Marlborough Express - Weekend Express
Linked in: new sections of track ready to go
Fancy exploring the Marlborough Sounds? Because it just got a little easier.
Two sections of the multi-use Link Pathway track connecting Havelock and Picton opened on Friday, just in time for Christmas.
Trampers, runners and cyclists will be able to tackle the 3-kilometre sections between Momorangi Bay and Ngakuta Bay, and Wedge Point and Shakespeare Bay.
Link pathway co-ordinator Rick Edmonds said the new sections of track would provide ‘‘stunning views’’ of the Sounds.
Edmonds said the section between Momorangi and Ngakuta ‘‘ticked all the boxes’’.
It was a ‘‘really superb part of the pathway,’’ he said.
‘‘I’m saying to people if they want to have a look at what we are doing, that’s the section that’s really the standout example of what the project is trying to achieve.’’
Edmonds said that section offered an easy gradient and was expecting the track to be wellused.
‘‘It will be really popular because it goes into the Momorangi Bay camp ground, so there will be a thousand or more people there next week who can now go for a walk along that pathway,’’ he said.
The section of track from Wedge Point to Shakespeare Bay was also a ‘‘really significant’’
‘‘I’m saying to people if they want to have a look at what we are doing, that’s the section that’s really the standout example of what the project is trying to achieve.’’
part of the track as it was close to Picton.
‘‘The cruise liner people will be able to walk that section of the track for an introduction Sounds experience,’’ he said.
The two sections of track were part of a 42km project aimed to connect local communities between Havelock and Picton.
The project was into its 12th year and would extend the existing Queen Charlotte Track.
About 20 per cent of the total Link Pathway comprised an abandoned historic bridle path constructed more than 150 years ago.
Edmonds said the bridle path was revamped to ensure it was up to standard.
About five to six people had worked regularly on the two sections of track since the start of 2017.
Outward Bound students also came to help work on the track once a month, Edmonds said.
‘‘They’re fit and eager ... so they just go for it,’’ he said.
Edmonds said the next section of track to be worked on would be the 3km section between Anakiwa and Picton.
‘‘We’ve got about 1km still to do at the Picton end and we’ve got about 2km to do at the Grove/ Anakiwa end,’’ he said.
That particular section was expected to be completed by June 2018.
Once it had been completed, the remaining part of the track towards the Havelock end would be worked on.
Edmonds hoped the project would be wrapped up by 2020 to coincide with the 250th anniversary of Captain Cook arriving at Meretoto/Ship Cove in the Marlborough Sounds.
Funding for the Link Pathway had come from the Marlborough District Council, Ra¯ta¯ Foundation, Pub Charity as well as a host of companies and individuals.