Ruahine West East Crossing

Hi mrfizz. I'm going on memory for all of this -- maybe also get a second opinion rather than trust me entirely. I've done Rangi, Te Hekenga, Tiraha, Howletts, and then down to Heritage and (another time) over Sawtooth and down to Pourangaki... and I've come up to Howletts from the other side, which is fairly straightforward given enough time. Te Hekenga is the biggest grunt, and it's a little tricky at the top. Rather than climbing straight over the top of Te Hekenga (which is a vertical drop of about 15-20 metres or thereabouts), you can much more easily (and safely) carry on about 100-200 metres south of the peak (I think), scramble some way off the ridge on the eastern side and then sidle the slip to get back up to the ridge on the way to Tiraha. See http://www.windy.gen.nz/index.php/archives/288 I've only been there in summer, though. If you're looking at Aug/Sep there's a good chance you'll get snow, and I couldn't comment on what it's like in those conditions. Also be really careful of high winds up in that area, which can be seriously dangerous in the Ruahines if you get caught out, although from your profile it sounds like you've been to them a fair amount already. If you're planning to go from Purity over and down to Waterfall, I seem to remember there are some really gnarly bits of ridge that could be difficult if you have trouble with heights. (A couple of the sorts of places where you really don't want to put a foot wrong.) I've only been over them in the other direction, though, after we came off Sawtooth. That was also in summer'ish weather albeit in April. See http://www.windy.gen.nz/index.php/archives/97 Enjoy your walk.

This one's also in that area, for what it's worth. http://www.windy.gen.nz/index.php/archives/321 In this case we went from TripleX past Waipawa Saddle to Waterfall Hut and back. There are several obvious route options which criss-cross at Waipawa Saddle depending on how much you want to stay on the tops versus creeks. (We covered both the obvious ones in the loop we did.)

Will you have crampons/snowshoes and ice axe etc etc rangi/whanahuia/te hekenga/tiraha/howletts - tuki out Rangi hut onto the tops is well poled then poled along to the turn off to Triangle Hut. Trip report and photos of trip into Rangi-Triangle back out Rangi is on the website (www.freewebs.com/hellmission/) or purity - hikurangi - waterfall hut - waipawa saddle out - Have only gone to Purity via Kawhatau-McKinnon. then went to Kelly Knight, Pourangaki Tops-Pourangaki Hut then over to Waterfall. Once at Pinnacle Creek there is a sign then you just follow your nose down the scree into creek, tracks on the side of the creek offer good travel. Once down near forks shingle banks offer easy travel, waterfall is off in the bush a fair way then shingle banks down and up to the track to Rangi Saddle. Once above the leatherwood it is overgrown with a mix of tussock, huge spaniards (http://hellmission.webs.com/apps/photos/photo?photoid=33569186 ) The waratahs down the other side are buried deep in the above. Once back down to some bush it is cut with triangles marking the way. Some creek bashing too. Once at forks shingle banks offer easy travel a sign marks the track to hut on the main river. Up to the Waipawa saddle, the creek is quite easy to follow and only the occasional bash (I remember one waterfall which was a bit hard to get around, can only get around it on the true left) Waratahs mark track up to saddle which is partly in the river now. Did not go down to Waipawa Forks but yesterday walked up to Waipawa Forks from the bottom. Took 40 minutes up and 30 down. The hut is a dump and is uninhabitable, has many resident mice who have used it as a long drop in the central room. The river is also quite swift and there are two tracks that cut accross the corners and near the bottom a vecihle track crosses ovwer a few times. There is a bridge at the bottom which you can use for the last crossing. Got most of the above on the site and about to add the Waipawa bit once I get it written up.

Also waratahs mark the track up to Iron Peg unsure of the 2km to Pinnacle Crk . Also do not try to go down the other creeks to Waterfall as they are pretty horrific apparently.

Cheers Freewebs and Izoqi for all this info - freewebs checked out your wesbite - awesome stuff!

An Izoqi - great website info and pisc too

Did the trip from Iron Peg to Waterfall Hut a couple of years back. There is no marked track. Just continue along the ridge until the head of Waterfall Stream and then go down that. The head of waterfall is a bit grovelly and there was a short section at the head of the gully that I recall going back over to carry someone elses pack across, apart from that, all OK.

Well the recommended route is down Pinnacle Creek so I think that is what you mean by Waterfall Creek, did not need to do any pack carrying, once at saddle of Pinnacle Creek there is a sign then you just follow your nose down the scree into the creek, tracks on the side of the creek offer good travel.

Waterfall Creek is different, I think. It's the one that goes right in front of Waterfall Hut and comes down from the east/south-east, and (apparently) there's a waterfall a short distance further up. The map I'm trying to read at NZTopoOnline has rendered the colours of the creek names badly so it's hard for me to read, but Pinnacle Creek seems to be the one coming from the south-west on the other side. Another good way down is via Tussock Creek if you come over Paemutu (which we did). From memory we went further around to Tussock instead of Waterfall Creek specifically because of the waterfall issue, but I haven't actually seen it so I don't know if it's navigable. There's a massive scree gut to get down to Tussock Creek from the top and quite a lot of speargrass lower down which is a pain when trying to walk along the upper reaches of the creek, but apart from that it's fairly straightforward.