Heaphy Track ride by Libica Hurley 2 August 2017
Heaphy Track MTBAugust 2nd, a group of four of us, packed the cars and left what was a dreary overcast day in Canterbury, in search of an adventure.After 4 ½ hours, driving through the Lewis we hit what felt like a summer's day on the West Coast. In Granity we were warmly welcomed by Phil & Rona at Miners on Sea Ltd (Click here ). Miners provides tidy, comfortable and reasonably priced accommodation in a handy location to both the Old Ghost Road and the Heaphy Tracks. You can’t beat the food at their restaurant (Tommy Knockers), their friendliness and the ocean views right on their doorstep.August 3rd, we drove an hour North to Karamea to catch our flight at 10am to Brown Hut. Mit from Adventure Flights Golden Bay (Click here ) flew us (for $250 each) from Karamea Airport, up the coast, over the Heaphy Hut and up the valley to Brown Hut International Airport. Landing in a paddock with your bikes hanging off the aeroplane wings beside you is something you have to experience! The blue skies provided amazing views and Mit spoke to us the whole flight, even pointing out the longest DoC bridge in the world - haha.With fresh legs, clean smelling clothes and un-chaffed bums we set off 4km down Aorere Valley Road to Brown Hut and onto the beautiful Heaphy Track. According to my Garmin, day one of the Heaphy Track (from Brown Hut) is 16km long with 800 odd metres of climbing. I found it a comfortable gradient to chug away at, whilst rocky in parts, it was all rideable for an intermediate rider. There were several well positioned bench seats along the way too, and it would have been rude not to stop. I would say, if you can ride up Mt Grey, you’ll ace the climb to Perry Saddle.End of day 1 we rolled into our accommodation A La Perry Saddle Hotel at the same time as a group of Aussies; complete with gas and cookers, pots, coal fire, clean loos, bike stands and a deck facing the sun set. Like any of the Great Walk Huts I have stayed at, the main huts on the Heaphy are top notch.
Day 2 we beat the Aussies to it, and got to crack some frozen puddles along the first section of track to Gouland Downs Hut. This leg was easy riding, it felt downhill most of the way, with a couple of bridges thrown in the mix. Gouland Downs Hut is not fancy, but it did have a resident weka and a picnic table ideal for a snack stop out the front. Onto Saxon Hut and then MacKay Hut we climbed a bit, but the climbs were not relentless.After stopping at the MacKay for lunch we had 10 km of straight downhill which was so much fun! There were a couple of hairy corners where you could go wrong if you’re going to fast, but overall it was flowy and smooth and awesome!
At the bottom of the descent from the MacKay you meet the river and there sits the Lewis Hut. From here you have 8 km of riding along the rivers’ edge, past a giant Kauri, over a couple of swing bridges and through bush with Palms trees (no kidding, actual palm trees) to the Heaphy Hut. Don’t let the flat elevation map in the doc brochure fool you, there are in fact a couple of decent climbs in this section.
For a 3 day ride I would highly recommend staying at the Heaphy (instead of the MacKay), you can see the river mouth from the dining room and walk onto the beach for a spectacular sunset. Staying only 16km from the track end at Kohaihai, also meant that day 3 was significantly shorter as we had to ride another 16km on the road from Kohaihai back to Karamea to pick up the car too.Day 3 was amazing in yet a different way, the track sidles along the coast line presenting views of the Kahurangi Marine Reserve and Crayfish Point. There are a few short steep climbs in this section but nothing harder than what you’ve already tackled the last couple of days.If I was to do it again (which I definitely will), I would plan the itinerary the same again. The days were a great length for a cruisy ride where you had time to stop and enjoy the scenery, the flight was 100 times better than a 450 km shuttle by road from one end of the track to the other, and this time of year provided 3 perfect days of weather for us to enjoy.If you’re a keen mountain biker you can’t miss out on this multi-day ride, it’s definitely an NZ must do! It’s not overly technical and the overall surface is outstanding (you can tell a lot of work goes into maintaining this track for walkers and cyclists). Get some mates together, book the huts, a flight, a club emergency beacon (just incase) and some accommodation - you won’t be disappointed! ItineraryDay 1 : 4.5 hour drive to Granity
Day 2: 1 hour drive to Karamea Airport, 20-30 minute flight, ride 20 odd km from landing to Perry Saddle Hut.
