Kevin Isemonger continues his account of celebration treks in the South Island.

Tuesday morning, we caught up with Allen and Rob, and Allen was keen to drive back up the Lillybank Road to show Rob the Macauley crossing. He had previously completed a successful trip up to the Macauley Hut with a ‘tag-along’ tour.

We headed off and got some great photos of ‘Fendah’ crossing the braided river when a flat-deck Hi-Lux came up behind us and pulled alongside to inform us that the Godley was closed and the Macauley was badly scoured out due to significant rain of recent times. 

We headed south to Wanaka. It was great to see such a variety of all the Land Rover products through the years, from the latest Defenders, Range Rovers and D5 Discoverys to the oldest Series 1s in the country and several mighty Forward Controls towering above all. By this stage the sun had dipped behind the ranges and with the temperature plummeting, we headed to our accommodation strategically located near a good pub and unpacked our bags for the week.

Wednesday dawned rainy. We threw our lunch box and coats in the back and grabbed Darcey Hamilton who had flown down from weather-torn Mahaanui on the east coast then headed out to the rendezvous point on Camphill Road near Hawea.  Here we joined a bedraggled group of ‘Series’ vehicles parked in a convoy in the rain on the grass verge.

Today’s trip was up the eastern side of Lake Hawea through Dingle Burn Station. We convoyed to John Creek at Gladstone on the shores of Lake Hawea for a driver briefing (and the last toilet for the ladies for the day) and headed north up Dingle Burn Station Road. The thought that stock and fertiliser trucks regularly drive this road was of little comfort tackling this ledge for the first time in heavy rain and limited visibility. Sweaty hands vice-gripped to the steering wheel.  Passenger and ‘driver-assist’ conversation was conspicuous by its absence as the vintage vehicles tiptoed their way along the rock-strewn bevelled ledge – a sheer 50m above the deep blue lake below.

From here we crossed the Dingle Burn and followed a farm track along the gentler hillside about 150m above the lake as the weather continued to deteriorate. Due to some of the older restored vehicles enjoying their first outing off the tarmac we turned around at Bricks Gully, a large moraine fanning out into the lake.

The trip back meant the sheer drop was now on the driver’s side. The weather gave us some reprieve by lifting the cloud base for some good views back up the lake and along the crag for a well-deserved beer back at the pub.

Thursday dawned with a cool breeze and a frost, suggesting a clear day ahead. No passengers today, so the tea box was chucked in the back, and we headed up SH8 on the opposite side of Lake Hawea for our meeting spot on Meads. Following the drivers briefing we pushed on through Kidds Bush and through Hunter Valley Station to a locked gate. We pressed on northwards up the western side of Lake Hawea admiring where we had been the previous day across the wind-swept turquoise waters.

The metal road up the western side of the lake was built on gentler slopes than the east, through stunning areas of cool shaded alpine beech more reminiscent of west coast rain forests and bursting out into the light to cross green fenced paddocks.  Some entertainment was enjoyed crossing the many streams that form braided fans out into the lake, like the mountains had melted out the water worn fissure.  A couple of vehicles hit the water too hard which dampened the ignition and required a gentle recovery.

The day stayed clear but cold. We stopped for a late lunch at 2:30pm at Boundary Hut several kilometres up the Hunter Valley – about opposite where we were supposed to turn around yesterday on the eastern side of the river. Boundary Hut is a well-equipped magnificent location for a back country get-away and is available for hire on the Hunter Valley website
www.huntervalleystation.co.nz.

Tea and bikkies scoffed and the temperature still dropping, we commenced our trek back out the way we came.

The final day (Friday) was a repeat of our failed attempt to cross Hillend Station during the ‘Oxford’ rally in 2021. We traversed a ridge below Mount Alpha and the famous ‘Roy’s Peak’ overlooking Wanaka township. 

Starting from around 400m – we climbed up to just over 1,000m in an ear popping short distance where we stopped for a cuppa and a bite to eat at the ‘Oxford’ safari terminus looking down over Wanaka.  

From here we commenced a ‘butt-cheek-clenching’ zig-zag drive up a slightly damp grassy track to 1,140m before traversing the ridge line above Waterfall creek and working our way (not too rapidly!) down grassy tight zig-zags to the back of Wanaka township.

I had my left hand resting on the Low-Ratio lever in case of a detent slip, so I can only imagine how the Series 1 folk got on.  My Series 1 would certainly have had some issues – but today, nothing to report.

Saturday marked the start of Wheels at Wanaka and the Land Rover crew were the first into the Highlands Arena for a parade celebrating 75 years of Land Rover.  The parade went off flawlessly with well over 100 Land Rovers parked up – and moved on within the 15 minutes allocated.  Then came the tractors, and chaos ensued.  Admittedly, Land Rover did have a practice run on Tuesday following registration and had the merging process sorted to enable a quick stack and leave – but the tractors’ efforts was far more entertaining.  No idea how long they took to clear the stage – and then came the steam traction engines.

Many thanks to the LR75 Directors Rod and Anne Corbett, the station owners that opened their properties for us, the Shotover 4WD Club members who led the trips and the 171 Land Rovers and their owners that turned up to make this a very special occasion. Happy Birthday Land Rover.