The Maungatapu Diaries

[warewolf]

Righto, just got off the phone with the Maitai Caretaker, Trevor. He's the one doing the repairs on the Track, and also fencing Linton Hill.

The track is closed for 12 months while they fix & stabilize the road, he reiterated they don't want anyone in there. However, he does not have a problem with motorcycles as they don't damage the road! There is a makeshift bypass around the western gate near his cottage; he said it is steep on the bank but if we have difficulty with it, pop up to the house and see him, he will unlock the gate. We should be able to drag bikes under the cable at the eastern end (the summit).

So... the Maungatapu is open for bikes

He puts the bulk of the trouble-makers in the "young guys with cheap 4wds" category - making new tracks, felling native trees & saplings, ripping up the track.

Linton Hill update; he's been busy there putting in new gates and fences. I did a recce there on the weekend. The single-track going directly up the spur to the power pylon will be cut off by a fence. There is a new gate at the Maitai Rd, and another across the track at the bottom of the climb. Both gates have spring-loaded pedestrian/motorcycle gates on the side of the main locked gates. They don't want to stop motorcycles getting in to Hira Forest, but they know ppl do leave gates open, so have put auto-closers on them. Do these guys rock or what? The NCC boundary is the firebreak and the track, so the pines uphill from the track are Hancock forests... I think. Doesn't matter much, I s'pose.

One area suggested by the NCC staffer is a no go, as I thought it would be - tramping access only. But at least he was throwing ideas out there rather than being obstructive. There's another lead I'm following up with him.

[Padmei]

Good stuff Warewolf.
Looks like a celebratory ride would be in order (not this weekend tho wifes away again & can't balance properly with both kids on bike)

Edit: um actually I will have ot wait for it to dry out thru the bog...

[warewolf]

The bogs should be mostly fixed - just not fully, or permanently.

[Underground]

warewolf !

[Skinny_Birdman]

warewolf !

What he said. Nice work!

[NordieBoy]

How do you go about looking up an old court case?
Need to find what the verdict was.

[cooneyr]

Try this Nordie.

http://brookersonline.co.nz/database...?si=1610670095

Good luck

[NordieBoy]

Just applied for a 14 day trial of Brookers.
We'll see how it goes.

[warewolf]

From Mrs Warewolf, who has spent years working as an administrator for lawyers...

LawCite

or google "nz case law". There's a link off the national library web site, too.

[NordieBoy]

Just had a chat to another of my clients who remembers the case and he says he approached Alec Louverdis and told him he thought the current gates were illegal and that there was a court case which established this.
He was told they'd look into it.

Still digging...

This is fun.

[warewolf]

Are you thinking of the one somewhere Wellington/Hutt way, IIRC due to regular use by motor vehicles the council couldn't simply shut it down?

[Woodman]

Good work WW.

[NordieBoy]

Was chatting to a client and about 35 years ago he found a locked gate at the summit. He went back later and cut the lock off. The gate was put there by the mayor of the time (privately - not officially) and he took the cutter to court for destruction of private property. The mayor lost. I need to find the ruling and see what the wording was...

[cooneyr]

Are you thinking of the one somewhere Wellington/Hutt way, IIRC due to regular use by motor vehicles the council couldn't simply shut it down?

I suspect the Well/Hutt one you refer to was the paper road through transmission gully that Transit at the time wanted to stop for the new highway. Was argued that nobody could drive the route and the 4wd guys said like hell let us at it.

Slightly different in that there was a legal road reserve. Not sure what the final outcome is but I think the highway route has been altered for this and other reasons.

Cheers R

[warewolf]

I suspect the Well/Hutt one you refer to was the paper road through transmission gully

That's not what I remember, but I could be mis-remembering.

There was a paper road used as a 4wd recreation area, then the subdivision plan included the council selling the land the road was on to the developer. The courts ruled that an unimproved road in use couldn't be removed any more than a motorway. The critical point in the ruling was that the road was in regular use.