Travel Reference
In-Depth Information
Day 3: Pouri Hut to Puketotara Hut
7 HOURS, 22KM
This is the longest leg of the trip, but it is an easy tramp along a well-graded track, passing
through the most pristine forest in the national park. Before leaving Pouri Hut make sure
your water bottle is full, because the only water source along the ridge is the water tank at
Ngapurua Hut.
For most of the day the track remains on the crest of the ridge, at an altitude of about
640m, so there is very little climbing. You begin in a tawa and mixed podocarp forest and
then move into a predominantly kamahi forest.
After around two hours, the track descends to
Otaraheke Clearing
. If you're not ready
for a break it's less than one hour to Ngapurua Hut (10 bunks), built in this clearing in 2010.
Near
Pipipi Peak
(705m), 30 minutes beyond the hut, it's possible to see fossilised shells
embedded in the track. At this point the track swings northeast. Within 1½ hours it begins
the final descent towards Puketotara Hut. It takes one hour to descend the 200m to the ridge-
top clearing where the hut is located, and here the bush is rich with bird life, including kere-
ru, parakeets and long-tailed cuckoos. Puketotara Hut (12 bunks) is a fitting place for a final
night on the track - just beyond it are sweeping views of the Whanganui River, while the
volcanoes of Tongariro National Park crown the skyline to the east.
If you're planning on spending a night at Bridge to Nowhere Lodge, follow the track
from Puketotara Hut. You'll find it behind the hut, heading past the water tanks; it is well
signposted. It takes one to 1½ hours to reach the lodge, perched high above the river. Rooms
have balcony views of the water or the thick native bush.
Day 4: Puketotara Hut to Whanganui River
1 HOUR, 2KM
A short final day is welcome if you are meeting a jetboat for the trip back to civilisation.
You must make sure you reach the river well before the jetboat does; there are pick-ups
throughout the day during summer, but only by prior arrangement. The track quickly drops
100m to a lookout along the crest of a spur. It then descends steeply another 250m, reaching
the Matemateaonga Track sign above the sandy banks of the Whanganui River. The jetboat
pick-up point is well signposted.
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