite of the 1st white baby born in Dunedin.
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Alex at the gravesite – photo Jenny

Had lunch at the Rhododendron Del and after looking around we all met up at the Croque-O-Dile for coffee.
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Magnolia tree in the Botanic Gardens – photo Jenny

Another walk done and dusted thanks hikers.
P.S. Was good to see our Brighton chums and others from town. Jenny and Noi.

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Sep 11 2019

Berwick Forest Tracks and Beyond

No. 35 on old hardcopy list of 113 club tramps. “Berwick Forest. G Such. Wenita. Nov-April. Year round”

Location: Old Wool Shed: 30 km.
Location: Lodge: 33  km.
click to enlarge

40. 11/9/2019. Trampers, Waipori Forest, Meggetburn. Leaders: Alan and Kerry

22 Trampers set off down to Berwick and left a car at the Government Track car park.  5 cars then carried on to the start of the track, by the road, into the Berwick Forest Lodge.

A steady walk up through native bush and forest

G.1st photo -- 1st obstaclec

1st obstacle. (Gordon pic and caption.)

G.2nd -- Heading to Morning tea breakc

Heading to Morning tea break. (Gordon pic and caption.)

to a welcome morning tea stop.

G.3rd -- Morning teac

Morning tea. (Gordon pic and caption.)

  Then down hill to the Meggatburn  Stream which had quite a water  flow, so it was difficult to cross without getting wet feet.

G.4th photo -- 2nd obstacle-- Some wet feetc

2nd obstacle– Some wet feet. (Gordon pic and caption.)

Then up we climbed to Shaws Road. The track had been clipped back to allow for easier access. Therefore the track was easy to follow.

G.5th -- Regroup on way to topc

Regroup on way to top. (Gordon pic and caption.)

 The day started well weather wise but with showers pending,

G.6th -- Heading down to Waipori Gorge for lunchc

Heading down to Waipori Gorge for lunch. (Gordon pic and caption.)

we quickly carried on

G.7th -- A couple of budding models on the stone seatc

A couple of budding models on the stone seat. (Gordon pic and caption.)

[See this URL for Molly Vaughan on the same stone seat in 2013. Its provenance is unknown. – Ed.]

to a hut for our lunch, near the old Waipori picnic ground which is no more.   

Walking out after lunch, we crossed the bridge on the Waipori River

G.8th -- Next stop Wobbly Goatc

Next stop Wobbly Goat. (Gordon pic and caption.)

and walked down to where the car was parked.  Then 5 drivers returned to the rest of the group to collect trampers.   Followed by a coffee session at the Wobbly Goat. – Kerry.

39. 12/12/2018. All. End of year. Pot luck meal at Berwick Lodge. Leaders: Peter, Wendy and Dave.

Route map, courtesy Ian. Trampers and most Hikers were led from the Lodge by Dave and Keith along Hook Road, up, up, up Farm Road, left along Old Boundary Road and down, up and back down again along a track through broom, gorse and trees to the Old Wool Shed site on Hook road, and back along it to the Lodge again. Peter led the Ramblers on a shorter walk.

Young at Heart – Judy!!! (Dave pic and caption.)

A number of former club members turned up to a well-provisioned finger food meal at mid-day, and bowser a well covered trestle table of books, sale proceeds to go to the new Mosgiel swimming pool. Over 40 of us leisurely ate and talked till President Jill took over. She introduced Bruce who had composed a 4-stanza song to the tune of “The Old Grey Mare, and after lyric sheets were handed out, led hearty singing of it.

Thanks to excellent preparation, Jill had a briefed a number of us to give 2-minute accounts of private trips, local and overseas. These were many and varied. A good ending to the year, at a venue many of us hadn’t visited before. – Ian.

38. 20/9/2017. Trampers. Berwick Forest – Meggat Burn, Shaw Road. M. Leader: Arthur.
There were 14 keen Trampers out today for a walk in the forest – one member of the group used the word “intrepid” in describing us.
It must be a few years since our Club has tramped this track? Anyway, the cars parked at the usual spot by the old woolshed on the road into the “Berwick Forest Lodge”.
It was noticed that the toilet facilities by the carpark were absent, as about a month ago some “empty head” had burned it down!
There was a brief paddock walk in the sunshine (sunny all day) before crossing the footbridge over Boundary Creek, to the beginning of the track up into the pine trees. After about 150 yards we came to 6 large trees down over the track, which were successful negotiated by going under, over, or around.
Smoko was taken in a sunny trackside spot, at the appropriate time.

Gathering on way up. (Helen pic and caption.)

Continuing uphill we soon came to and crossed a Forestry Road (Prentice Road). Now descending slowly we eventually came to the Meggat Burn, which was crossed without mishap using a variety of techniques. Electing to just plough through, not worrying about wet feet, and some crossed on the shallowest part of the rock ledge where it was maybe only 3 inches deep. The burn was only slightly up after all of the rain a few days ago.

