Tuesday 12th March 2024
Puketi Campsite to Blackbridge Campsite
20km walked today
178km to Cape Reinga
Although it’s only 20 km to my next stop, I know it’s going to be slow so I’m walking by 7am as it gets light. The first 9km is relatively easy, along a narrow gravelled four-wheel-drive track that starts off flat but soon starts undulating. There is a large paddock to my left for a few kilometres but the track soon dives into forest. The contractor I spoke with last night told me of the extensive trapping for all the usual suspects. That’s enabled some bird species that had gone locally extinct to be reintroduced, but the forest this morning is nearly silent. I see or hear very few birds. This is New Zealand’s great task, to manage the pests that have made so many birds almost extinct. Most pests will never be eradicated, only managed, but hopefully as time goes by and funds permit, the efforts will be successful.
I guess the 4WD track I’m walking on was an old forestry road so all the big trees have been removed years ago, but there are some smaller kauri and other trees that given time will return the forest. Kauri are very slow growing and can live for over 1000 years. After two hours walking some big kauri trees start appearing in areas that would have been harder for the loggers to extract. They are staggering trees, beautifully shaped and have a strong presence in the forest.
After 10 km, the forest road stops and it’s a long 300m drop to the river. This is the first difficult section today, with slow going along a steep and rooty track, although where there are kauri there’s a gravel path and steps in an attempt to prevent kauri dieback disease. This is a big issue here, and there are boot cleaning and spraying stations wherever kauri are present.
Finally the track comes down to the Lower Waiapa River. I know this is the part where I walk along the river for 3 km. The advice is to just walk in the river bed on shingle banks, occasionally wading across to the other side as the river meanders. Somehow I’m just not paying attention and turn left (upstream) instead of right, and it takes me over 30mins of reasonably difficult stream walking before I realise something is wrong and I’m not seeing any evidence of track markers or footprints. I check the app and see I’m 500m up the wrong stream, and well off track. I’m really annoyed at myself for this basic error… always check the app after critical points. I try to carefully make my way back downstream and regain the track. I’ve lost over an hour because of my stupidity.
Once I’m back on track it’s a pleasant walk down the river, sometimes wading across nearly waist deep to get to the shingle bank on the other side, but it’s a hot day and very pleasant in the water which isn’t flowing too fast. I’m still annoyed at myself, even though I’ll get to camp well before dark, but more because of the loss of energy from over an hour of difficult walking.
Now there’s a turnoff from the river, up the Mangapukahukahu Stream. The turnoff is well marked but by now I’m obsessively checking everything. The crossing point to get to the stream is a bit downstream and it’s tricky to cross, even with the rivers low flow. You can’t do this route after rain.
The track follows the stream up for another 2 or 3km and finally there’s a steep exit climb of 250m up to a DOC campsite. It’s empty. There’s a shelter, a toilet and a water tank. There’s still enough sun to dry my tent from last night and I’m asleep by 8pm.
SAUNTER101 