Wanganui River road sealed?

[Moi]

Hi,
Thinking of going down the Wanganui River road from Raetahi to Wanganui rather than the Paraparas... how much of the road is gravel surface? [Last time thru there was in a car after a storm and spent time dodging fallen trees etc... made for a slow but interesting journey!]
Many thanks.

[BMWST?]

from about -39.45692,175.136135 to about -39.589437,175.123261 seems to be gravel.Plug those co ordiantes into google maps,you can draw a line to get an accurate distance or have a guess from the scale

[Moi]

Thanks for that info - google maps indicate about 30km of gravel... not too far then...

Any further info from anyone would be appreciated.

Thanks

[Waihou Thumper]

I recall from Raetehi there was metal and road works, I think it is sealed now mostly to Jerusalem?
Are you concerned about gravel because you are on a road bike?
I recall the downside to the River Road was it was gonna be sealed, a nightmare to ADV riders...!

There were a few bumps and single lane passes but I would have done it on a road bike albeit slowly...
Aslan knows a bit, he has a friendly Nun he visits for Tea and Bikkies in Jerusalem if I recall correctly.

i loved the road and the views and kept thinking of returning and riding the North side of the river as I saw a road there, probably a dead end or just a farm road but worth exploring.
Don't drink any water in Raetahi...:msn-wink:
The pies are to die for though!

[Waihou Thumper]

google maps indicate about 30km of gravel...

Not enough then, it is all disappearing....the forgotten highway will be next...:(

[BMWST?]

I recall from Raetehi there was metal and road works, I think it is sealed now mostly to Jerusalem?
Are you concerned about gravel because you are on a road bike?
I recall the downside to the River Road was it was gonna be sealed, a nightmare to ADV riders...!

There were a few bumps and single lane passes but I would have done it on a road bike albeit slowly...
Aslan knows a bit, he has a friendly Nun he visits for Tea and Bikkies in Jerusalem if I recall correctly.

i loved the road and the views and kept thinking of returning and riding the North side of the river as I saw a road there, probably a dead end or just a farm road but worth exploring.
Don't drink any water in Raetahi...:msn-wink:
The pies are to die for though!

yes after this post i had a look around the area on google maps and i plotted a route on basecamp.Its the first time i have done that .I was gonna attach it but its an invalid file

[Moi]

Waihou Thumper, thanks for your info, yes a pair of road bikes but tourers rather than sportbikes. Gravel is not a real worry, just take it quietly and carefully, more concerned about length so can factor in travel times.
Cheers.

[Aslan]

I recall from Raetehi there was metal and road works, I think it is sealed now mostly to Jerusalem?
Are you concerned about gravel because you are on a road bike?
I recall the downside to the River Road was it was gonna be sealed, a nightmare to ADV riders...!

There were a few bumps and single lane passes but I would have done it on a road bike albeit slowly...
Aslan knows a bit, he has a friendly Nun he visits for Tea and Bikkies in Jerusalem if I recall correctly.

i loved the road and the views and kept thinking of returning and riding the North side of the river as I saw a road there, probably a dead end or just a farm road but worth exploring.
Don't drink any water in Raetahi...:msn-wink:
The pies are to die for though!

Hi Moi et al - Waihou Thumper is correct, I have been known to enjoy visiting the Historic St Joseph's Church and Convent at Jerusalem

It's well worth a look.

The road is pretty much sealed if I recall expect for a section below Pipiriki (when coming from the north) until about Matahiwi, South of Jerusalem. Not much gravel - probably no more than the 30km others have estimated.

Key things are to look out for locals who can consider they own the road - stay well to the left and watch our for any Papa slips across the road - these can make the seal or gravel very slippery.

As Waihou Thumper has indicated - the road on the other side of the river from Aramoho to Kaiiwi is worth travelling if you get a chance - a lot of gravel but typically not challenging

Have fun

[Moi]

Hello Aslan et al,
Once before in the car stopped at all the historic sites down the river, took all day from Raetahi to Wanganui! Thanks for the warning about the papa slips [been a little wet last few days] and the locals - no different from the locals anywhere in this country - we can all be a little lapse on our local roads and streets.

Again, thanks to all for your prompt responses.
Cheers and a Happy New Year,
Moi
[Mark]

[Logmaker]

Hello Aslan et al,
Once before in the car stopped at all the historic sites down the river, took all day from Raetahi to Wanganui! Thanks for the warning about the papa slips [been a little wet last few days] and the locals - no different from the locals anywhere in this country - we can all be a little lapse on our local roads and streets.

Again, thanks to all for your prompt responses.
Cheers and a Happy New Year,
Moi
[Mark]

Came thru fromWanganui at end of Nov. they have been upgrading the gravel section , i suspect it may be sealed in the not to distant future . A good ride , enjoy .

[Moi]

Went down the River Rd on 02 January. What a great ride apart from the section from Pipriki to Jerusalem – more on that later. From Raetahi to Pipiriki was a good road surface apart from a few patches which were a little rough and broken up. But as we were not travelling at any speed – scenery too good to want to travel at speed – these were not a problem. Nice gentle down hill run all the way.

