Thread: Summer tops humt

We usually bush hunt in Te Urewera and thought to take a trip to the Kaweka tops for a change of scene.
Hopes were high busting out of Orkland at 5am on New Years Day with a coffee and BP steak pie in hand.
We were planning on 4 nights in and around the back ridge hut and studholme saddle area with fly camp out dependant on weather and shelter.
Weather forecast was pretty good with a 'fresh' westerly change.
Saw a deer on the road around littles clearing on the way in.
A pretty steep climb up to dominie biv where we filled up with water and enjoyed the view while chatting with an elder gent of 84(yep, 84) who had a few tales to tell about the area from the last 50 odd years.
Things were 'clagging in' up top and it started raining as we made our way down the north ridge to back ridge hut. Plenty of sign on the face opposite the hut, we climbed the opposite face in the morning and had a good glass for a few hours while warming in the sun...nothing seen.
Heading off toward studholme hut we found a likely looking spot and decided to camp. A good classing through the afternoon and evening with nothing seen.
Next morning the wind was up (well faarken up) so we packed up and headed for studholme.
Now you mountain goats might say the wind was a bit 'fresh' but to these bush hobbits the howling wind with gusts was only a little short of dangerous...we took a few low routes below the ridge line in parts to allow for a few shuffles and a spin or two.
Looking down into the studholme area we thought 'this is what we came for'...mint looking faces with spurs and bushy guts....Hopes were high.
Stayed at the biv and went for a reccy with very little fresh sign found...parked up and glasses a few hours with nothing seen.
After a conflab. we decided to head back a day early as the forecast wasn't too flash for the saturday...we figured the wind was enough over the j without driving rain as well.
Great country, learned a bit...coulda stayed the extra day as the weather held. Bit disappointed...a dude noted the lack of animals the day before us.
Good to visit a different to be..Kia ora Hawkes Bay.
Watched a mint utube clip in the same country with heaps of animals seen...insult to injury...wanna go back next weekend.
CheersC

Third photo down is a cracker.

Yeah, makes a change having dry feet the whole time

We stayed at the ranger station at Makahu a couple of years ago shortly after New Year. We used it as a base and hiked out towards Middle Hill Hut to the north. We bumped several deer in the timber between Makahu and Kaweka Flats bivvy, one right behind the orange public hut at Makahu. After the bivvy we saw several deer, and on the second day took a fat spiker up one of the rocky gullys.

It was hot as and we were in shaded timber most of the time, but still it was bloody hot. I remember climbing a bit and sweating my bollox off. I also clearly remember discussing with the wife how glad I was we hadn’t tried to go up to the tops (far too lazy anyway).

When we returned to Makahu a black chopper with two hunters arrived - they land at the clearing at the ranger station - both lads had been up at Ballard Hut since before we had even arrived. I can’t remember the details but bottom line is they came home empty handed and quite frustrated. And sun burnt.

Now several on here will be able to comment with proper knowledge cos my (extremely) limited impression of the area suggested to me that in the hotter weather the animals were lower down in the bush during the day and heading out as usual to feed in more open country later. Near water and shade for the most part. No idea if this is the norm there and would like to know as it was a magic area. We also hunted Littles one evening by walking into the wind across the clearing and setting up and waiting in a small stand of scrub in the middle of the clearing. We watched a couple of deer in the last of the light but they were out of range.

Yep, good points there flyblown..we were thinking the black ridge looked like it had Some good mature Bush in parts.
There was shelter and water where we were hunting though we did get the feeling to go lower...be interesting what others think.

Awesome country in there. Shame about limited sightings but I guess that’s hunting ay.

Yep true that...we had a great time and certainly had a fitness test...pays not to over think these things sometimes

Cool write up thanks for that

Big country in there only been in there once, Back Ridge hut but we got a couple and seen about 11 from memory. That was a few years back not sure what it's like now, good write up.