Thread: 12 days/11 nights in the Kawekas

Following on from my CNI walkabout thread, I'll post my report here, and break it up a bit so it's not one huge post overloaded with photos.

Initially I was thinking of a big walk in/walk out mission for me and the dog, but decided I was biting off more than I could chew trying to walk in & out over the main range, and wanted the missus & young fella to join me for a few days, so the plan changed to a fly in, wander about, then fly out.

But things didn't exactly go according to plan either...

Day 1 – Thursday 1st December
Left Hamilton just before 9am and travelled down to Taupo. A quick lunch at the bypass service centre then out to the helicopter base.
Flew in about 1pm. A fairly short flight with only the odd bump. Arrived at the Back Ridge Hut about 1:15pm. I was in awe of the country around me, wondering how the hell people got around with such steep rocky ridges that all ended in bluffs!


I took my gear to the hut and got unpacked, mainly to get the sleeping bag out so it could fluff up before bedtime. I had a look around, and found a fresh set of deer leg bones near the meatsafe. I had a read of the hut book, and saw that hunters who had left two days earlier had got two deer.

I decided to go for a walk along the main track to Maminga to do some glassing, and it would also allow me to see what the track was like for the next day. I collected up what I needed (or so I thought…) and headed off. It’s a reasonably steep initial climb up from the hut which is tucked into the valley, and when I got to the top of the hill there were fresh deer tracks in the clay, so I stopped there and did some glassing, but didn’t see any animals.


After a while I carried on to Maminga, where I got my first good look across to the Manson country.

After glassing for a while I spotted a deer on the edge of a clearing on the top of a ridge to the north, that’s when I discovered I had left an important bit of gear back at the hut – my rangefinder – though the deer was obviously well out of range. Looking at the map later it was about 1.5km away.

I spotted some people on the hill above the hut where I had seen the deer tracks. They arrived about 30 minutes later (Matt, Zoe, and Pip the dog) and we chatted for a while. They were headed for Manson hut, but were going to get to the Rocks Ahead junction then decide whether to head to Rocks Ahead or stay at the Back Ridge Biv for the night. I glassed for a while longer without seeing anything, then headed back to the hut. On the way back I slipped and tweaked my knee, which made the downhill sections a bit painful.

I had the first of many freeze-dri meals for tea, then headed out and glassed a downstream bush edge for the evening. Nothing seen, so it was back to the hut and into bed. The dog decided her blanket on the floor wasn’t good enough and piled onto the narrow bunk with me. I think she only fell off once during the night!

Good start!! Ready for round2

Day 2 – Friday 2nd December
Up fairly late at 6:30am after a not very good sleep, due to the bunk being a bit cramped thanks to the dog, and the noise of the stream. After breakfast I packed everything up and got ready to move from the hut to Back Ridge Biv. With the amount of gear I had, I decided to break things up between 2 packs for the steep climb out of the valley. I left the hut at 8:30 with the small pack, binos and rifle, and climbed to the top of the hill where I stashed the gear in the bush. I then returned to the hut for the big pack, and carried this up the hill and through to Maminga and left it behind a tree just off the track on the far side of the clearing.
I returned to my first stash and had a short break before heading off again. I got to the far side of Maminga where my big pack was and decided to carry on with the load I had. I was planning to leapfrog my gear in shortish bursts along the track, but with the hot weather I decided to carry the first lot all the way to the biv so the dog could get some water. My knee was a bit sore, but the other knee was becoming the problem, probably because it was taking most of the load due to me favouring the other one. I was okay going uphill (except the usual lack of fitness!), but downhill was becoming increasingly painful and difficult. I came across a couple of empty shells of the Powelliphanta carnivorous snails on or near the track.

The drop down to the biv from the main track was pretty much a slow hobble using the two trekking poles, I probably looked like some old nana with a walking frame.

I had a short lunch break, and realised time was getting on and I still had to go back to Maminga and get my main pack and get it back to the biv. I grabbed my headlight and put it in my pocket, and knew if it came down to it that I had everything else I needed for a night in the bush in my main pack, except for enough water for the dog. I headed off and made reasonable progress back to Maminga despite my worsening knee issues. The hobble back to the biv with the main pack was slow, but I made it with a couple of hours of daylight to spare, just as the cloud was spilling over the main range.