As for the Pipiriki to Jerusalem section – earlier in the day we had stopped at Taumarunui for a coffee at the “Training Café” and had chatted to a couple who had ridden up the River Road the day before on a BMW1200GS. The rider said that they had enjoyed the ride except for the gravel section which he’d found a little challenging due to the heavy and deep gravel that had been spread on the road. So with some trepidation we left Pipiriki and headed south. :eek:

The gravel was heavy and deep and spread across most of the road and made for interesting riding conditions for a pair of road bikes. It meant for slow progress especially on the very corrugated sections on bends – in some places it was easier to ride on the off-side of the road and if a vehicle came to stop, though the only vehicles we met coming up the road were also travelling slowly due to the gravel. The 20 kms of gravel took us about 30 minutes to negotiate. No photos were taken on that section – neither of us felt like trying to park up for photos, so if you want to know what we rode through there you’ll need to google Piaggio MP3-400 and Honda Deauville.

From Jerusalem on the road is great. Certainly a road that I’d ride again, but might wait until it is fully sealed.

Thanks to all for your replies and information,
Cheers

[Aslan]

Went down the River Rd on 02 January. What a great ride apart from the section from Pipriki to Jerusalem – more on that later. From Raetahi to Pipiriki was a good road surface apart from a few patches which were a little rough and broken up. But as we were not travelling at any speed – scenery too good to want to travel at speed – these were not a problem. Nice gentle down hill run all the way.

As for the Pipiriki to Jerusalem section – earlier in the day we had stopped at Taumarunui for a coffee at the “Training Café” and had chatted to a couple who had ridden up the River Road the day before on a BMW1200GS. The rider said that they had enjoyed the ride except for the gravel section which he’d found a little challenging due to the heavy and deep gravel that had been spread on the road. So with some trepidation we left Pipiriki and headed south. :eek:

The gravel was heavy and deep and spread across most of the road and made for interesting riding conditions for a pair of road bikes. It meant for slow progress especially on the very corrugated sections on bends – in some places it was easier to ride on the off-side of the road and if a vehicle came to stop, though the only vehicles we met coming up the road were also travelling slowly due to the gravel. The 20 kms of gravel took us about 30 minutes to negotiate. No photos were taken on that section – neither of us felt like trying to park up for photos, so if you want to know what we rode through there you’ll need to google Piaggio MP3-400 and Honda Deauville.

From Jerusalem on the road is great. Certainly a road that I’d ride again, but might wait until it is fully sealed.

Thanks to all for your replies and information,
Cheers


Thanks for the update Moi - glad you enjoyed your ride - shame about the new gravel and corrugations

[Moi]

Thanks for the update Moi - glad you enjoyed your ride - shame about the new gravel and corrugations

Yeah, great ride and one for another time - corrugations, even the fillings in my teeth were worked loose!

[lakedaemonian]

Narrow road in many places, and there WILL be fresh slips after every big rainfall. And that river can rise like a rocket when it rains hard up the river(like a few months back).

Great road and scenery.

If you get stuck, the people are pretty cool(I got stuck in the mud back in September by the Skyline Track) and quick to help while laughing at you…..just BE CAREFUL and announce yourself, some of the locals REALLY like their privacy and aren't the biggest fans of non River People.

I know one guy up the river who WILL fire warning shots at people who are on his property without permission or announcing themselves at the gate.

Great bit of improving road.

[rustys]

Have been informed that this road is now fully sealed, can someone enlighten me on this please, anyone been on it recently?

[eelracing]

Have been informed that this road is now fully sealed, can someone enlighten me on this please, anyone been on it recently?

The last section of gravel will start being sealed March 30th.

[buggerit]

The last section of gravel will start being sealed March 30th.

Has anyone travelled this road in the last couple of months?

[1billyboy]

Has anyone travelled this road in the last couple of months?

Went down it on the 30th May. Sealed al the way. Road works between Raetihi and Pipiriki. Lose metal on some corners for the rest of the way

[STJim]

Went down it on the 30th May. Sealed al the way. Road works between Raetihi and Pipiriki. Lose metal on some corners for the rest of the way

Billy
What was the extent of the road works?

[1billyboy]

Billy
What was the extent of the road works?

Mainly clearing slips. Some corners being cut back

[peg]

Learning in here this was sealed all the way now - I took a tour up this way a fortnight ago.

Left the 'naki early, morning coffee in Upuk, up the river road to Pipiriki, out for lunch in 'Kune, and then back to Wanganui via the Fields Track & the Paraparas. A nice day's ride just over 500km.

[Moi]

... back to Wanganui via the Fields Track & the Paraparas. A nice day's ride just over 500km.

What is Fields Track like - looking at maps twisty :niceone: but what of the road surface?

[Ender EnZed]

What is Fields Track like - looking at maps twisty :niceone: but what of the road surface?

