26 June 2024. Hikers. Whare Flat. Grade 2.5. 11km. Leaders: Bruce Spittle, Adrienne Ensor.
Sixteen hikers assembled at 0950 after parking on the side of the Silverstream Valley Road near the McKerrow Bridge Fields near the end of the tar sealed part of the road, 3.74 km along the road. We crossed the Silverstream using the bridge and walked up the hill past the accommodation units to look at the campfire and chapel area with the plaque honouring Heb, Ian Hebbard, who was active with Ken McVie in leading the trampers in the Club a few years ago. We then inspected the water slide, passed the main hall, looked at the confidence course and had morning tea on the verandah of Mitchells Cottage.
After morning tea we walked towards the pump house crossing the stream using the one person at a time bridge, upstream of the water hazard, and inspected the map for the area beside the pump house.
We then followed the track on the true left bank to the left of the pump house and installed a polyester strap on a tree branch to assist traversing one part where there was a steepish descent. We took care on the wooden steps because the damp steps may be slippery.
We proceeded past the lower weir where the Powder Creek track branched off, forded McRaes Stream and followed the Racemans track up the hill to the signpost on the right to McRaes Weir and the Tunnel Track where we had lunch at 1215.
After lunch we followed the track to where it branched to the right to cross McRaes Stream. The track continuing up the hill led to the Steve Amies track. We used the installed knotted rope to assist our descending the last few steps to the stream. On the other side of the stream was a sign indicating the Tunnel Track to the right and McRaes Weir 45 metres to the left. We inspected the weir and then followed the Tunnel Track (TT) to the Whare Flat Flagstaff Road. The tunnel track usually followed the old water race, opened in 1881. Steel pipes were present for the water to cross some gullies. We passed two tunnels approximately 30 m and 300 m in length. The first tunnel was dry but the second one had water in it at its far end. Many ferns and tall pungas were noted alongside the Tunnel Track indicating the damp conditions are conducive for their growth. We crossed the stream beside the Whare Flat Flagstaff road with the assistance of the wire. We passed the now disused Whare Flat School, where Adrienne’s mother was a pupil (her grandfather was a raceman in the 1920s) and then crossed the two water hazards just past the school.
We proceeded down the road, turned left into the Silverstream Valley Road, crossed the water hazard just past the main gate to the Waiora Scout property, and arrived back at the cars by the McKerrow Bridge Fields at 1515. Refreshments were had at the Aurora Café.
Distance travelled 13.82 km. Ascent 182 m. Our thanks are due to Scouting Otago for permission to travel through their property, to Adrienne for her leadership and accounts of Waiora and life in the Whare Flat region, for all the persons who came on the hike and performed so well and came through as a bunch of hardy trampers, in what were challenging conditions at times, and to Aurora who showed a bit of flexibility about the usual closing time of 4 pm. Probably the tracks are less slippery in summer than in winter.
Bruce Spittle
Links to background information and earlier tramps and hikes to the same area.