I settled into the biv, and had my second freeze-dri meal of the trip. The hut book revealed Matt, Zoe and Pip had stayed at the biv the previous night. The weather clouded right in and I couldn’t even see across the gully, so an evening glassing session was ruled out.

Day 3 – Saturday 3rd December
After a fairly good sleep, apart from the sore knees and a 3:30am teeth-chattering dash to the longdrop, I got up fairly late again and had breakfast, then headed out on the lower track to the main ridge and glassed the large clearing/slip area to the south. No animals were seen, but that wasn’t unexpected as it was a bit too late in the morning.

Looking across at the Manson country, and seeing where the tracks went to get there, I knew I had to make some changes to my plans. I had no real deadline other than getting to Otutu hut by the 9th, when my partner Sharon and her son Marcus were due to fly in to join me for a few days before we all flew out on the 12th. But even with a few days of rest I knew my knees wouldn’t handle the drop down to Rocks Ahead hut, and I would probably struggle to get to Kiwi Mouth hut.

I considered various options, such as getting some gear flown to Otutu or Manson huts, or flying to Manson hut, but decided the smart option was to get me and all my gear flown to Otutu hut, because then I was where I needed to be, and could do day or overnight trips from there if my knees allowed.
I knew another party were flying into the biv on the 5th, so I got on the InReach and sent a message to the helicopter company. Unfortunately the other party were using a different company, but I organised to relocate from the biv to Otutu hut on Monday the 5th and the heli company said be ready at 10am and they would try and work it in with another trip to keep the cost down and pick me up between 10 and 11:30am.
I chilled out most of the day, lying in the sun and throwing sticks for the dog, but forgot my wide-brimmed hat and ended up with a mildly sunburnt face. I spent the evening glassing across Kiwi creek, before climbing into the biv just on dark. Not long after, the dog started growling and I heard a scampering outside. I opened the door to be greeted by Matt, Zoe and Pip, who I had met on Maminga on Thursday. Luckily they had a tent with them, so they set that up for the night.

Day 4 – Sunday 4th December
Another fairly late rising (becoming a habit…) and I had breakfast while chatting to Matt and Zoe (while they were kept busy throwing sticks for my dog!). They had gone from the biv via Rocks Ahead to Manson hut on Friday, and stayed at the old Manson hut on Friday night. They shot a spiker on the hut clearing. Then on Saturday they walked from Manson via Kiwi Mouth to the biv, and today were heading out to the Makahu carpark. They weren’t looking forward to the climb, with the temperature forecast to hit 19 degrees in the afternoon. They headed off just after 10am. I did some late morning glassing, and spent the early afternoon napping in the biv. In the evening I had yet another freeze-dri meal and headed up the main ridge to glass the area to the south. No deer seen.

Good.
Im guessing you used Heli-Sika. Who did the other party you referred to coming to BR Biv use?

Originally Posted by Tahr

Good.
Im guessing you used Heli-Sika. Who did the other party you referred to coming to BR Biv use?

Yes, I used "they who shall not be named"
I don't know who the other party were using, they hadn't arrived before I left. I knew from the DOC spreadsheet that a group was due to fly in.

Day 5 – Monday 5th December
Up earlyish, and a bit of glassing with nothing seen. I had some breakfast and then packed up my gear ready for “moving day”. At about 9:45 I carried my main pack up to the helipad, and as I dropped it I heard a helicopter getting close, and quickly. I rushed back down to the biv, gathered up the last of my gear and put the lead on the dog as the helicopter landed. The pilot met me just below the edge of the helipad and took the dog. We piled the dog then myself into the chopper, the pilot loaded the gear and we were off for the short flight to Otutu hut. When we got to Otutu, a message came through on the InReach to say the pilot was on his way to drop off some fisherman and then to pick me up – I had already worked that out by then!
What a neat little hut Otutu is! Woodstove, 6 bunks, two tables and a bench, covered deck with bench seat. And well stocked too, with firewood (though all small stuff), half a bag of coal, firelighters, matches, pots & pans, dishwashing liquid and brushes, etc.