It's sealed the whole way but you're not going to be flying along. Pretty bumpy in places but definitely a nice cruise.

[Moi]

It's sealed the whole way but you're not going to be flying along. Pretty bumpy in places but definitely a nice cruise.

Sounds like a perfect day's ride...

[manxkiwi]

A mate told me recently that it's now fully sealed. I don't mind a wee bit of gravel anyway, But I was wondering if anyone has done this recently and can say how the road is? Might just have to do it both ways (so to speak!) when we go down for Boxing Day.

Cheers in advance.

[Ender EnZed]

Some fairly recent reports in this thread (http://www.kiwibiker.co.nz/forums/showthread.php/162745-Wanganui-River-road-sealed?).

[manxkiwi]

Posted my question in GBR section. It got moved and I found this. Must....search......more....before.....posting:doh :

Will be checking this road out for myself next week.

[insomnia01]

Will be checking this road out for myself next week.

report back if you could please as I'll ( along with some others possible ) be going through in Feb 15' as part of the TT2000 :woohoo::sunny::woohoo:

[manxkiwi]

report back if you could please as I'll ( along with some others possible ) be going through in Feb 15' as part of the TT2000 :woohoo::sunny::woohoo:

Will do. Should hopefully be a nice wee detour to & from Wangas.

[jellywrestler]

report back if you could please as I'll ( along with some others possible ) be going through in Feb 15' as part of the TT2000 :woohoo::sunny::woohoo:

I can do that, it's Back tarseal and has a sign at each end, what the fuck else to you need to know?

[Gremlin]

I can do that, it's Back tarseal and has a sign at each end, what the fuck else to you need to know?
Does it have corners? Have you counted them? :confused:

[Moi]

Does it have corners? Have you counted them? :confused:

Yes, more than 10...

Even has some white painted lines along the middle! :woohoo:

[awa355]

Yes, more than 10...

Even has some white painted lines along the middle! :woohoo:

Painted white lines??? :rolleyes: A girls road:bleh::bleh::bleh:

[Moi]

Painted white lines??? :rolleyes: A girls road:bleh::bleh::bleh:

And not a ford to ford either... :weep:

[manxkiwi]

report back if you could please as I'll ( along with some others possible ) be going through in Feb 15' as part of the TT2000 :woohoo::sunny::woohoo:

Just got back from doing the road both ways. It's largely really good. There are a few very tight, unmarked corners. Also some with gravel everywhere. But on a back road like this you expect a bit of that. The few k's north of Jerusalem appear to be the last to be sealed. It still isn't swept clean of the loose chips. As I found out with a foot off, front end slide!! It looked fine but was actually quite loose on top.

It's very tight and slow (1st gear) in places, so don't go this way if you're in a hurry. But at least 80% of this route is sweet and enjoyable. I also wouldn't choose this option if the weather was crappy. You'd use a lot of energy on concentration alone.

On the way down, I thought it would be better coming up (northbound). This was the case, I think the tight stuff is more manageable uphill than down. Although it does undulate considerably, so you get some of both whichever way you do it. Of course, heading north from Wangas it was very early in the ride, whereas coming down it was at the end of a reasonably long ride.

Apart from a cow, a dog (that ran out), three sheep and the front end slide, it was a pretty good ride. Recommendable if you want to try a new route, the river views in places are very good.

Hope this helps, cheers MK.

[insomnia01]

thanks for the report I'll be heading from the Whanganui end to Jerusalem as that's a checkpoint for the TT :woohoo:

[veldthui]

I did this Christmas day from the Wanganui end. As already said mostly in good condition but the last bit sealed does have a lot of loose stuff. The worse for me was on a one way bridge in a corner and it was a complete drift across the road to the other side (not much left one a one way bridge). Certainly not a fast ride but good none the less. On the BMW1200RT it was mostly 3-5th gears with a few 2nds thrown in. Gotta love the torque of those big motors.
Few stray sheep and cattle wondering so need to keep an eye out for those.

I am doing the TT2000 as well but am giving that checkpoint a miss and grabbing the two either side of Wanganui before hitting Fields Track then Ohakune, the two skifield ones and then over to Taumaranui and finally finish up in Taihape collecting on the way down.

[insomnia01]

I am doing the TT2000 as well but am giving that checkpoint a miss and grabbing the two either side of Wanganui before hitting Fields Track then Ohakune, the two skifield ones and then over to Taumaranui and finally finish up in Taihape collecting on the way down.

I'll be finishing up in Taihape also before hitting the Gentle Annie the following day :wings: getting the km's is the hard part :wait: I'm finding but still looking to manage @700 - 800km for the first day, 800 - 900km the 2nd day before boarding Bluebridge (looking forward to the cabin I've booked ) with a cruise & tidy up of checkpoints on the way to CHC :niceone: pickup the partner from CHC airport once finished with the TT then off to Oamaru for the night & the beginning of a 5-7 day cruise in the Sth isld before heading back to the Waikato