Napier Tramping Club

based in Hawke's Bay, New Zealand

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Views west and then east, on the Southern Ruahine Crossing

January 30, 2021 by Di Reid Leave a Comment

Southern Ruahine Crossing, Ruahine FP, Saturday 30 January 2021. Map: BM35
Banner Photo: A panoramic picture of the views

Kelvin kindly dropped us off at the end of Opawe Road, Pohangina Valley at 10am, having dropped a few others off first to explore the Manawatu Gorge walk.

We followed the tall white posts, climbing up steeply over the farmland, dodging thistles and cow poop. The wind was quite cold, but the hill climb warmed us quickly. Then another stile took us into the Ruahine forest, a bit less steep and more sheltered for a while with lovely mature bush, then back into open farmland. Weather was overcast but there were lovely views north under the clouds.

A wide track through the leatherwood

The track changed again in the next forested area, it being very steep with quite a lot of clambering up towards the tops. Maharahara is the highest point at 1095m, followed closely by Matanginui at 1075m. Opawe Road is at 300m, so we’d done a good climb and decided it was time to shelter in the leatherwood, have lunch and enjoy the bit of sunshine. Lovely views from the tops; we could see Kiritaki Hut from the tops. We also spotted the message left by the weekend party who were heading to Kiritaki Hut. It had been written on some orange flagging tape, and tied to a stump in the middle of the track at the turn-off.

We then started the gradual walk down. The track was not steep, but the tall tussock and grasses made it tricky to see the uneven path. The track is a bit overgrown but not too bad (could do with some maintenance) and it got better as we descended.

Can you spot Kiritaki Hut?

The final track down to the Mangapuaka Stream got steeper (as it always does), the whole descent from the tops taking about 1 ½ hours. Not much water in the stream but the rocks were very slippery for a while, the water then disappearing completely. There were no markers down the hill or in the stream, but it was obvious where to go.

After only about 20 minutes, we were back at the van at around 4pm. A lovely mix of farmland, bush, views, a good climb and even a stream at the end to get our feet wet! Another very enjoyable day out with the club.

Trampers: Rosemary, Di, Jo, Chris, Geoff, Viv and Sue

Filed Under: General, Recent trips, Ruahine

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About us

We are a group of like-minded people who love the great outdoors. We tramp mostly in the Hawke’s Bay province, in remote areas such as the Kaweka and Ruahine Ranges; but we also travel longer distances to new places, for longer walks.

The Napier Tramping Club was established in 1974 and has about 70 members. We belong to the Federated Mountain Clubs of NZ Inc (FMC) and run Saturday, full-weekend and Wednesday tramps, every fortnight.

Interested in joining us?

Enjoy the great outdoors, keep fit and get to know others with similar interests.

More information

Latest news

July 2022 News

Contents: Membership fees Subscriptions are now due, and can be paid to the club's bank … Read More

June 2022 News

Contents: Mauri Oho Lisa Whittle still needs donations of tramping equipment for the Mauri Oho … Read More

Latest trip

A walking commentary from John D

Useful links

  • Dept of Conservation
  • DoC Huts Use, Kaweka Forest Park
  • Federated Mountain Clubs of NZ (FMC)
  • Heretaunga Tramping Club
  • New Zealand Tramper
  • NZ Walking Access Commission
  • Wanganui Tramping Club

Useful links 2

  • Royal Forest & Bird Protection Society
  • Weather forecast

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