As I was going to be there for a week I unpacked all my gear and got settled in. A read of the hut book revealed I was only the 4th “group” to visit since May, and the first hunter since late October – I hoped that meant the deer would be plentiful and not too nervous!
I went for a walk down the start of the Burn track to the clearings. There was a bit if sign, but the freshest was where the track leaves the main clearing. I went back to the main clearing and had a wander around glassing and sorting out a lookout spot for the evening, using the rangefinder to measure the distance to various “deery” looking spots. I found a handy spot so went back to the hut. The poor dog was getting very footsore, but forgot about it when she saw or smelt a hare, though she didn't see the one grazing next to the hut earlier in the afternoon.
Mt Manson

Manson hut is on the other side of these peaks I think.

After the obligatory freeze-dri dinner, the dog and I headed out around 7pm for an evening glass with high hopes. Once we set up at the lookout I tried chambering a round and had major issues, the bolt just wouldn’t close. After a bit of mucking around I realised I had 243 ammo, and I had brought the 308 rifle! I had grabbed some extra rounds from the safe, and had obviously not checked properly what I grabbed. I knew the ammo in the wallet back at the hut was definitely 308 (or was it…), so started to get up to head back to get it, then thought Nah, I don’t really want to shoot anything a whole week before I leave, and would be happy just to see animals, so I stayed put.
I glassed the Otutu clearing, across to the Manson and the Burn, but no animals seen. Then just before 9pm I looked down to a deer-shaped manuka and swung the binos onto it to double check. As I thought, it was a manuka, but not far to the right were two deer looking in our direction, I think they had seen the dog moving around. They initially appeared to be a couple of newly-evicted yearlings, but once they moved it was obvious it was a hind and yearling. I ranged them at 416m. Since I had no ammo, I lined them up in the scope and “shot” both of them a few times as they fed amongst the scrub. Once it was fully dark I walked back to the hut, wondering a bit if I would have let the deer walk if I had the right ammo with me.

Day 6 – Tuesday 6th December
Up early and out the hut door at 5:30am, to find the world buried deep in a thick mist. Oh well, back to the hut for breakfast.
Later on I wandered out again and walked through the mist down to where I had seen the hind and yearling. The previous evening I had used the Project waypoint function on my Fenix watch to mark a waypoint where they were, and wanted to see how accurate it was. It was quite hard finding the right spot in the mist, pretty much every tussock and manuka looked the same. Eventually the mist started to lift and I was able to glass the various open areas, but no deer were seen.
I wandered back up to the hut, grabbed a bit more gear, and headed off to the Otutu Bush tops about 2km north of the hut. There was a bit of sign on the track, but once I got to the tops the walking track had heaps of deer prints on it, going both directions. My guess was that the deer were using the track to head to the tops in the evening, and to come back to the bush in the morning, and figured an early morning ambush would be a good option for Marcus and I to try later on. The knees were starting to get pretty sore by the time I got back to the hut for lunch.
I collected some firewood in the afternoon, and had a bit of a nap. After yet another freeze-dri dinner I spent the evening glassing but nothing spotted. The dark clouds were starting to build up, backing up the forecast for a cold wet day tomorrow.

Day 7 – Wednesday 7th December
Out the hut door at 6am to head out glassing again, nothing seen, back to the hut for breakfast. It was pretty chilly, with rain and a high of 8 forecast, so once I noticed the dog shivering I cranked up the fire.

It quickly warmed up the hut, and the rest of the day was spent reading a book someone had left in the hut, and cutting firewood when the weather allowed. Freeze-dri dinner number 7, then out for an evening glass with nothing seen.

@Cigar enjoyed the read.

I’m enjoying this, it’s my favourite area in the Kawekas to hunt and we were due to fly into Backridge the week that East Kaweka Helicopters shut down.
I’m surprised you haven’t seen more deer so far and hope the second half of this intriguing story contains more deer!

Helisika quote for 2 to Back Ridge. Eye watering.
$2020 incl GST for the H500 (max 400kg payload) + DOC land fees of $50.60 each.

Originally Posted by Tahr

Helisika quote for 2 to Back Ridge. Eye watering.
$2020 incl GST for the H500 (max 400kg payload) + DOC land fees of $50.60 each.

Jesus

Originally Posted by Tahr

Helisika quote for 2 to Back Ridge. Eye watering.
$2020 incl GST for the H500 (max 400kg payload) + DOC land fees of $50.60 each.

The walk in is really enjoyable

I’d pay to fly back out but not for the way in