As a break from his normal routine, regular NZ4WD contributor David Coxon reprised his role as Pied Piper for the New Zealand Land Rover Forum (NZLRF) (www.nzlrf.org.nz) on a loop from Whanganui into the hills and back. 

To run this trip, however, I first had to get from Wellington to Whanganui, and so did some of the participants. To add a little more interest, I created a pre-trip trip from Wellington to Bulls, before detouring through Marton, picking up additional vehicles along the way, then heading cross-country to Whanganui.

Leaving Marton behind we started the climb into the hills, soon hitting gravel and the start of the adventure. It was not long before we came around a corner to be greeted with the first of many amazing views across hills bathed in the late afternoon sun, and the hunt was on for a location where we could photograph all the Land Rovers lined up against a backdrop of clean, green New Zealand.

As I’m sure you can imagine, there were a number of stops for photographs, socialising and just enjoying the scenery before we dropped down into the Turakina Valley and finally found a clearing that was spacious enough to fit all the vehicles in a suitably photogenic arrangement. Land Rover enthusiasts were soon spread over the hillside trying to get the best view of their vehicle in the convoy.

Crossing another range of hills and the Whangaehu River we were soon on the final run into Whanganui, and as evening fell we reached Kowhai Park, where we met up with a few more participants who had come down from the north via the Turakina Valley. 

One of the vehicles in this group was a Perentie 6x6 (a supersized derivative of a Defender made for the Australian Armed Services) that was attracting a lot of attention with its oversized, rugged appearance. It was starting to get dark before people finally separated to their chosen accommodation for the night.

City slicker

The next morning we had a 9:00am meet-up back at Kowhai Park and finally got away after a little delay in getting everyone to the same part of the park. Unfortunately we had not gone more than about five km, and had just left Whanganui via Somme Parade when I heard on the radio that someone had broken down.

I returned to see what the problem was, to find that one of the Discoverys on the trip had thrown an engine warning light and just shut down right before the 100km/h speed limit sign. Obviously it wanted to be a city vehicle!

We managed to deduce that the problem was with one of the sensors, but were unable to effect a repair so had to leave the owner to wait for the AA service while the rest of the convoy continued, now an hour behind schedule. 

The road worked its way up the valley following firstly the Whanganui River then one of its tributaries, Kauarapaoa Stream. After the overnight rain the road was muddy but not too slippery and the dampness kept the dust at bay. There were a few stops for views as we worked our way up the Whanganui River Valley, but as we started following Kauarapaoa Stream the valley became deeper with fewer opportunities to photograph the attractive surroundings. 

The road continued to narrow as we climbed, with that feeling of remoteness and lack of use that often means you are about to stopped by a farm gate. In this case, however, the road kept going and eventually we started seeing glimpses of the ridge line, denuded by forestry. In the interest of avoiding the forecasted strong winds on the ridge, we stopped in a clearing just downhill for a morning tea break. 

While we were parked up, a few of us wandered down a side road to see if it was worth exploring but were soon stopped by a massive gate across a bridge over an unexpectedly deep ravine. Someone obviously did not want visitors. 

On the road again! 

Back on the road we soon reached the ridge and a ‘Y’ intersection. The left fork would take us back to SH3, so we took the right fork along the ridge for even more expansive views. 

Following my plan, we took a right turn to explore the one road I had never been on. On my map we would reach a dead end after about five km but on other maps the route went on for more like 50km. I love resolving the mystery of conflicting maps. This was a very scenic drive with some pleasant scenery and a few friendly interactions with the locals we met on the road, however, in the end, my map was right, although probably more because the road was gated and marked as private property than because the it ceased to exist. 

There was, however, one situation that really did drive home the dangers of not taking these more remote environments seriously.We stopped at one point to regroup and a few people were out of their cars to get photos across the valley, with the obvious vantage point being to climb the one metre high, narrow, raised bank on the downhill side of the road. Fortunately the first person was sensible enough to cautiously check the other side of the bank before climbing up. There was no ‘other side’ just a drop down a sheer cliff for at least 50m into a narrow canyon. 

This danger was rapidly reported to everyone and due caution was the watchword for the rest of the trip, as we discovered that this type of terrain was a common feature of the area. I have now added a warning of this type of terrain to my trip briefing notes and am highlighting this experience to alert readers to the often unexpected dangers of remote touring. 

As usual the trip back to the ridge was a lot shorter than the trip to the end of the road, and we decided that the clearing at the intersection was a good place for lunch before the clouds rolled in. By the end of lunch the weather had deteriorated and while still dry, the loss of the sun and gloomy clouds made a reasonably quick trip back to SH3 a good choice. 

Our trip ended at 3:00pm making the loop and detour a five-hour trip from Whanganui – about the right time when people still had a long drive home. Overall another excellent trip from my perspective and one that everyone seemed to enjoy. I might even be invited back to run another LRNZF trip next year!