Thursday 11th January 2024
Location: 157 Hine Road, Wainuiōmata, Lower Hutt 5014
It was a beautiful day and we decided to take on the Whakanui Track. We took a couple of friends with us (fit young boys, 10 and 12). We've tramped with them before so knew they could keep up. Mum had completed half this track before (from Hine road to Mt McKerrow), today we wanted to walk the entire Whakanui track over to the Orongorong river then out to Catchpool Valley. We parked one car at Catchpool and then drove back to Wainuiomata and parked the other car at Hine Road.
We knew it was going to be a big day so came well prepared (this is a proper tramp with rough turrain and limited cellphone reception).
We started with a hiss and a roar, everyone was excited. Mandatory loo stop and then we headed up to the right (from the toilets at Hine road). The entrance is a little bit hard to find - but essentially it's to the South of the carpark.
The track was a bit overgrown. Miss 9 complained of itchy legs. The track isn't very steep, but it's a continuous climb for a few hours.
We stopped about 20x during the climb, lots of clothes changes, water and snackage.
We made up stories with Miss 9 to keep her mind off the climb. One person was bad and the other good. We had turns building on the other persons story, twisting it so that either something terrible happened or micraculously things got better. We laughed a lot as we created ridiculous stories about amusement parks on the beach, with wild animals and pirates. The boys were so busy chatting Magic the Gathering, they needed no amusement.
The forest was speclacular!
We stopped to celebrate when we reached the sign which took us to the left and continuing on down the Whakanui Track.
As we got higher up the trees thinned out and moss appeared on one side of the trees. We pondered how maybe this was because of the verocious wind. Miss 9 loved the altitude. Look at her face :)
So beautiful!
We found a sunny spot for lunch, but started to get cold when we stopped so quickly ate and kept moving.
We walked along the ridge for a while and then had a steep drop down to the River. The kids walloped and yelled as they slid down the track. When we got to the River we had two choices, continue along the well maintained track next to the river, or get wet feet/walk down the river bed.
If you've followed our blogs before you probably know the options we chose :)
Down the river we walked, we were hot again now so it was nice to cool off a bit. We wondered if it would have been faster along the track, but the river was flat and the kids loved stomping through the water.
We joined the track again at the Bridge by the Orongorong Track. If you haven't been here before, keep to the right side of the river and watch out for a stream which joins the river, there is a bridge which crosses the stream, this takes you back along the Orongorongo Track.
There's a bit of a climb after the bridge, Mum and Dad huffed and puffed up the hill, starting to feel tired. The kids had a second wind.
Orongorong Track is easy (once you're out of the valley). We speed along here, the kids declaring (after 18km) that they weren't even tired and could they pleeease go to the Wainuiomata Pool on the way home. We couldn't think of anything worse but agreed we'd consider the request.
Back to the car, we still couldn't believe how strong our kids are. They're much fitter than us.
We stopped at the pool and let them zoom down the outdoor slide about 10x before we grabbed celebratory ice creams and then home for dinner.
Amazing walk! But it's challenging so you need to know what you're doing. Not for newbies 😆
Age of Kids: 9, 10, 11, 12 years old
Walking Time: 6 hours walking (7.5hrs in total)
Distance: 20.8km
Elevation: 765m
Buggy Friendly: No
Difficulty: Difficult
Wet Feet: Maybe (it can get really muddy)
Amenities: There's a toilet and drinking fountain at the Hine Street carpark, a Long Drop in the Ōrongorongo Valley and a Toilet at the Ōrongorongo Carpark.
Dogs: Yes, on lead only it's a Kiwi Zone.
Cellphone Reception: The cell reception was patchy
Things to be aware of: This is a proper tramp so you need to go well prepared. Take enough food and water, a first aid kit, appropriate clothing etc. A large portion of the walk has no cellphone reception so take a PBL if you can and make sure you let someone know your plans. We always throw in survival blankets, a lighter etc in our first aid just encase we need to spend a night in the bush.
Kommentare