Midwinter - Ruahine snow adventure

Meet 7am at the Hunter carpark on Monday the 19th

Time to finally do a proper multi-day mission in the Ruahines!

This trip will require snowcraft experience, and will involve lots of open-tops travel in full winter conditions. In terms of winter trips though it will still be less hardcore than what you would find in the south island or Ruapehu. We will be sticking to relatively low ridgelines and there certainly won't be any climbing or rope-work required.

The goal of this trip is simply to make the most of a good few days (around 4-6 days) exploring the remote northern end of the Ruahines. This includes places like Ruahine corner hut and Lake Colenso. The route is quite flexible and will depend on weather conditions and group fitness.

This trip will be a solid medium-hard difficulty, with long and steep days through rough tracks. It will also include some river travel between Lake Colenso and Ruahine Corner, and potentially some off-track depending on where we choose to go. Great fitness is certainly required! You'll need to be comfortable with full 10hr days with steep uphill, downhill, and open ridgeline travel.

If the trip is full, please join the waitlist, as spots my open up closer to the date.
Remember, snowcraft experience and great fitness are required!

Here is the rough plan:

Day 1 (6-8hrs)

- Leave wellington at 7am (or 8am if that's not manageable for anyone)

- Arrive at Mokai Road around 11am-12pm.

- 4-5hr walk to Otukota hut

- If we can, continue on to Iron Bark hut (2.5 - 3hrs)

Day 2 (7-9hrs)

- 3hrs to Colenso hut

- 3hrs up a riverbed to Potae

- 1.5hrs to Ruahine Corner hut

Day 3 (9-10hrs??)

- Huge 9-10hr day doing the main central ridgeline from Ruahine Corner to Maropea Forks hut. This day is quite dependent on group fitness and weather. If it's not looking good, then we'll likely do something easier and return back a similar route to the way we came.

Day 4 (8-9hrs)

- 4-5 hrs from Maropea Forks hut back to Otukota hut

- Otukota hut back to the roadend (4hrs)

- Driving back to wellingon, hopefully not too late

Here are some of the sights to see along the way:

Lake Colenso:

Ruahine Corner:

Ruahine tops in the snow: