Tramping and ADV riding?

[McWild]

Cheers for all the responses. Looks like full insurance is the way to go.

NZ is generally pretty safe I think, you can never be sure. But as a couple have mentioned, it's a risk worth taking for doing the things you enjoy.


Anyone have any particularly good tramping / access road combination ideas in the Canterbury region? Godley and Macaulay huts look awesome although the river could be a bit of a struggle on the Africa twin..

[Racing Dave]

Cheers for all the responses. Looks like full insurance is the way to go.

NZ is generally pretty safe I think, you can never be sure. But as a couple have mentioned, it's a risk worth taking for doing the things you enjoy.


Anyone have any particularly good tramping / access road combination ideas in the Canterbury region? Godley and Macaulay huts look awesome although the river could be a bit of a struggle on the Africa twin..

This is the Macaulay River in normal flow, near the Lilybank Rd ford, but not the deepest part. Take great care on an Africa Twin!

[Tazz]

Hopkins Valley is wicked, but also has a gnarly crossing (for a bike) after monument hut and you sometimes have to crisscross further up so I'd park up at monument and walk from there. You could throw the bike up the hill behind the hut or in the trees before it.

I've never been up Dobson Valley which is just north of Hopkins, but it looks like it would be better riding (more tussock flat than river work). Private land or private access there.

Poulter River would be a pretty good one? I think you can loop around or go as far as Andrews Hut (I think that's what it's called) and back for a night. There is a 4x4 track sort of thing but I think you're only supposed to drive/ride to where the track hits the river over the hill/longish decent with the slips at the bottom and walk from there. Sorry if that is too specific and descriptive XD

Might be a bit close but does that Pack Horse track up Gebbies have vehicle access up any of it? Unless you're going over the other side it's not a very long track. I've never come from the south side though.

This is the Macaulay River in normal flow, near the Lilybank Rd ford, but not the deepest part. Take great care on an Africa Twin!

Can you go up further on that side to where it is a bit more spread out and cross there?

I'm pretty keen to do a snow trip up the Mcauley once I make some chains. Would that be something you'd be interested in?

Have a trip planned and just waiting for me and a mate to have time off lined up to go around the back of Mt Fyffe too, leave a bike/car at each end.

[R650R]

Cheers for all the responses. Looks like full insurance is the way to go.

NZ is generally pretty safe I think, you can never be sure. But as a couple have mentioned, it's a risk worth taking for doing the things you enjoy.


Anyone have any particularly good tramping / access road combination ideas in the Canterbury region? Godley and Macaulay huts look awesome although the river could be a bit of a struggle on the Africa twin..

Make sure you ask the insurance company on WHERE they cover you as some might not cover a lot of the backroads adv riders go.
I asked mine to make sure I was covered on the DOC 4wd track up to Makehu hotpools and if parked/camped overnight on beach etc.

[R650R]

We are going out in the morning, and plan on riding as far in the mountains as we can go, then tramping for a night or 2 to a pretty remote hut. We just leave the bikes in the bush and never had any hassles. But there are not many people that venture into the area we are heading.

There's usually a reason for that in those type of backwater places...

[Tazz]

Make sure you ask the insurance company on WHERE they cover you as some might not cover a lot of the backroads adv riders go.
I asked mine to make sure I was covered on the DOC 4wd track up to Makehu hotpools and if parked/camped overnight on beach etc.

Either Tower or State will only cover you on public land I found out recently when looking to see what would happen if I started a casual forest fire. Some tracks are through private land. Splitting hairs but good to know for worst case.

[bart]

Either Tower or State will only cover you on public land I found out recently when looking to see what would happen if I started a casual forest fire. Some tracks are through private land. Splitting hairs but good to know for worst case.

I got paid out by State for an accident on a marginal DOC road. It certainly wasn’t a straight forward process, but worked out in the end. I still had to pay a 1k excess.

[clint640]

Anyone have any particularly good tramping / access road combination ideas in the Canterbury region? Godley and Macaulay huts look awesome although the river could be a bit of a struggle on the Africa twin..

The trick with most of those rivers coming off the alps is to hit them on a good day in autumn or winter when there's no snowmelt - levels are much lower. When we went up the Macaulay earlier this year it was a doddle - much lower water than in Dave's pic.

Cheers
Clint

[neels]

Poulter River would be a pretty good one? I think you can loop around or go as far as Andrews Hut (I think that's what it's called) and back for a night.

Might be a bit close but does that Pack Horse track up Gebbies have vehicle access up any of it? Unless you're going over the other side it's not a very long track. I've never come from the south side though.

Think the 4wd track up the Poulter is for DOC use checking on the ducks or whatever, as far as I know it's open for MTB use but not for motorised vehicles.

Access to the Packhorse hut is supposedly on a legal road from Gebbies Pass, but in practice has stiles over fences etc so not very motorbike friendly. Not sure about from the south side from Kaituna valley, and nothing from the Mt Herbert side around Mt Bradley

When we went up the Macaulay earlier this year it was a doddle - much lower water than in Dave's pic.

Likewise, have done the Macaulay hut in a bog standard Nissan Terrano with no issues, shouldn't be a problem if you pick your places to cross.

[Tazz]

Think the 4wd track up the Poulter is for DOC use checking on the ducks or whatever, as far as I know it's open for MTB use but not for motorised vehicles.

That is the track right to the hut though yeah? I haven't been up there for years but it was def public access (vehicle) up to Mt Brown Creek where a bunch of poles mark the beginning of the national park. This is where you'd park up and carry on by foot. I haven't been there for a few years though and have heard about some slips and the need to head up the river instead. Sounds like a bit of an adventure to check it out to me There was a biv just over the river from that point too. It is an alpine river so planing/checking the weather accordingly would be a must if you want to cross, not to tell you how to suck eggs or anything sorry XD

Oh, also the St James area, probably from the Rainbow side would be a good trip to bike and tramp.

[neels]

That is the track right to the hut though yeah? I haven't been up there for years but it was def public access (vehicle) up to Mt Brown Creek where a bunch of poles mark the beginning of the national park. This is where you'd park up and carry on by foot. I haven't been there for a few years though and have heard about some slips and the need to head up the river instead. Sounds like a bit of an adventure to check it out to me There was a biv just over the river from that point too. It is an alpine river so planing/checking the weather accordingly would be a must if you want to cross, not to tell you how to suck eggs or anything sorry XD

Would seem here that it is theoretically possible to 4wd to Mt Brown Creek as you mentioned

http://www.doc.govt.nz/parks-and-rec...biking-tracks/

I vaguely recall talking to the DOC guys at Arthurs Pass about heading in there, and they said they can't even get quad bikes through without crossing the river in some places because of slips and washouts. They have not much incentive to fix the tracks, as people in 4wd's tend to head in with mud tyres when it's wet and undo their good work, like in your first photo.

Always check the weather before going anywhere, and tomorrow's weather as well.....I've sat in the Hawdon hut and watched large rocks disappear from view in the river in the space of an hour.

Oh, also the St James area, probably from the Rainbow side would be a good trip to bike and tramp.

There should be some posts on here about Edwards and Malings pass rides, the only places for motorbike riding are on the Hanmer side of the Waiau river, but would be good for a ride in then short tramp to the huts on the St James walkway. It is possible to drive/ride all the way to the huts, but the DOC people tend to come and tell you off....[/QUOTE]

[Tazz]

Would seem here that it is theoretically possible to 4wd to Mt Brown Creek as you mentioned

http://www.doc.govt.nz/parks-and-rec...biking-tracks/

I vaguely recall talking to the DOC guys at Arthurs Pass about heading in there, and they said they can't even get quad bikes through without crossing the river in some places because of slips and washouts. They have not much incentive to fix the tracks, as people in 4wd's tend to head in with mud tyres when it's wet and undo their good work, like in your first photo.

Always check the weather before going anywhere, and tomorrow's weather as well.....I've sat in the Hawdon hut and watched large rocks disappear from view in the river in the space of an hour.

That's cute. Nevermind it was 4x4 guys that were in there with shovels keeping it open a while back I take it you've been out sweating on the end of a shovel to keep tracks open then. Have never seen the MTB community, hunters or fishing guys clearing up slips or doing general track maintenance (well that's a lie I know some hunters do to be fair), or for that matter the rain and snow melt that damages the crap out of tracks/land in general gets off lightly

But yeah doesn't surprise me it's blocked. There was a big slip that was pretty sketchy that trip.

It sounds more and more like it's worth a look. The idea is to ride AND tramp, so an impassable obstacle meaning you have to leg it a bit earlier is not a deal breaker I would have thought.

[unstuck]

A couple of fishermen got upset at us for disturbing their peace and quiet on the weekend, until it was pointed out to them that if it was not for me and my mate repairing the access road into the valley a few years ago, they wouldn't even be in there.


Doc were not going to fix it, so we fixed it ourselves.

[Tazz]

A couple of fishermen got upset at us for disturbing their peace and quiet on the weekend, until it was pointed out to them that if it was not for me and my mate repairing the access road into the valley a few years ago, they wouldn't even be in there.


Doc were not going to fix it, so we fixed it ourselves.

Case in point! Good bastards!
People go out and get shit done and enjoy it only to have stones throw at them by do gooders who complain about the condition of something they use while never lifting a finger to do anything about it, a lot of the time from their armchair.
They were probably going in there on A/T or highway tread tyres ripping everything up because they had to peg it to get anywhere too

[unstuck]

Case in point! Good bastards!
People go out and get shit done and enjoy it only to have stones throw at them by do gooders who complain about the condition of something they use while never lifting a finger to do anything about it, a lot of the time from their armchair.
They were probably going in there on A/T or highway tread tyres ripping everything up because they had to peg it to get anywhere too

VW toureg?? on road tires. And would we follow them out to the gravel road in case they couldn't get across the river.