(Margreet pic.)

While the track was muddy in many places, it was surprisingly good after the quantity of rain that had fallen. Further up there was vegetation, especially gorse, beginning to encroach but not impeding our progress.

The track came out onto a forestry road, Tobermory Road; and in 10 minutes more we reached Shaw Road before 12 noon. Down Shaw Road for a few minutes took us to our lunch spot in a sunny area under the Pole Line that parallels Shaw Road. There was a limited view down on to the Taieri from here, with Hope Hill in the background. We could even see the sea.

Lunch spot. (Helen pic and caption.)

The sunshine was most enjoyable, ideal for lying back forma little nap after eating – one tramper having to be roused to begin the return journey!

Our return followed the same route, some care being necessary descending a slippery clay section before arriving back at the Meggat Burn. All crossed in safety again although a piece of equipment may have been lost?

It was uphill for a little while, and then it was down all the way. It was very noticeable that the leaders were in a hurry to get home (I was at the back of the group here), and not wasting any time – probably they could detect the aroma coming from the coffee shop? But it was just their imagination!

We were back in the lovely sunshine at the cars by 2.30 pm, having tramped 13.5 km for the day’s effort.

The Leader was most gratified to hear that all of the party had thoroughly enjoyed the day’s walk (and talk). Considerable birtdsong was heard in the forest.

As per the usual custom, a stop was made in Outram for refreshments and  discussion. And then back to Mosgiel, and then home for boot cleaning duty. – Art.

37. 15/12/2010. All. End of year. Lodge, Farm Rd, East Boundary, Old Wool Shed, Lodge. Pot luck meal at Berwick Lodge. Leaders: Peter and Wendy.
For some of us, accustomed to entering Berwick Forest along Terrace Range Rd by the Old Woolshed at the old HQ site, it was a new experience to travel further along the Berwick Road to enter the forest by the sign-posted Webbs Rd and then down Farm Rd, turning left onto Boundary Creek Road to arrive at the Lodge.
The walk took us back up Farm Road.We stopped for tea break at its crest where it crossed East Boundary Rd and continues to Webbs Road.

GPS of route courtesy Ken

From here we had a good view across to Waipori Lake.

View of Lake Waipori

Almost immediately off Webbs Rd, Peter and Wendy led us along a forestry track paralleling the E Boundary Rd (which you can see on the left of our GPSed route) through Douglas Firs…

Through Douglas Firs

…and blackberry brambles in the more open areas.

Brambles

Interesting foot bridge

The track ended where at a log-loading site we joined up with the East Boundary Road. Turning right, were almost immediately at the two-storey lookout, with its lovely view of the Sinclair Wetlands.

The Lookout on E. Boundary Road.

Boundary Road eventually wound its way around to Terrace Range Rd near the old HQ site by the Old Woolshed.
Further on it was left off Terrace Range Rd onto Boundary Creek Rd, (passing Farm Rd on our left, thereby completing the loop,) and so back to the Lodge for lunch. Good planned timing, Peter and Wendy!

Lunch inside

Peter reported that the tramp was 6kms long and 19 happy trampers took part, with one or two others joining us for lunch and a singsong with Bruce and his guitar.

Bruce leading the singing.

Peter, as Past President, gave a speech on behalf of President Bill who unfortunately could not attend due to ill health, and wished us well for the Christmas season. – Ian
36. 8/9/2010. Hikers. Berwick Forest from Old Woolshed. Leaders: Bob and Evelyn.
35. 13/5/2009 Both. Berwick Forest from old Woolshed. Pink Route. Terrace Range, Shetland Saddle Ridge, Market, East Boundary Medium. Leaders: Ian, Ken.

Well, an unusual start to the day. For a wet morning, but promising to clear up later in the day, 10, mostly Hikers, turned up at the carpark and after much discussion forewent the programmed Cleghorn Street-Signal Hill walk, and settled on a Berwick Forest road-walk, because ground everywhere was SO WET. And again, despite a longer walk than usual, it proved that Hikers can do anything, given time-out on the hills.

click to enlarge
Lunch.

Lunch. Ken & Neil stading. Peter & Bev sitting.

We endured one or two showers initially, giving way to cloud and latterly even to sunshine.

Down track

Down Shetland-Saddle Ridge. Peter & Neil at back. Bev at front.

It was instructive to witness extensive flooding everywhere and how waterways cope; also the transformations brought about by forest harvesting and re-growth that had taken place over the 10 years since the club last visited the area. Views of the Sinclair Wetlands rewarded the last stages of the day and we got back to the cars just after 3.00 p.m., tired, a bit sore, but triumphant. – Ian.

34. 31/10/2007 Shaw Road?

