With time to spare, I followed the Zigzag Track before heading off on a bush bash and returning via the Stanley Street Track.
I had booked my car in with David Smith Motors on Simmons Grove, just off Fraser Street in Wainuiomata. Great prices BTW. As the entrance to the Zigzag Track is nearby, I decided it would be a good way to pass the time while the repairs were being completed.
The track begins with a steep climb, although its zigzagging route makes the gradient more manageable. After climbing for some distance, the track began to resemble a conventional firebreak, with a broad, grassy surface along the ridge. After what felt like about a kilometre, I reached a junction where I could either continue towards the Rātā Ridge Track or descend to Stanley Street.
I had previously walked part of the Stanley Street Track and most of the Rātā Ridge Track, so I decided to leave the formed track and go bush bashing instead. I initially passed through an area of tree ferns before crossing several gullies. There was no running water in them, probably because I was still fairly high on the hillside. I looked down each gully to see whether it might be worth following, but the vegetation was extremely dense and the narrow gullies were choked with supplejack.
I therefore continued in a southerly direction until I reached the boundary of a farm. It turned out to be Woodhatton Farm, although it was securely fenced, preventing me from accidentally entering the property.
From there, I headed back uphill on a more easterly route, hoping to move closer to the township. At several points, I gained partial views of Burden Avenue and the surrounding streets. From one location, I also had a direct view along Hine Road and into Reservoir Valley.
I continued through the bush and crossed another two or three gullies, probably the same ones I had passed higher up earlier. At this lower elevation, however, each contained a flowing creek. The gullies were heavily overgrown with supplejack and other vegetation, so I skirted their sides wherever possible to make progress.
Eventually, I managed to drop into one of the creeks. It was a particularly scenic spot, surrounded by tree ferns. I am fairly sure that, had I searched the water carefully, I would have found some of the little freshwater creatures we used to call “crawlies” and look for when I was a child.
I eventually emerged onto what appeared to be a track or unsealed road and began following it. A fence ran alongside the boundary of Woodhatton Farm, so I initially felt confident that it was a legitimate public route. However, after reaching two houses, I began to wonder whether I was actually walking along a private driveway.
Rather than risk continuing through what might be private property, I returned to the bush, climbed the hillside and eventually came across a ridge track. At first, I was unsure which track it was. It looked similar to the Zigzag Track, but I soon realised that it was the Stanley Street Track. I followed it downhill until I emerged onto Stanley Street.
The route I had been following earlier appeared to be a driveway, with several letterboxes near its entrance. I was still unsure whether it was private, although Google Maps labels the route as part of Stanley Street, so it may have been possible to walk out that way.
When I checked my phone, I discovered that the mechanic had texted me about 20 minutes earlier to say that my car was ready. I walked back to Simmons Grove, paid the bill, stopped for lunch on Queen Street and then headed home.
