The Oteake Conservation Park, a 64,805 hectare park was recently approved by the Government to encompasses large areas of conservation land on the St Bathans, Hawkdun, Ida, Ewe and St Marys Ranges. It straddles the range of mountains between Central Otago and the Waitaki Valley and had wonderful 4WD tracks ideal for multi-day mountain bike trips. It was to this area that Belinda and I did two amazing mountain biking trips recently.
On 23rd October Belinda and I drove up to St Bathans to spend our first night in the venerable Vulcan Hotel. This amazing establishment dates from the St Bathans gold rush. It was built in 1882, is a fine example of mud-brick construction.
The hosts were Jude and Michael Cavanagh and the rooms are authentic down to the potty under the bed.
We headed out early on Saturday morning to drive up the Hawkdun Runs Road to park at the pine trees at the northern end of the loop. Here we geared up with sleeping bags and food for our overnighter at the Top Hut in the West Manuherikia Valley. We biked up a track to the junction of the West and East branches where we saw some parked utes and then carried up a rough track to cross a creek several times before arriving at a DOC hut mid way up the valley. A tough looking hombre arrived on a 4 wheeler carrying a rifle. He had an unsuccessful hunt for deer.
We carried on up the valley and had lunch in the tussock. Further on we arrived at Top Hut, nestled in a junction of the river.
This was comfortable so we decided to spend the night there. Belinda mooched about taking photos and then we thought we might bike/walk up to the Omarama Saddle. However this looked like a big effort so we decided to head back. However in the evening I got bored and set off by myself to walk up to the saddle, which took less than an hour. There was a great view over the Mackenzie Basin with Mt Cook standing head and shoulders above its snowy neighbours. That night a 4WD arrived and the young cockie got a terrible fright to find us there. In his hasty departure he locked the front door and I had to climb out of the window to get out later.
Next day we set off early and pushed our loaded bikes up to the saddle and then up the steep zigzag track up to the top of the mountain range to the east.
It’s about a 700-meter climb. We biked along a rough track beside a new fence up to the snow line where the track disappeared. Here we left the bikes and set off to locate the track. Once back on it we slipped and slid our bikes along over to the other side. Much to our surprise we bumped into a group of very fit looking mountain bikers carrying their bikes over the summit in our direction. We then headed down to eventually find a track lower down and flew down this to the road over the Little Omarama Saddle. Once on this we raced down the valley and had an uneventful ride back to the car.
On 9th November we arrived back in the area. This time we drove up the Home Hills Runs Road to Johnstone’s Creek. This is under the Hawkdun range.
The weather was cloudy but cleared later to a sunny if not cool day. Again we geared up with camping gear and set off pushing our bikes up hill for 800 meters.
There is a good 4WD track that climbs gradually to the plateau above. It was nearly lunchtime before we arrived on top of the range. Turning left we biked a few kilometers skirting the valley to the west and then took off on a fast descent of walking Spur. Lower down on this we stopped for lunch. Shortly after this the track started to climb and we arrived at a signpost on a desolate plateau. There was supposed to be a hut nearby and it was well hidden in a fold of the land.
This was depilated with lots of empty beer bottles piled outside. It was not an inviting place to overnight so we carried on. Several kilometers further on we arrived at a musterer’s hut called “Inders Castle”.
This venerable hut was the old Mt Ida Railway station and was somehow dragged up the mountains in 1975 to this site at 1400 meters. Apparently it took the crew a week to do this using a transporter and 2 dozers!!!!. It was like a palace with a comfortable kitchen, a coal range and wetback, cutlery and a three-tier bunkroom. We were the only guests!! I found a poem on it called “ Inders Castle” by Blue Jeans, a famous Naseby poet.
Next day it was overcast as we set off biking towards the mountains to the north of us.
We met a DOC party who stopped for a chat. They seemed quite surprised to see us. Further on the track swung around to the east and then we were descending into a steep valley with a river in the bottom of it. Half way down we ran into a group of trail bikers plus a 4 wheeler carrying rifles. We crossed this creek and climbed over a ridge into another valley where we came to a hut with a DOC crew working on it. We had a look around and it looks like it will be a nice place to stay once its done up. The valley climbed gradually to a headwall where the track headed up to another plateau running to Mt Buster Diggings.
Beyond that we had a very steep descent on a rough track into the plains about 1500 feet below.
That night we stayed in the Old Briton Hotel in Naseby that was very ordinary but nevertheless welcome. We carried on next day for another 40 kilometers to Wedderburn and back to the car at Johnstone’s Creek.
Our total distance was about 100 kilometers and it took us 2.5 days. It is a quantum more difficult than the more famous Rail Trail and a lot more isolated.
Stanley Mulvany