Although once again, weather report not so good and some cloud hanging around, we left the car park at 9am as usual for our hike in Waipori – Berwick Forest area with high hopes of a good day out. We parked by the side of the road and set off walking along the road then across farm land and up a fairly steep hill.

Morning Tea

Morning Tea

Took our time and stopped frequently to admire the view which got more interesting and expansive the higher we got.

Down Hill

Certainly well worth the effort. Had views over Taieri, down to Waihola and over the Wetlands, as well as the hills and valleys round that area. We really enjoyed our morning tea break after our hard slog up the hill. From then on it was fairly easy, pleasant going along forestry roads and through the trees. Found a nice sheltered spot in the sun for our lunch and sat and made the most of the break and rest before returning to the cars the same way we had come. Day turned out to be a good one for hiking. Not too hot at first but warmed up considerably by the time we were on our way back. Another happy day for hikers. Bev.
33. 24/10/2007. Hikers: Berwick Forest. Medium. Leaders: Lex, Tom.
32. 12/9/2007. Trampers. Berwick Forest from Old Woolshed. Medium. Leaders: Doug J, Tom
31. 7/6/2006. Old Woolshed to Shaw Road, return. Leaders: Bob H and Arthur H.
30. 7/6/2006. Both. Berwick Forest Lodge. Leaders (Medium): Bob H, Arthur H, (Easy): Margaret D, Val.
29. 14/12/2005. End of Year. All. Berwick Hall. Bring a plate. Leaders: Lance and Lois, Lesley S.
28. 26/5/2004. Old woolshed at Berwick to Waipori Return. H.Started from the old woolshed, through the forest, Meggat Burn to Shaw Road, and down the track to the picnic ground near the Waipori River Bridge to have lunch there. Returned the same way. It must have been a long, tough tramp to do that. (Recalled by Art.)
27. 18/12/2002. End of Year. All. Berwick Forest Pre-Christmas Tramp. Finger food lunch and flasks, wet or fine. Leaders: Bill H, Lesley S, Wendy J.
26. 19/12/2001. End of Year. Combined. Berwick Forest. Pre Xmas Tramp. Finger food lunch and flasks. Leaders: Graham, Bill H, Wendy J.
25. 13/12/2000. Berwick Forest – Pre-Xmas Tramp. Finger food lunch and flasks. Leaders: Margaret and Les, Bev H.
24. 30/8/2000. Berwick Forest Area. Leaders:  Claude, Graham, Ian.
23. 16/2/2000. Berwick Forest Circuit. Leaders: Barbara McC, Mary L, Sabina.
22. 15/12/1999. Pre-Christmas tramp and lunch. Berwick Forest. Wet or Fine. Finger Food and Flasks. Leaers: Margaret and Les, Colleen.
21. 12/5/1999 Old Wool Shed. Green Route. Half track, half road. East Boundary, Hook, Halfway, Prentice, Oban, Ret. Leaders: Claude, Lex, Molly.
20. 3/2/1999. The Circle at Berwick Forest. Leaders: Jack R, Pat, Hazel.
19. 19/8/1998. Berwick Forest Tramp. Leaders: Les W, Eleanor.
18. 13/5/1998. Berwick, Shaws Hill, Hayes Woolshed. Leaders: Bill H, Lesley S.
17. 17/6/1998. Old Wool Shed. Pink Route. East Boundary, Market, Shetland Saddle Ridge, Terrace Range, Ret. Leaders: Graham, Claude.
16. 30/7/1997. Old Wool Shed. Pink Route. East Boundary, Market, Shetland Saddle Ridge, Terrace Range (Part), Halfway (part), Bishop, Longspur, Terrace Range (part), ret. Leaders: Graham, Claude, Les W.
15. 19/3/1997 Waipori Gorge to the Megget Burn stream, Berwick. Leaders: Molly, Diana and Ray
14. 12/2/1997. Woolshed Shaws Hill and return. Leaders: Colleen, Ted, Sabina.
13. 13/7/1994 Berwick Forest Woolshed to Waipori and return.Leaders: Molly, Dot T, Graham, Frank
12. 31/3/1993. Berwick Forest. Medium. Leaders: Jack R, Barbara McC, Mervyn, Doreen.
11. 17/6/1992. Berwick Forest walk. Average. Leaders: Mary Y, Nola, Doreen, Mary McG
10. 25/9/1991 Berwick Forest and Native Reserve. Average. Leaders: Dot B, Jean Y, Denise
9. 10/7/1991 Berwick Forest Woolshed to Waipori. A good winter tramp. Average. Leaders: Eric & Dot, Ray, Joyce I, Catherine T
8. 11/10/1989. Berwick – Shaw’s Hill Road. Easy. Leaders: Joyce I, Joan A, Norman.
7. 6/9/1989 Berwick Forest. Average. Youth Camp to Native Reserve. Leaders: Ria L, Peg C, Peggy A
6. 7/6/1989. Berwick Forest from Forest Headquarters.  Sheltered pine walk. Leaders: June W, Ria, Peggy, Peg
5. 14/5/1989 Waipori Gorge to Meggetburn stream, Berwick. Bush and Pine walk. Leaders: Daphne, Helen W, Mavis
4. 3/2/1989. Berwick Forest – The Upper Circle. Incorporates the Otago Youth Adventure Trust training track. Leaders: Jack, Pat, Hazel.
3. 21/9/1988 Berwick Forest from Old Woolshed to Boundary Creek and O.Y.A.T.I. camp. Leaders; Kees and Ria, Doreen.
2. 22/6/1988 Berwick Forest from the Woolshed. Back early for barbecue. Leaders: Dave and Jean
1. 13/4/1988. Berwick Forest from Shaw Hill Road. Leaders: Hugh, Jean Y.

