Trampers ignore warnings on track
A badly eroded area on Mt Taranaki’s round the mountain track could be reopened to trampers in time for the summer, the Department of Conservation says.
The track linking North Egmont and Holly Hut is the main route for circumnavigating the mountain, and accessing the Pouakai Hut and tarns.
A notoriously unstable section on the track between Jacobs Ladder
and Kokowai Track junction has been off limits since early 2018 following a massive slip triggered by Cyclone Gita, which brought heavy rain and strong gales to the region.
A longer, but safer alternative access, via the Ram and Kokowai tracks, below the main track has been used in the interim by trampers to bypass the slip.
A DOC spokeswoman said a crew had been working hard to get the track reopened in time for the upcoming summer.
‘‘We are hoping to do a final inspection of the track in the near future... depending on the outcome of that it will either be opened or we may need to do some further remedial work,’’ she said.
DOC erected physical barriers and warning signs to deter people from walking over the slip but some were ignoring them, she said. ‘‘Unfortunately if people choose to ignore the safety messaging and go around the barriers they may be putting themselves at risk.’’
DOC had investigated rerouting the track above the present track but did not find any practical, or less risky, routes, she said. Instead DOC staff had realigned the existing track across the slip after getting expert advice. The cost to realign and repair the track was around $62,000, the spokeswoman said.
‘‘This included a geotechnical report, investigating the cliff and slip face, hiring a helicopter to transport materials to the site, and labour.’’