Day 3: Ride to Heaphy Hut via MacKay for lunch
Day 4: Ride out to Kohaihai Shelter (16km) and back to Karamea Airport (another 16km) to pick up the car.Gear List
Bike Stuff: 2x tubes each, foldable tyre, puncture repair kit, chain link, multi-tool with a chain break, tyre levers, chain lube & a rag, derailleur hanger, brake pads (the Heaphy is notorious for wearing pads out, especially in wet weather), bum butter, club emergency beacon, whistle, survival blanket, drink bottle / or bladder and a group first aid kit. Riding Stuff: 1x bike shorts, 1x riding top (these clothes can be dried in front of the fire at night), thermal top, medium layer (260gsm merino or polar fleece), rain jacket, tights, socks, gloves, glasses, helmet, shoes, bike bags (I used a ‘Revelate Designs’ seat bag to take some weight off my back, ‘Topeak’ also do a cheaper version called a back loader. These bags aren’t ideal for a full-sus, but carriers can be used instead with a dry bag strapped on), back pack (a 30L is a good size if you have no other means of carrying gear attached to your bike, hat/buff.Hut Stuff: Cup, bowl, torch, jandles, warm socks, pants/long johns, thermal top, puffer jacket, sleeping bag, means for a makeshift pillow, cards, wet wipes, roll-on, matches/lighter.
Food: Riding snacks (everyone has their own preference), 2x nights worth of dehydrated/freeze dried meals, porridge sachets, tea bags/coffee/hot chocolate, hut snacks (E.g. chocolate, lollies, biscuits, salami, crackers).
Old Ghost Road Trip March 2017(Phil Ambler)
After talking about how we should ride the OGR, four of us finally committed and set about booking the huts. This turned out to be a bit more difficult than I expected. Not the process, but finding a vacancy - and I was booking seven months out! After examining the route and reading as much as I could find on the trail we decided to start, as recommended, at the Lyell end with night one at Ghost Lake Hut and night two at Specimen Point Hut. The logistics for the vehicle transfer was solved by Buller Adventures -Click here who offer shuttle and vehicle relocation services. For $200.00, they transferred our vehicle from Lyell to Sedonville on the day we started the ride so it would be waiting at Sedonville regardless of when or what time we finished. Between four of us this was better value than the shuttle service they offer from Seddonville back to Lyell that was in the range of $65.00 per person.
Day One
We parked the vehicle at the Lyell carpark around 9.30 am, dropping the keys in the drop box as directed, and set off with enthusiasm and a little trepidation. This was our first multiday self-supported trip so it took a while to get used to the weight and balance of the bike. I had my sleeping bag on the bars in a dry bag, an MTX seat post fitted carrier with matching TOPEAK bag at the rear and an Osprey back- pack. I didn’t carry a water bladder, just the standard cage bottle. I did have two bottles but lost one in an early crash when our group stopped and caught me by surprise; I failed to unclip and fell to the downhill side of the trail sliding out of control for 3 or 4 meters before hitting a tree and coming to rest. Unfortunately, my bike missed the tree and continued, going over a sheer 5 m bluff coming to rest deep down in the gulley. The boys found a track down and recovered my bike and remarkably, it was undamaged, having landed in regenerating bush. Aside from a badly bruised thigh and some cuts, I was physically fine albeit a little shaken by the near miss.
The track surface was awesome as we steadily climbed towards our planned lunch stop at Lyell Saddle Hut. With only one drink bottle, I kept it full stopping as required at the many streams and again at Lyell Saddle Hut. Arriving at the hut was our first chance to see what an awesome job the Lyell Backcountry Trust have done. They are a step up from DOC huts; insulated, double glazed, gas hob cookers, a gas BBQ (at Lyell and Ghost Lake Huts), plates, cups, pots pans cutlery and so on – amazing. After sharing trail yarns with other riders and enjoying lunch on the veranda, we set off for the final leg of the day.