 

 

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Aug 23 1988

Wikipedia Town Belt article

Published by under Uncategorized

The Town Belt is a green belt which surrounds the centre of the New Zealand city of Dunedin. Covering a total of over 200 hectares (490 acres), it extends around three sides of the city’s centre at a distance from it of some 1-3 km (1-2 mi) in a broad 7 km (4 mi) crescent from the Oval at Kensington in the south through the suburbs of Mornington, City Rise, Belleknowes, Roslyn, Maori Hill, Prospect Park, Glenleith, Woodhaugh, The Gardens and Dunedin North and the slopes of Signal Hill. The fourth side of the central city is bounded by the Otago Harbour.

One of the world’s oldest green belts, the Town Belt was planned in Scotland at the time of the advent of the Otago settlement in 1848.[1] Residential areas outside the belt became separate boroughs, and were not amalgamated with Dunedin until much later. The town belt now forms a break between the city’s inner and outer suburbs. The belt was originally a combination of native bush and scrubland, but is now largely replanted forest and open parkland. Many species of plant can be found in the belt, including tree fuchsia, lemonwood, lancewood, manuka, and broadleaf, and the forested area is home to many species of birds, including some uncommon and endangered species such as the kereru, eastern rosella, bellbird, tomtit, tui, rifleman, morepork, and shining cuckoo, and kotare.

A long, narrow road, Queens Drive, winds along much of the length of the belt and provides easy access to it for Dunedinites. Queens Drive is linked to many of the city’s main streets, including Stuart Street and High Street. Numerous walkways lead through the bush and parks, and the belt is a popular recreation area for Dunedinites.

The Town Belt includes many open areas and parks, including the Kensington Oval, Dunedin Southern Cemetery, Montecillo Ground, Unity Park, Mornington Ground, Jubilee Park, Belleknowes Golf Course, Robin Hood Park, Littlebourne Ground, Prospect Park, Woodhaugh Gardens, the North Ground, Dunedin Botanic Gardens, Dunedin Northern Cemetery, Logan Park, and the University Oval.

Notable buildings and structures in the belt include Moana Pool, Olveston, Otago Boys’ High School, and the Beverly-Begg Observatory.

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Aug 23 1988

Town Belt Article

Published by under Uncategorized

The Town Belt is a green belt which surrounds the centre of the New Zealand city of Dunedin. Covering a total of over 200 hectares (490 acres), it extends around three sides of the city’s centre at a distance from it of some 1-3 km (1-2 mi) in a broad 7 km (4 mi) crescent from the Oval at Kensington in the south through the suburbs of Mornington, City Rise, Belleknowes, Roslyn, Maori Hill, Prospect Park, Glenleith, Woodhaugh, The Gardens and Dunedin North and the slopes of Signal Hill. The fourth side of the central city is bounded by the Otago Harbour.

One of the world’s oldest green belts, the Town Belt was planned in Scotland at the time of the advent of the Otago settlement in 1848.[1] Residential areas outside the belt became separate boroughs, and were not amalgamated with Dunedin until much later. The town belt now forms a break between the city’s inner and outer suburbs. The belt was originally a combination of native bush and scrubland, but is now largely replanted forest and open parkland. Many species of plant can be found in the belt, including tree fuchsia, lemonwood, lancewood, manuka, and broadleaf, and the forested area is home to many species of birds, including some uncommon and endangered species such as the kereru, eastern rosella, bellbird, tomtit, tui, rifleman, morepork, and shining cuckoo, and kotare.

A long, narrow road, Queens Drive, winds along much of the length of the belt and provides easy access to it for Dunedinites. Queens Drive is linked to many of the city’s main streets, including Stuart Street and High Street. Numerous walkways lead through the bush and parks, and the belt is a popular recreation area for Dunedinites.

