twists, turns and bumps as we neared the end. The quiet and scenic Rawhiti.
With so many on board, the bus was a bit cramped for sleeping so Helen took the cab while two slept in the sin bin and two tented. At about 4am I was rudely awoken by a wretched rooster who didn’t know rooster conventions. After a short burst
of crowing there was silence but not for that long! Typical male, he had to remind the world who was boss about every half hour!
With everyone awake by the time it was light and being able to use the facilities at the Marae campground, we were well under way with breakfast followed by tramping preparations, in plenty of time. Very efficient.
The hard party, which would be walking for 6 to 8 hours, had left by 8.30. The remaining 9 of us were to be picked up by the water taxi around 9.30am. We were ready in plenty of time so wandered down to the beautiful beach to enjoy the peace and tranquillity there. We needed to remove our boots in order to wade to the boat and climb on board.
We were treated to some amazing scenery during the journey by water taxi to Deep Water Cove. The sea was glassy and calm, making the step from boat to land relatively easy. Once on land we made our way to the sign marking the starting point and organised ourselves.
A big uphill to begin with, which had our hearts racing. There were a lot of steep ascents and descents, with a couple of high, narrow, short ridges to walk along. Steep drops are common along this track as are the fantastic views.
Finally, with a glimpse of the light house, we knew we were near the end. There was our target, the Lighthouse Keeper’s House, at the bottom of a long hill. We decided to take short cuts across the corners rather than wending our way in zig zag fashion. There was the usual race to the door to get the best bunks first. My route was impeded by some bricks and other rubbish that I hadn’t noticed when I chose my track. L. It took first three of us two hours and ten minutes. Lynda and Rob were next, the first of the long party, taking just over seven hours. The others all drifted in at various times by 4.40pm. Initially we were the only ones at the hut. Later a young, solo girl arrived as well as a young couple.
The afternoon was spent in various ways, partly depending on arrival time. The views were awesome and there were places to walk, sit and relax in. Phil and Anthony went fishing and caught some fish. So delicious freshly caught. There was much socialising throughout the afternoon and evening.
Quite a few had brought tipples to share. Lynda’s port was superb and Michelle’s feijoa liqueur was delicious (we have the recipe), as was the chocolate cake. Thanks, Michelle. As we had no need to take tents, mattresses, gas stoves and canisters we were able to take those little extra treats. Packs were no lighter than usual! There were not so many dehy meals in evidence. The water was fine for cooking.
A hint; be careful whereabouts under the spouting you place your boots. One of our party put hers under a hole which dripped condensation leading to wet socks and boots! Wouldn’t have thought of that one! Katie decided the best place for her socks was the gulley trap. I know “what happens in the hut stays in the hut” but……if you want to keep secrets the thing is to write the trip report.
My lips are sealed. Come on the multi day trips to experience the camaraderie.
The next day, Sunday, was a lazy one with people doing a range of activities. A few went for a longer tramp of several hours while others were content to walk the immediate area, read, snooze and fish. Bernhard, Phil and Anthony went fishing from the rocks during which time much interest was shownby a small shark and a seal. Anthony caught a couple of fish which he cooked and shared. Along a section of the rocks were many veins of quartz running at right angles to the land. Some were quite open.
In the hut is a lot of written and photographic information about the lighthouse, houses and keepers. Very interesting. Some amazing photos of waves sweeping over an extremely high point. There was one folder about a surprise wedding that had taken place there too.
Up by 5.30am on the Sunday with the communal water on to boil for breakfast. We left earlier than we had planned, at 6.45am. A track with steep, abrupt inclines and fantastic views of islands and sea.
The first of us arrived back at the bus at 12.30pm, with the last group coming in at 2.10pm. The first people in had time to have a quick shower using the Marae Camp Ground facilities. The hot water urn was turned on so that everyone could have a hot drink when they arrived, before the trip home. The weather was perfect for tramping; dry and overcast so it wasn’t too hot. Then a burst of sunshine once we all had arrived. We were fortunate that it was dry, as some parts of the track would be tricky when
wet due to the steepness and muddiness.
The bus left Rawhiti at 2.55pm, much earlier than anticipated due to the early start in the morning. We stopped at McDonalds in Whangarei for an early dinner then continued to Takapuna with a clear run traffic wise.
An awesome trip thanks to Helen the organiser and to Helen and Bernhard for driving. A tramp not to be missed!