Karapoti - Devils Staircase/Rock Garden

[gunna]

wot about Saturday 22nd or Sunday 23rd for a closer inspection.

Tim - if you fix the beta I could test it out for you (Glen wants to buy a trials bike so we could call it a pre sales test) . Otherwise the mighty zonk is man enough to give it a try....

My calendar says those dates are in September or December, seems a long way off? Ah, yes I'm meant to fix something before the ride so your giving me plenty of time.
Looks like trials bikes will be the go and your going to need a much bigger shed. Here's one I constructed earlier

[Fryin Finn]

I see you have a nice bunch of tools in your shed, are we saying this ride would be a doddle on the TLR, challenging on the GAS GAS and expensive on anything bigger?

It would be an interesting ride on the TLR It was challenging on the Gas Gas but dooable but I would not like to try on anything much bigger. Back in 1977 I did the staircase with some mates and we onlly struggled going up the staircase. I was riding a Honda XL350 boat anchor and it was beautiful fine day. A mate had a trials bike (KT250) and sailed up.

[marks]

My calendar says those dates are in September or December, seems a long way off? Ah, yes I'm meant to fix something before the ride so your giving me plenty of time.
Looks like trials bikes will be the go and your going to need a much bigger shed. Here's one I constructed earlier

Picky pick picky

ok how about Sat 21st or Sun 22nd OF JULY.

***feck - no car (to tow trailer) available on Sat 21st so would have to be Sun 22nd for me ****

In recognition of your questionable construction methods I would like to cancel my shed order

[young1]

Now help solve my confusion. When I rode in there in 2001 to 2003 I am not sure if we ever found the "rock garden".

I think we found it by (now stay with me here .....);
[*]We went in from the Upper Hutt end and through the gorge
[*]We did not cross the river but stayed to the right of it
[*]Rode along way in there (including a nice long rocky down hill - at the bottom you rode along a stream then back on to the trail)
[*]Then up and down some hills
[*]We then came to an intersection where the left dropped down through the trees, riding down there was VERY rocky, big steps down etc.

When we got to the bottom we turned around and rode back up

Could that have been the rock garden or devils staircase

[upshift]

through the trees, riding down there was VERY rocky, big steps down etc.

Could that have been the rock garden or devils staircase

I have been to the top of both now and from your description that was definitely the rock garden, the key clues are that you didn't cross the river at the end of the gorge track, and there was a section you need to ride along the stream (about 100m downstream I think) to pick up the track again.

[Transalper]

Don't want to scare ya

Those photos look just like a ride I've been on over in Reefton on my little CRF230.

[young1]

I have been to the top of both now and from your description that was definitely the rock garden, the key clues are that you didn't cross the river at the end of the gorge track, and there was a section you need to ride along the stream (about 100m downstream I think) to pick up the track again.

Cool, I remember the rock step ups were quite big and luckily I managed to stop my son coming down on his (then) DRZ125, although I had to ride his mates XR100 back up.

[bart]

I have been to the top of both now and from your description that was definitely the rock garden, the key clues are that you didn't cross the river at the end of the gorge track, and there was a section you need to ride along the stream (about 100m downstream I think) to pick up the track again.

See my picture thing by my name. This was taken where the track turns into a stream. Awesome spot.

[jrandom]

I climbed the Staircase and DH'd the Rock Garden on my MTB in '06.

Those trails are crazy.

[gunna]

I climbed the Staircase and DH'd the Rock Garden on my MTB in '06.

Those trails are crazy.

Decided this was too tough for the big bikes, so gunna do it on proper off-roaders see alternate thread here

[K slider]

[QUOTE=young1;1129540]Now help solve my confusion. When I rode in there in 2001 to 2003 I am not sure if we ever found the "rock garden".

I think we found it by (now stay with me here .....);
[*]We went in from the Upper Hutt end and through the gorge
[*]We did not cross the river but stayed to the right of it
[*]Rode along way in there (including a nice long rocky down hill - at the bottom you rode along a stream then back on to the trail)
[*]Then up and down some hills
[*]We then came to an intersection where the left dropped down through the trees, riding down there was VERY rocky, big steps down etc.

When we got to the bottom we turned around and rode back up

Could that have been the rock garden or devils staircase[ Yup Thats the rock garden/QUOTE]

[buggsubique]

I'm keen to give it a shot Well, any time other than this weekend.. I just need a couple more "volunteers". I'll even videotape it for posterity.. (and my will =( )

Mate, I'm there!... but next weekend is pretty well written off with kids b'day party, footy etc. The following weekend works for me, but if it goes ahead then it goes ahead! Keen to do it before I take the knobblies of and put the dual sports back on...