The Town Belt includes many open areas and parks, including the Kensington Oval, Dunedin Southern Cemetery, Montecillo Ground, Unity Park, Mornington Ground, Jubilee Park, Belleknowes Golf Course, Robin Hood Park, Littlebourne Ground, Prospect Park, Woodhaugh Gardens, the North Ground, Dunedin Botanic Gardens, Dunedin Northern Cemetery, Logan Park, and the University Oval.

Notable buildings and structures in the belt include Moana Pool, Olveston, Otago Boys’ High School, and the Beverly-Begg Observatory.

– From Wikipedia.

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Dec 12 1980

Pineapple and Flagstaff Walk

No. 31 on old hardcopy list of 113 club tramps. “Pineapple Track – Swampy Summit. Year Round”

The hills around Dunedin are superb viewpoints to see the city, coastline and ranges of inland Otago. Flagstaff is one such hill and like Mt Cargill to the north allows the walker to pass through several types of vegetation en route to the summit.

Most of the features seen from the walk have strong historic significance. Beyond Signal Hill, the site of Otakou can be seen. When the first European settlers arrived, this Maori settlement was the largest in the region. In 1817 this ‘kaika’ contained 600 very “fine houses, neatly furnished”. From 1833-1841, a whaling station was operating from here. The whalers’ township, known as Musselburgh was nearer the heads. By 1840, 250 Europeans were living around the harbour entrance. It was from Otakou that the earliest immigrants received their first supplies of fresh meat, milk, butter and vegetables. The region south to the Nuggets and inland by the Clutha to as far as the Lammerlaw Range and West Taieri was bought for European settlement of $4,800.

Almost immediately apparent from the walk is the distinctive layout of the centre of the centre of Dunedin. Charles Kettle and a party of surveyors laid out the streets in 1848, using the special features of the Scottish capital, Edinburgh as a guide. The planned settlement took its name in 1845 from the Highlander’s name for Edinburgh. The town belt, the ribbon of bush threading its way through the suburbs, cutting off the inner city from the suburbs also dates from the early surveys. Immigrants were offered land packages on or before their arrival in Otago. Each consisted of a 1/4 acre (1012 sq m) town allotment, a 10 acre 4 hectare) suburban allotment, and a 50 acre (20 hectare) rural allotment, all sold at the rate of £2 an acre ($9.60) a hectare). The town belt separated the town and suburban allotments. Most rural blocks were on the Taieri Plains.

Kettle’s name was given to Flagstaff Hill, but through common usage the term Flagstaff became accepted and superseded Mt Kettle.

As early as 1925 there was skiing on Swampy Hill and Flagstaff. Sixteen years later an exceptionally heavy snowfall convinced many of the return of very cold winters. Many Otago skiers spent several weekends clearing the hillside of stones and boulders but unfortunately for them the snow never came back.

In these early days of settlement the forests all but cut off Dunedin to the north. Long before a road was made around Mt Cargill, the track known as ‘Johnny Jones’ (the Waikouaiti whaler) track linked the Dunedin area with Waitati via Flagstaff and Swampy. In 1859 snow poles were put up along the track to guide travellers caught out in storm or mist.

A road was made between Whare Flat along the inland flank of the hill to near the saddle between Flagstaff and Swampy Hill in 1870. The settlers at Whare Flat used it to draw their supplies of timber from the bush on the other side of Flagstaff. In later years these old roads fell out of use.

The settlers, utilising a number of small sawmills, ‘cut-out’ much of the bush on the eastern flank of Swampy Hill and Flagstaff. The Pineapple Track at the northern end of Flagstaff passes through such ‘cutover’ forest. From here podocarps were milled to provide local building materials. Only an occasional remnant podocarp remains. Mahoe (whitey wood) is plentiful here while on the forest floor and tree trunks, many species of fern abound. The upper part of the track here includes totara saplings and old stunted broadleafs with twisted limbs, growing in a slightly drier soil. Hounds tongue and “hen and chicken” type ferns hang from the dead tree trunks.

The tussock on the part of the walk from the Whare Flat Road car park (known as the ‘Bullring’) is being taken over by native scrub: flax, manuka and the occasional Olearia – although these get knocked back by fires from time to time. Native orchids are common here, especially in early summer. Skylarks can be heard on this hill from sunrise to sunset.

The summit: An unobtrusive plane table helps point out the many interesting places which can be seen from here. To the north you can see the higher hill of Swampy with its buildings from aviation and scientific experiments, and to its east is Mt Cargill, topped by a TV transmitter. Further away is the city and the drowned valley of Otago Harbour with the Peninsula beyond and the sand dune suburbs of St Clair and St Kilda connecting this with the mainland.

Turning northwards, the track crosses the tussock-covered scenic reserve beyond the summit. In spring and summer, orchids and violets can be seen between the snow tussock. Boulders of volcanic rock are scattered over the hill top, some of which are clustered in lines of ‘stone stripes’ down the hillside.

