Club Truck Trip – Waiotauru Road
The Waiotauru Road is an old logging road established by the Odlins Timber Company and used for logging until the 1960s or ‘70s. It’s slowly deteriorated since then until it’s now a reasonably challenging 4WD track requiring total focus and concentration on the drive into the new hut.
Leaving the assembly area at Harcourt Park in Upper Hutt there’s a 40-minute drive to the start of the track. Drivers enjoying the trip were Neil (trip leader) and John from CCVC, Colin, Grant and Lloyd from Manukau 4WD Club, David and Jason from Auckland 4WD Club, Hamish from Wairarapa 4WD Club and Mary-Ellen from Taranaki 4WD Club. Partners’ names not recorded, sorry!
So, on both days five capable trucks entered the track after airing down about 10.00 am. The trip into the hut takes two and a half hours at a sensible and enjoyable pace with a stop here and there to appreciate the view and have a cuppa.
The track is quite drivable in a capable vehicle with a few quite technical sections where it’s easy to be cross-axled. Further in it doesn’t pay to be a nervous driver, as the track is narrow with massive dropoffs combined with several little humps in the road where one loses sight of the track ahead as the vehicle bonnet points skywards!
Nonetheless the track sees a lot of traffic with many doing a bit of maintenance when required to keep it open. A few weeks before our trip there was a major blow-out in a small steep stream which created carnage at the creek crossing. It appears a dam built up upstream and burst following heavy rain – the debris and shingle blew about 30m above the stream bed. Someone had done enough spadework to cut a track and with no rain in the three weeks prior to our trip it was spectacular but quite drivable.
We had fabulous sunny weather on both days and drove past the hut to the Waiotauru River before turning around and returning to the hut for lunch. The Waiotauru Hut is about a year old and still looking new with the very old converted tractor shed having been replaced last year. The ARAC Waiotauru
Road sub-committee did a great job liaising with DoC who assisted greatly, applying for funding, getting
materials and labour donated, arranging the building permit and still working on a few items for completion. It’s a great asset in a very remote location and is well used.
On the way out we drove one of the side tracks just for fun and were back at camp about 5.00pm with everyone safe, no breakages and lots of smiles. The definition of a good trip!