This article was first published in the Tararua Tramper Volume 96, no 10, November 2024
Karapoti Gorge and beyond M
Wednesday 16 October 2024
This tramp took place in Akatarawa Forest Park. It started at the end of Karapoti Road in the carpark at 8.30 a.m. when 13 of us set out to tramp through the scenic native bush-clad Karapoti Gorge to McGhie’s Bridge.
Earlier in the preceding week, the area had been subject to significant rain, but concerns about water flow in the stream we had to cross five minutes in from the start were not realised.
With the fast-flowing Akatarawa River West on one side and steep rock faces on the other, the gorge is quite beautiful, enveloping us with mature trees, waterfalls and birdsong. The route was variously rocky and gravelly, and complicated further by many large pools of water in the middle of the track, some of which had to be negotiated with care.
It took us just over an hour to reach the bridge and from there we tramped up Hukinga Road, a forestry road. Soon we entered a heavily harvested pine forest, with slash that was an assault on the eyes.
We had morning tea (and lunch later on) at a lovely spot beside the river and continued on up Hukinga Road, past the intersection with Pram Track. At the end of the deforested area, we ascended (rather steeply in places) through more native bush until we reached the turnaround spot on the brow of a hill and returned to reach our lunch spot just after 12.30 p.m. Our return route afforded us a second immersion in the glorious gorge.
The tramp took a little over 6.5 hours, and we tramped about 22 kms.
- Party members
- Alistair Beckett (leader and scribe), Vic Armstrong, Joan Basher, Linda Beckett, Janet Dobbie, Rachael Fry, Mary Kane, Peter Morton, Mary Perkins, Louise Slocombe, Peter Smith, Tim Stone, Glynn Woodbury