A journey through a broadleaf forest, a steep ridge, and a challenging descent down a gully.
Today I decided on a shorter trek, which ruled out further exploration of the Northern Forest in search of gold bars and abandoned gold mines.
I started at Reservoir Car Park, and it was already quite hot when I stepped out of the car. I was glad to be heading into the forest, where I could escape the intense sun.
My first destination was the Scour Pipe area, where I wanted to do some detective work around a mysterious trench that curves around a spur. I suspect it may be part of Water Race Track, but with no visible evidence of the water race above ground, I have nothing to confirm that theory.
Having found nothing conclusive, I headed a short distance up the hillside, where I spotted three pāua shells partially buried in the bank, rather mysteriously. From there, I decided to climb the ridge on the eastern side of the earth bridge, aiming to reach the main ridge above, where an old firebreak once ran.
The climb was surprisingly easy, and the surrounding fern forest was beautiful. About a quarter of the way up, I spotted some old wire netting protruding from the ground. Nearby, I discovered an old, rotting spade. Who knows what it was once used for? I could make a few guesses, but perhaps it’s best not to!
Continuing uphill, I eventually reached the summit, where the old firebreak once ran along the ridge. I followed it east until I saw a fence marking the boundary of private land in Moores Valley. Beyond the fence, I could see a rather nice hut tucked away amongst the bush on private land. Further along, I spotted a much larger hut, with a forestry track leading to it.
I turned south to avoid private property and soon came across a deep swamp surrounded by dense bush. I could hear what sounded like frogs calling from somewhere within. After making my way around the swamp, I began descending into the steep gully below.
The descent was very steep and difficult, although there was plenty of supplejack to grab hold of. Eventually, I reached an almost vertical cliff face that I imagine would make quite an impressive waterfall after heavy rain or during winter. Today, however, there was little more than a trickle of water running down it. Judging by the thick green moss covering the cliff face, though, it clearly receives plenty of moisture for most of the year.
I attempted to bypass the cliff by working my way around its sides, but the terrain was still very steep. I had to lower myself carefully, gripping trees and whatever other handholds I could find to avoid slipping. It was becoming rather hard going, so I decided to drop into the small stream below which was starting to form. Although the stream was tangled with supplejack, it still looked like an easier route than continuing down the same section of hillside.
Progress was slow, so I decided to climb the opposite bank after spotting an area of more open forest above. This proved a better option, and I continued descending through the open treescape, but keeping roughly parallel to the stream.
Eventually, I came across the old maintenance road / track built to provide access to the buried Orongorongo pipeline. Continuing downhill via the stream, I realised that I would head straight to the exposed section of the old water race.
I continued down from the water race and was approaching the final stretch before reaching the road when I lost my footing and slid down the slope, grazing my arm in the process. It was a rather silly mistake, especially considering that this section was not nearly as steep as the terrain I had negotiated further uphill. I think I had simply lost concentration, assuming the difficult part of the trek was behind me.
All up, it was a good day out, with few interesting discoveries but beautiful stretches of forest. What began as a relatively short and easy trek turned into something a bit more challenging than I had anticipated. Once again, the Wainuiomata hills had a few surprises in store!
