This text was read by OCR from a scanned newsletter and has not been proofread yet, so expect odd characters and mistakes.
An Easy tramp to Iron Bark Hut is unusual for two reasons — the amount of open tops travel, and because some navigation is required. On this occasion, it was an Easy trip that almost didn’t happen: the original leader pulled out, somebody got sick, and someone else wanted to take their name off the list the second Wednesday before, but the list had come down. This I found out the following Tuesday after plans had been made. It has always been my practice to collect trip fares the Wednesday before the tramp, but will now expect payment the second Wednesday before, as stated on the sign-up sheet. If I don’t get the trip fare by then, I will make contact with the person to find out if they are still going — before giving my
numbers to the transport officer. The end result was an Easy party of two, but two determined adventurers.
The tramp begins at Mokai Station, inland from Mangaweka. Our transport was the new van, which has a very powerful engine, but beeps at you when driving over bumps. We decided it was a bad electrical connection causing the problem, it was the same sound you get when the vehicle doesn’t like you leaving the door open.
There is no easing into this tramp, it’s near vertical for the first part as you climb up the Mokai Patea Range. We could see the Range at first, but the weather was deteriorating, with a misty drizzle moving in. Visibility had become limited to about fifty metres, which was unfortunate, because this was where the navigation part of the tramp begins. A descent has to be made down a spur of the Mokai Patea Range, to join the track which leads through bush to Iron Bark Hut. It was extremely difficult in the conditions we had to identify either of the two spurs leading to the track. The compass came out, and I was frantically trying to remember how to use it, because it had now become bitterly cold at this high altitude. These days I avoid bush-bashing expeditions at all costs, and haven’t had to use a compass for years. Fortunately it came back to me quickly, and at least we had the map oriented correctly. We got to a high point which had a lone pole sticking out of the ground. We were still travelling through farmland at this point, so the pole could have meant anything from ‘yes this is the correct spur’, to being just the remains of an old fence. We decided to take that spur down, it was really just a guess, but at least it was a calculated one. Down lower visibility had increased from twenty metres to being able to see the nearby hills, and we were able to identify the hills 1120 and 872. This was great because now we knew where we were, and that we had taken the left side spur down (left of the stream that runs down to the track). This spur is very scrubby, and some moderate bush-bashing is required. It does become clear further on, however. We continued on to the track, and had some lunch.
From this point the walk is through bush, and we were immediately faced with two separate areas of treefall, blocking the track. Having heard about the large number of fallen trees damaging tracks in many areas throughout the vicious winter, we couldn’t help but wonder what we were in for. But after this initial obstruction, the track was clear. We arrived at Iron Bark Hut at about half past two, a much more civilised time compared to the Medium group’s 7pm arrival at Colenso Hut. It gave us time to collect lots of firewood for both our needs and the next visitors.
There was some overnight rain, but it had cleared by Sunday morning. We started early and slowly climbed up through the bush. At the bushline, it was rapidly clearing to become a very sunny and still day, and we decided to climb up the other spur. The ascent from here to the point next to Mokai Patea offered fantastic views of the northern Ruahine Ranges, and we stopped to identify the small clearing on Puketaramea, Waikamaka and the main range beyond, and the ridge the Medium group were travelling along on their return from Lake Colenso. Many photos were taken. After lunch, all the mystery of the previous day was revealed, and we descended the Mokai range which was very steep and alittle scary in places, but the footing was okay, there being many sheep tracks in a ring-like formation around the hill. Lots of farmland to cross, and the van was a welcome sight at midafternoon.
The trampers were Michael Lightbourne and Erin Sneddon.