Mt Altmarnoch ride 17/3/12

[pete-blen]

Nice easy ride apart from the wind at the top..
wind is a bit of a understatement... gail force
One short section that was side on..I had to ride
hanging off the side to keep the bike up right..
But other than that it was a great ride...
took a side track half way up though the trees
but it went nowhere after about 1k , was looking good till then..

[nic]

Nice!

I have no idea where that is - but it looks cool and with great views
Thanks for sharing

[pete-blen]

nice!

I have no idea where that is - but it looks cool and with great views
thanks for sharing

Mt Altmarnoch runs up off the Awatere Valley south of Blenheim heading down to the Moleworth..
The turn off is right as the first gravel section starts..

[Eddieb]

How long is the return trip from Awatere valley to the top and back Pete?

[pete-blen]

How long is the return trip from Awatere valley to the top and back Pete?

Ride time from the turn off 30 mins each way...

If it looks windy I wouldn't bother... yeasterday in
the valley was med wind... at the top it was gail force..

If yer end up on the gravel you have over shot the turn off by 10m
don't worry about the sign on the gate..the road looks like a drive
to the house but by passes it... 2 gates just passesd the house..

Eddie...I'm thinking I should join you on saturday for the Porika Rd / Braeburn track sections...

[Crisis management]

Does get a bit windy up there eh?

Just a piece of useless information, the mountain is actually Mt Horrible (very appropriate naming), Altimarloch is the staion that surrounds it.

[Pampera]

Nice easy ride apart from the wind at the top..
wind is a bit of a understatement... gail force
..

Debbie and I got blown over on the Dakar up on top of the mountain back in 2007. It was so windy I had to take the tank bag off to be able to lift the bike back up against the gale and had to ride a km down and out of the wind before Debbie could get back on.

After 30 years riding in Wellington I thought I could handle the wind, but this proved there is a limit on two wheels.

On a still day you are almost literally on top of the world, with a 360 degree view over Marlborough and Wellington. On a windy day - forget it.

Michael

[NordieBoy]

Does get a bit windy up there eh?

Just a piece of useless information, the mountain is actually Mt Horrible (very appropriate naming), Altimarloch is the staion that surrounds it.

http://climbnz.org.nz/mountains
Lists Mt Altimarloch but not Mt Horrible.
I thought the station was Black Birch Station?

Mt Horrible is/was near Timaru?

[Howie]

WAMS site has it as Altimarloch, Not MT just a peak. with a MT Horrible tothe west, and a MT Harkness south west.

[pete-blen]

I have no idea where i was now.... lost maybe

[Shewolf]

I think this is the road we missed last time Nic - we were looking for that turn off

[Crisis management]

WAMS site has it as Altimarloch, Not MT just a peak. with a MT Horrible tothe west, and a MT Harkness south west.

Bugger, you seem to be correct, I was really impressed with the Mt Horrible name too! I'm not sure I can get the bike to the top of the real Mt Horrible to justify my claim of having ridden up it.

I can't find a Black Birch station tho, so I'm sticking with my Altimarloch station claim. (a Pyric victory?)

[Underground]

Correct me if I'm wrong, but I think Altimarloch is the highest publicly accessable 4x4 road in nz ?
Hint #1... go on a nice day, the view is second to none and a fresh breeze at sea level equates to an unmanagable situation up there

[Eddieb]

Correct me if I'm wrong, but I think Altimarloch is the highest publicly accessable 4x4 road in nz ?
Hint #1... go on a nice day, the view is second to none and a fresh breeze at sea level equates to an unmanagable situation up there

The Doc brochure for Molesworth states:

Island Saddle (44km/68km)
At 1347 metres, this alpine pass is the highest point on the Rainbow–Hanmer Road and the highest public accessible road in New Zealand

I couldn't find any references to 4x4 road

[pete-blen]

The Doc brochure for Molesworth states:

Island Saddle (44km/68km)
At 1347 metres, this alpine pass is the highest point on the Rainbow–Hanmer Road and the highest public accessible road in New Zealand

I couldn't find any references to 4x4 road

Altimarnoch is 1693..but yer wouldn't call it a public road I wouldn't think..

I surprised I would have tought Island saddle would have been higher
been inland...