The tussock grassland now largely covering the summit and upper slopes is only 2-300 years old. Before this , forest covered the entire area. Periodic fires have encouraged the tussock grassland. Snow tussock, mountain flax and Astolia are the most common native plants, while manuka is encroaching into the grassland that fire has not recently reached.

Once into the bush, the track drops through regenerating shrub-land from the signpost at the top of the Pineapple Walk. It was near this spot that in the 1920s a well-known grocer and tramper guiding parties to see the views would pause, and pass around a tin of pineapple. It became a tradition that once empty the tin would be left on a tree or fence post – giving the track the name.

From clearings on this track can be seen Ross Creek Reservoir and the city beyond, also the Mt Cargill television transmitter and the northern side of Leith Valley. Many shrubs are invading clearings from the bush edge. Fuchsia and pepperwood are common. Grazing has determined the nature of this vegetation with only the unpalatable species surviving.

The Booth Road water treatment station sits in a clearing of ornamental plants. A small round concrete tank in the pines on the left of the track halfway down  from this station is also part of the water supply scheme built before the 1950s. A tap near the edge of the bush gives cool refreshing water to the walker on his or her return.

At the Booth Road end of the walkway, the track passes through the Dunedin City Council exotic plantation. Spruce, ash, radiata pine and Douglas fir were planted over 30 years ago as part of growth experiments with these species in the area.

– From DoC hard copy information sheet.

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Oct 15 2023

Chrystalls Beach, Toko Mouth

No. 47 on old hardcopy list of 113 club tramps. “Toko Beach. M Young”; also No. 65 on old hardcopy list of 113 club tramps. “Chrystalls Beach Farm”. Location: 59 km from the car park. Best in Summer. The stock winter over.
Directions: On SH1, before Milton, at Helensbrook intersection, left onto Forsyth Road, right onto Back Road, left onto Glenledi Road.


22. 11/10/2023. Trampers. Crystalls Beach. Grade 2.5, $15, 59km, Leaders: Dave Roberts, Jill Reid
IMG_7384 100x100A fine overcast morning greeted us at Peter Johnstone Park with 19 trampers in 5 cars beginning our tramp at 10am. Continue Reading »

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May 30 2018

Orbells Crossing, Northern Lawsons Farm

Published by under Trampers

68 km from car-park.

Topo map of area

9. 30/5/2018. Orbells Crossing – Mountain Road.(Lawsons Farm.)  M-H. Arthur.

Map of route, courtesy Art.

Frost to begin with, but a sunny day followed for 11 Trampers to enjoy their exercise in.

We drove up Mountain Road from the north end and parked up.

The air was cold, but a brisk downhill walk in the sunshine took us to the bank of the Waikouaiti River where we had our smoko stop.

All important smoko. (Gordon pic and caption.)

Following the river bank upstream we soon encountered a pine plantation where the track was becoming overgrown with blackberry and gorse. You would have expected that a consciention leader would have done some track clearing!

This was the only bad patch for the day, as we were were out on grazed paddocks from then on.

Passing the junction of the two branches of the Waikouaiti River, we continued up the south branch and soon came out on a lovely river flat. On leaving the river we had a long climb, with a reasonable gradient,

Onwards and upwards. (Phil pic and caption.)

to eventually find our lunch spot on the ridge top.

Lunch among the tussocks. (Gordon pic and caption.)

Lunch with a view – a little snow was on top of Lamb Hill, Mount Misery, (Bendoran Huts had been visible a few metres back). We were looking at Mount Watkins

Reflecting on Mt Watkins (Phil pic and caption.)

as we ate, and Maori Peak, Karitane, etc, further round.

A very slight south-east, but very chilly breeze was present, and we faced into it for the return journey. Following the ridge down, and then on a slippery (newly graded) track requiring care.

Heading back to cars. (Gordon pic and caption.)

In time we came to Mountain Road, which is the old wagon road from the early days of Otago, and eventually arrived back at our cars.

We had covered a distance of about 10.5 km. Our club had last tramped here in 2012, but none of our group had been here before.

A new tramp is always welcomed, and we had a great day in the sunshine, enjoyed by all.

Blueskin Nurseries enjoyed our patronage on the way home. The Hikers arrived in too. – Art.

8. 18/1/2012. Trampers. Orbells Crossing, Mountain Road Track. Medium.

 

Ken's GPS tracking of tramp

Ken’s GPS tracking of tramp

Three of us, & Fin the dog went on the tramp to Lawson’s Farm at the North end of the Silverpeaks, in the Waikouaiti River valley.

