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Totara Flats via Waiohine Gorge Track: The Active Slip Warning
If you are planning a trip to Totara Flats Hut in the Tararua Range, you have likely seen the alert for the Waiohine Gorge Track. DOC notes that there is no longer access to pass above a large active slip about 1 km downstream from the flats. They claim that the only access past the…
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Totara Flats and Sarah’s cup of tea
Forget Totara Flats Hut—the ultimate luxury is a campfire brew in the solitude of the flats Sarah heads into the Tararua Forest Park to visit the iconic Totara Flats. Leaving the bustle of Totara Flats Hut, she walks onto the flats and finds a place to camp in the shelter of the bush.. Then boiling…
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Holdsworth to Mitre: A Guide to a Tararua Day Tramp
The Holdsworth to Mitre Tramp The route Brian attempted is a legendary “classic” in the Tararua Forest Park, but it is quite demanding. It connects Mt. Holdsworth (1470m) to Mitre (1571m) via the Broken Axe Pinnacles. The story of Brian’s misadventure The narrative begins with Brian (real name altered to avoid disapprobation) planning his favourite…
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Totara Flats | How the Wellington Fault Created a Tramper’s Delight
Totara Flats is widely considered one of the Tararua Forest Park’s most idyllic places—a camper’s delight of grassy terraces, blooming rata, and deep swimming holes. But beneath the tranquil surface of these river flats lies a violent geological history. From ancient forests buried three meters deep to the massive tectonic shifts of the Wellington Fault…
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🌴Ozzie’s Track – a forgotten route in the Tararua Forest Park
Ozzie’s Track is one of those mostly-forgotten routes in the Tararua Range that doesn’t appear on today’s topomaps but lives on in trampers’ conversations—particularly those of the members of the Manawatu Tramping and Skiing Club who have adopted the track and now maintain it. Tucked into the Ōhau River valley on the western side of…
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The Wellington Fault: Why the Tararua Range is one of New Zealand’s Biggest Jigsaw Puzzles
Some faults in the Tararuas The Tararua Range is famous for its ‘faults’—usually the relentless rain or the 80-day-a-year sunshine quota. But look deeper at the topography, and you’ll find the real faults: the tectonic scars that have literally torn the landscape apart. The Wellington Fault, a geological giant, snakes its way from the South…
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Dorset Ridge – not even close
With the Ruahine Crossing cancelled due to COVID level 2 restrictions, I managed to persuade a number of club members to come out on a private trip with me that had the goal of having a fun weekend out in the Tararua Range. One of the options Tony suggested was Dorset Ridge from Jumbo Hut.…
