By Ava Germaine, 25 April 2026
The long weekend created the perfect opportunity for a tramp, so 13 of us decided to head off for an overnighter to Waiopehu Hut on Saturday 25th of April. It was definitely an adventure, one that left some trampers with shaky legs but levelled up in their tramping skills!
Day 1
Learnings: it’s always good to have a backup car
I’m not sure whether it was the unlucky number of 13 people that caused the bumps in the road on this day, but something was in the air. The day began before we’d even had the chance to meet everyone at Hunter carpark. As I was about to start my breakfast, I got an email from one of our drivers saying she could no longer come. This left 4 people without a mode of transport. After many calls, trying to find a solution to get everyone there, Charlie pulled through with an idea! He suggested that he and 3 others take the train to Waikanae and pick up his car there, to head to the track. First problem was solved and the group morale was high!
The train-takers were about an hour behind those in cars, so we decided to split into two groups. The first took off, eager to get on the track, whilst the rest of us waited at the car park, soaking in the sun. Once the train-takers had arrived, we took the mandatory starting photos, and then we were off too!
The track started, as expected, with about 1km of farmland. Then we headed into the expected 9km of bush. We wound our way up and down, feeling prouder of our progress with each stop. Until… we met a doc sign at 5km, which stated that there was a further 9km to the hut… straight uphill. To say we were confused would be a slight understatement. However, we didn’t have much time to be confused, as we were already an hour behind the first group. So we made the decision to soldier onwards and upwards, knowing that the hut was 9km away, we had great weather, and we all had some form of torch if needed.
This section was a drastic change to the previous as we were face-to-face with the bush wall for about 2 hours. Despite this, we stayed in high spirits and waved Charlie and Josh goodbye as they mountain goated their way up the hill. Once we’d reached the top of this section, we were met with another sign which clarified for us that we had, in fact, made a wrong turn at some point during the first 5km. Even though it didn’t change anything, it was good to know.
By this time, the first group had made it to the hut via the planned route and were setting themselves up for a fun evening of cards. Our group, still on the track, enjoyed the beautiful sunset through the trees, which made up for my sleeping mat taking a tumble. We got the head torches going at about 6pm and met Harry, who had kindly come to give us the final push, about 800 metres from the hut.
Everyone made it to the hut, unscathed, happy, and some of us, quite exhausted. The hut was packed to the brim with multiple groups having had the same idea as us! After some competitive games of cards–I’m still not sure who’s the best at spoons–and a delicious potluck dinner, we all crashed in our respective places for a good night's rest.
Day 2
Learnings: always STOP and read the doc signs because they could have very valuable information on them
Compared to day one, day two was a piece of cake. We woke up in the clouds, our beautiful view from last night, now non-existent. Gathered around the table, we enjoyed a quiet breakfast before heading off in staggered car groups.
Considering the uphill we’d experienced yesterday, it came as no surprise and with considerable joy, that the majority of the walk back to the carpark was downhill. We plodded our way along the track, this time taking the correct route (“just always go left” - Harry). Once we reached the farmland, we discovered the sign, which had been completely missed by all 7 of us in the second group on the first day. After some deliberation, we came to the conclusion that 1 - the big orange markers pointing in the wrong direction led us astray, and 2 - the amount of blind trust we all had is quite remarkable and, some would say, stupid.
Anyway, everyone made it back to the car park, some with slightly sore legs and others with very sore legs, but all happy and all reconnected with nature!