Morning Tea break. (Ken pic and caption)

It was a very warm day, so we took advantage of the shade where we could. As I was the only one who had been there before, I put the previous tramp from there onto my GPS, & we followed that route up to where we had previously had lunch, but as it was only 11:00am at this time, we just rested in the shade for 10 mins or so, …

Resting out of the hot sun. (Ken pic and caption)

View  from our resting place. (Ken pic and caption)

… before climbing the steep face up to the top paddock. Our lunch stop was by the Limestone rock formation, but this time, we sat down by the fence below them to keep out of the sun.

Lunch in the shade of the trees. (Ken pic and caption)

The after lunch climb up the vehicle track to the Old Mountain Track was next, & then just a leisurely walk along this back to the vehicle. – Ken.
7. 21/7/2010. Trampers. Orbells Crossing, Mountain Road Track. Medium. Leaders: Ria, Hazel.
Ken’s GPS tracking of the tramp goes anti-clockwise from top right where we parked the cars, across left alongside two large water tanks and a new building, then a zig-zag down to the river where we stopped for morning tea. Here we were amazed by evidence of a large flood that had tangled debris in bare willow-branches (not evident in the pic) well above our heads.

Morning Tea. (Keith pic)

Following Ken’s GPS tracking up the true right side of the river, and you come to the extreme left of the map where a mixture of tracking signals indicates our lunch-stop. As you can determine -click to enlarge the pic – from whether the tracking signals are behind or in front of each other, you will see that the track took us up and down several slopes. Lunch was on a ledge well above the river. A great view. The steep ridge showing in the pic’s background is what we c-l-i-m-b-e-d after lunch.

Lunch on ledge above Waikouaiti River. (Keith pic)

View looking back down the willow-lined river. (Keith pic)

A gentle descent across a newly-grassed field took us to a track down to a gully between two ridges, then up the gully to the remarkable set of unusual rocks. Beyond these, we climbed the steep slope up to the left to emerge eventually on the Mountain Road track. It was then only the case of following this back down to the the cars. Thanks to Ria and Hazel for a well-led tramp, enjoyed on a grand winter’s sunny day following a good frost. – Ian
6. 27/2/2008. Trampers. Orbells Crossing, south. Medium. Leaders: Ria L, Hazel
Rocks pose. Doug M, Hazel, Leonie, Ria, Sabina, Ken, Tash, Who?

Rocks pose. Doug M, Hazel, Leonie, Ria, Sabina, Ken, Tash, Who?

A small but select group met at the turning to Buckland’s crossing on an overcast but warm day under the leadership of Ria and Hazel. The location of the tramp was down as Orbells crossing but there was some debate as to where this actually was. We parked in the middle of nowhere but Ria and Hazel soon had us over a couple of fences and striking across the countryside to a nice morning tea stop on the banks of the South branch of the Waikouaiti River where it was mentioned that a fishing rod would have been useful. The tramp continued along a very pleasant country track wending our way along hillsides and gullies until we stopped for lunch, looking back over to where we had walked earlier. To those with no sense of direction this was quite confusing as we seemed to do a very big figure of eight. After lunch the mystery trip continued, with Ria venturing into some uncharted territory along a gully. When the gully ran out it was a steep climb up to the top where we could easily see where we were again. One of the highlights of the day was seeing the unusual rocks just above the track,

Ria, Hazel

Ria, Hazel

Ria, Ian, Tash

Ria, Ian, Tash

weathered into all sorts of interesting shapes, colour and textures. All information about these rocks would be gratefully received. A very enjoyable day’s tramping. Many thanks to our adventurous leaders. – Tash

5. 9/5/2007. Lawson Farm from McGrath/Gilchrist Roads near Old Cherry Farm. Figure of Eight. No river. Leaders: George, Evelyn C.
4. 10/5/2006. Trampers. Orbells Crossing. Medium. Leaders: Ria, hazel.
3. 9/5/2001. Orbells Crossing. Medium. Leaders: Riaa L, Mary L, Ian.
2. 10/11/1993. Orbells Crossing. Round trip. Medium. Leaders: Mary Y, Peg C, Evelyn M, Wendy.
1. 17/4/1991 Cherry Farm, Merton. Ridge inland from Mt track.Leaders: G Haggie, B Harvey, R Heenan

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Feb 22 2017

Tramps associated with the Whare Flat Schoolhouse

Published by under Uncategorized

No. 57 on old hardcopy list of 113 club tramps. “Trig Q from Whare Flat. N Strang. Key from WEA. Year Round”. 11 kms to Silverstream car park.


30. 22/2/2017. Hikers. Whare Flat. Leaders: Peter D, Janice.

Whare Flat/McRaes Weir (not quite) Wednesday 22nd Feb

26 happy hikers on a lovely sunny morning – what could go wrong?

Seven opted to drive up to the locked gate on Rollinson Rd and walk on to the start of the Steve Amies Track, where they enjoyed a pleasant amble to the picnic area and a leisurely lunch in the sun, before returning to the cars and off to Topiary for the usual coffee stop.

