2026-03-18 < Weekly activities > 2026-04-01
Activity summary: Wednesday 2026 March 25 to Tuesday 2026 March 31
Cruickshanks Tunnel, Upper Hutt/Belmont Trig/Escarpment Track, Paekakariki to Plimmerton/Kapakapanui Plus/Mt Climie, Pakuratahi Stream/Titahi Bay Rock Climbing
Wednesday
E Trip ‘Cruickshank’s Tunnel, Upper Hutt’, led by David Campbell, Wed 25/03 4M
The track to the tunnel from the end of King Charles Drive mostly followed the formation of the old Wairarapa railway line. Notable were the deep cuttings that had been made and the valleys filled by the old fashioned methods of pick, shovel and barrow.
EM Trip ‘Belmont Trig’, led by Christine Whiteford, Wed 25/03 11M/1NM
Our walk started at the Oakleigh Street entrance to Belmont Regional park with most of the party arriving by bus from the Petone train. We walked down through luxuriant groves of nikau to the dam and bridge across the Korokoro Stream.
Bill’s track starts on the true right of the stream, at the bridge. This was the challenge of the day – it is a very steep and direct route that meets up with the ridge track to Belmont trig. We continued up the ridge, lunching at the Belmont trig in mist. Our return route was via Baked Beans bend and the dam. It was nice to hear bell birds along the way. The final climb took us back to Oakleigh St by 2:15pm. 9km distance and 750m climb.
M Trip ‘Escarpment Track, Paekakariki to Plimmerton’, led by Peter Morten, Wed 25/03 21M
We set out from Paekakariki on a calm, partly overcast but dry day, and diverted early on to complete the Kohekohe Loop, a half hour deviation with fine views of Kapiti Island and the coast that was new for many of us. We then proceeded to the top of the escarpment, for more glorious views after which we descended about 500 steps to lose most of the height gained and ate lunch at a community garden in Pukerua Bay. Some of the group peeled off soon after to take a train back to Paekakariki, but most continued to Plimmerton, passing through the industrial area, and we arrived in good time to catch a Gold Card free train back to Wellington. Total time - 6 hours.
MF Trip ‘Kapakapanui Plus’, led by Diana Munster, Wed 25/03 6M
Our route took us in fine weather up the Ngatiawa River to ~2.5 km south past the Kapakapanui loop track junction. After morning tea, we ascended SE up a spur on the true right of the river. The first ~50m was a bit of a struggle up steep terrain with thick vegetation (mainly Kiekie with some supplejack), but we then got onto an old track and the going got easier. We stopped for a leisurely lunch among “Ent’-like trees at point 751m, then continued NNE along the spur to join the Kapakapanui track and onto the summit. Here we stopped to admire views and refuel before descending past Kapakapanui Hut (thanks for the Easter eggs Marie) to the road end. The only incident was at the beginning of the trip when the leader slipped on a slimy stone and got a dunking (luckily this wasn’t repeated). What helped with route finding was the trace David McNabb provided me with beforehand, and the fact that David, Jenny and Marie had previously been in the area (thanks for your route finding). Above all thanks to everyone for your company.
David McNabb has provided the following GPS stats • Total distance: 15.8km • Elevation gain/loss: ~1070m • Total time taken: 9¼ hours
Jim Paterson, Nina Sawicki, Marie Henderson, Jenny Mason, David McNabb and Diana Munster [leader]
Weekend:
F Trip ‘Mt Climie, Pakuratahi Stream’, led by Marie Henderson, Sat 28/03 6M
The forecast for last weekend changed a lot with Sunday looking most promising. So we switched as all punters agreed to change the day. It is a tricky trip as there are a few endurance elements combined: the Climie climb, off track decent to the river, then lovely river travel and then a long 4WD slog out. The punters on the day were key to this trip’s success - not just endurance abilities but everyone bought a positive attitude, and some character when needed, to every element.
Youth ‘Titahi Bay Rock Climbing’, led by Craig Morrison, Sat 28/03 5M
Our group was two students (Megan and Gene) and three instructors (Anna, Luke, and me), and after a quick safety briefing, we headed down the steep goat track to the crag. We warmed up on “Limpet Groove” and “Plimsoll”, after which Megan and Gene learned how to belay; I climbed while each of them took turns belaying, with Anna providing a close backup. After a short lunch break, Anna led a session on belaying from the top and then abseiling, including rope threading and setting up ATCs and Prussiks.
We then headed to some more challenging routes around the corner. One of the routes (Sleuth) involved a right-to-left traverse up a corner system, which gave the students a genuine chance to second a route, including cleaning quickdraws and then abseiling off the top. Luke and I had a quick burn on “Sloth” on top-rope, and then it was time to pack up all the gear and grovel our way back up the goat track to the cars just before 4pm. Craig Morrison (leader and scribe), Anna Shum-Pearce and Luke Amos (instructors), Megan Cameron and Gene Simonlehner (students
Total 53 members and 1 non member