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The Tararuas
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South of Levin, Te Araroa Trust and the regional Te Araroa Wellington Trust originally proposed taking the track through an interior Tararuas route and over Mt Crawford. DOC, which manages the Forest Park, thought the tracks here were too hazardous, and asked for an alternative.
The Oriwa Ridge has become that alternative. It’s still in the Tararuas, but runs parallel to the interior route, is lower, and ten kilometres shorter. Put simply, it’s safer.
Oriwa Ridge falls within the ‘Otaki Remote Experience Area.’ By definition this has few facilities – Oriwa Ridge itself has only a water collection facility for drinking – and is for “more experienced” recreational users. Te Araroa’s proposal would upgrade what’s presently a route used by a few to tramping track standard, making passage along the ridge easier. This means marking it up, cutting vegetation sufficiently that a tramper can see the next marker, and – since tramping tracks require a shelter of some kind once the route extends beyond four hours walking – constructing a small shelter half-way along the ridge. At the southern end of the proposed new track, a new bridge would take Te Araroa trampers across the Waitewaewae River.
The original Te Araroa route (see map) was over existing tracks, via Waiopehu, Te Matawai, Dracophyllum, and Nichols huts to Mt Crawford, before dropping down to Waitewaewae hut. The tramp used exposed ridge lines and was consistently over 1000 metres. The Mt Crawford summit is 1465 metres. DOC doesn’t support the route as a Te Araroa section.
In comparison, the highest knob on the Oriwa Ridge is 1085 metres. Average elevation is under 1000 metres. Forest cover on the ridge gives a tramper significant protection from winds and bad weather.
Opponents to Oriwa Ridge have proposed that Te Araroa use a route within the foothills west of Oriwa Ridge. Te Araroa has investigated the land issues here, and no through route is possible without crossing private properties, including Maori blocks. These owners have baulked at giving the unrestricted access Te Araroa requires. In effect this is not an alternative.
The only other alternative is a 45-kilometre roadwalk from Levin to Waikanae down State Highway One.
The advantages of using Oriwa Ridge are these:
(1) It will provide Te Araroa’s second-longest North Island forest tramp. The ridge route itself is just 12.5 kilometres long, but it joins the 7.5 km Waiopehu Track at the northern end, and the 8 km Waitewaewae Track at the southern end. This allows a 28 kilometre tramp through native forest, and some tussock.
(2) It is one of only two forest tramps in Te Araroa’s entire 3,000-km length that is also close to a significant population centre - the other is in the Hunuas east of Auckland.
(3) Once upgraded it will be safer than the "interior" Tararuas track, via Mt Crawford.
(4) It will allow trampers other than the Tararua hard core to experience the Tararuas, the powerful ridges that run directly at Wellington, the leatherwood, the cloud forest, and the history as the birthplace of New Zealand tramping. The ridge was formerly an historic path, as listed in Chris MacLean’s book, Tararua.
We believe the proposed upgrade of Oriwa Ridge to tramping standard is a fair request. Te Araroa gives its walkers a range of experience, and the re-opening of the ridge will allow those walkers a significant entrance upon Wellington’s greatest tramping ground, while remaining comparatively safe. This seems a considerable benefit when put in the balance beside the minor impact the proposed track will have on a “remote experience” area, used by only a few.
If you studied the case, and put in a submission in our support, thanks.