Lyell Saddle
We stopped for photo’s along the way and there were certainly no shortage of opportunities arriving at Ghost Lake 5 ½ hours after leaving the carpark. There were no waterways once we got into the more alpine section of the track and I ran out of water about 45 minutes from Ghost Lake but this was the only section of the ride where water was not readily available. I walked an 800 m section late on this first day that had loose rock, moderate gradient and massive drop off to certain doom. The more confident and less risk averse of our group however, rode this section (it is sign posted).
I had booked one of the two summer sleep outs at Ghost Lake that accommodate four people ($80.00/night to book the hut exclusively). They are called summer sleep outs for a good reason with no insulation so, at 1,300 m above sea level, you would not want to be in one when the temperatures plummet.
Relaxing on one of the ‘tent’ sites outside our Summer Sleep Out
We enjoyed the afternoon sun and magnificent views with a beer and snacks before heading into the main building to BBQ steaks for dinner, a couple of whiskies and then bed.
Day Two
We were up, as were many, before dawn so we could watch the sunrise, and then after a cuppa and breakfast then anti-inflammatory/pain killers to relieve my very tender thigh we were off. Well riding was short lived with us immediately encountering loose, steep switchbacks with drop-offs that tested my level of competency and confidence especially after the previous day’s experience. More time was spent off than on the bike for the next three or four kilometers as we first dropped way down below the Ghost Lake Hut and then climbed back up the other side of the valley onto the ‘skyline ridge’ and ‘skyline steps’. Once that was behind us, we had the most awesome downhill ride for several kilometers on a terrific surface through the some awesome scenery. One of our party came off second best with a tree and was lucky not to crack some ribs but, all in all the ride to Stern Valley Hut put grins a mile wide on our faces. After this, we had a ride past the unusually named Grim and Cheerful lakes as we zigged and zagged our way up to Solemn Saddle and lunch.
Cheerful Lake – the track zigzags up the limestone rock face
From here, it was a fast downhill to Goat Creek hut where we refreshed in the cool stream and had a break before continuing on to the Mokihinui Forks Hut where the sandflies ensured a very brief stop and finally the last leg of the day to Specimen Point Hut on a generally flat but fun trail. Once again, we had a Summer Hut booked which came complete with mosquito nets (there are none in the main hut). It was hot and sunny but everyone was inside the hut because the sandflies were unbearable. There is no BBQ at this hut but it is equally well appointed as Ghost Lake Hut. The huts also have standing bike pumps and bike tools that came in handy.
Mokihinui River on a hot summer’s day
We talked about carrying on since it was only 2.30 pm and we had less than two hours out to Seddonville, but we all agreed that we would stay as planned. We spent a great night with the other folks staying in the hut with a couple more whiskies, a bit of port, and a fine dinner of sausages, mashed potato, gravy and mixed veg.
Day Three
We were up and riding just after 7.30 am – the sandflies ensured we didn’t linger outside. The track is cut into the cliff running along the Mokihinui Gorge River for several kilometers and offers great riding and spectacular views (not recommended to do concurrently, as there are some precipitous drops). We zipped out in around 90 minutes in time to reflect on the trip and pack up the truck before heading to Reefton for a well-earned Big Breakfast at the Broadway Café.
Conclusion
If you have not ridden the OGR then you need to put it on your ‘to do’ list. It is an amazingly rewarding experience. We were lucky to strike hot and sunny conditions for three days. Doing this ride in wet weather would limit the spectacular views and be uncomfortable to say the least and would probably suck the fun right out of it.
If I was doing this again there isn’t much I’d do differently. I’d probably get a better quality sleeping bag and I’d carry more whisky! If I went in the spring or autumn, I would elect to stay in the main huts and not the summer sleep outs but that’s it really.
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