Little did they know of the drama that was developing below….

The other 19 left the cars at the park near the pump house, and set off up the track on the steep grunt that takes longer but avoids the water crossing and the possibility of wet feet.

However, Ian opted to do the shorter, easier version, risking wet boots, and meeting us in the clearing just past the swing bridge.

Ian reached the clearing safely and with plenty of time. In his own words –

’Ho hum. Oh! Time to get out the puffer and see how it might get me up the next climb and manage to avoid that first 5 min. heavy breathing before the blood vessels adjust and let me get away. Bummer.

(I had not used it for ever so long as usually I remember when it’s too late to use. It’s worked well on earlier occasions, but not in this case, standing, waiting, for such a long time before climbing.)

Started to feel faint. Got worse. Lay down, ended looking like a wee gnome in the grass, as one of you said. The rest you know better than I do!!!’

So, here was Ian, looking worse by the minute. While he was attended to by those with medical experience, we debated the options.

  1. Cell phone call for help. No signal.
  2. Use the locator beacon. Was there enough room for a chopper to land? Debatable.
  3. Go back to the cars and phone for an ambulance.

It seemed at this point that Ian was recovering – his colour was better and he was lucid. Two people set off for the cars. Over the swing bridge and just past the gate to the road they realised the house on the right was occupied. But no landline and still no cell phone coverage. The wonderful lady (who had a key to the gate!) drove them out to the cars. One went on to get coverage and call for help. The other returned, to find that Ian’s condition had worsened, necessitating CPR. Gulp. Back down the road – kind lady again drove. The police car was met at the (un)locked gate and immediately radioed URGENT to the ambulance.

Things happened fast. In just over an hour from Ian’s collapse the ambulance was at the swing bridge and Ian was stabilised and stretchered across the bridge, and off to A & E.

It was now 11.30 and we were all rather shell-shocked. Five decided to call it a day. Two went to break the news to Shirley, and the other three heading home.
The remaining 13 headed up the track to the next clearing where a very sober lunch was had. Then up the track we climbed to McRaes Weir Track. It was decided that the weir could wait for another day, and we headed back along the race track to the road and down to the cars, with rain starting to fall and the track becoming muddy and slippery.

Coffee at Topiary was welcome!
Thanks to everyone for the able assistance that was provided in so many ways. Ian is fine – he had a reaction to the ‘puffer’ and after tests and checks, was allowed home that evening.

LESSONS LEARNED:

  1. IF for any reason the group SPLITS, there must be at least TWO PEOPLE and preferably FOUR so that in the event of an emergency, one can stay with the ‘victim’, and two go for help. The same should apply to anyone deciding to turn back and in future this needs to be enforced by the leader.
  2. In a later debrief with Police, we were praised for the efficient handling of the situation. However, they said that we should never hesitate to use the beacon because a few precious minutes could be saved. On the beacon signal, our precise position is shown and authorities can then make the decision as to which services to use. So in future, no hesitation! Better a false alarm than a death.

29. 1/5/2013 Both. Steve Amies. Leaders: Ian and George.

This time we left from the schoolhouse, making it more of a road walk. We had morning tea on the lower  Rollinson Rd and lunch in the track clearers’ picnic area, after inspecting the helicopter landing pad a little beyond.

As we returned down the road, we were surprised to see the helicopter, and shortly after the tank truck making their way towards where we had been. Apparently this was the day to carry out the weed spraying we had been notified about – and we were now making a timely exit. A tramp for 25 of us and of 10.5 km according to Peter’s pedometer and 25. – Ian.

26. 15/6/2011. Trampers. Schoolhouse, Tunnels, McRaes, Racemans, ret. Medium.

Plan 1: Swampy to Green Hill via Sleepy Hollow. Cold winds too fierce on tops.
Plan 2. Schoolhouse, Little Coal Creek, Steve Amies. But wet weather meant steep tracks would be too slippery and dangerous.
Plan 3. The actual tramp (see above). – Racemans level and safer, (except for the gradual Tunnels ascent/descents). However wet tree roots still had to be carefully negotiated.
Although rain for a start, but it soon went off and only drippy bush had to be endured. Track still muddy in places, but in many places a grand avenue and well cleared. Seven of us ventured out and enjoyed what looked at first to have been an unpromising day. – Ian.

GPS of route. Courtesy, Ken. (Route double-tracked for some inexplicable reason.)

12.33 p.m. Ready to return from lunch spot on Racemans.

2.23 p.m. Top of Tunnels track. Rest stop on pine-needles on return.

6. 23/10/1996. Trig Q. Average. Leaders: Margaret and Les, Doug J.

5. 7/6/1995 Trig Q from Whare Flat School. Medium+. Shorter trip available. Leaders: Bob H, George, Jack R, Nancy

 

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