The Morda Brook

Last November we explored the upper Wakamarina river in Marlborough, paddling from Doom Creek to Butchers Flat. I related the low water level, the beauty, the complacency, the upside down experience. Unfortunately, this particular batch of complacency has had a much longer lasting effect than a little wounded pride. I knew something wasn't right in my shoulder but I thought like most things it would recover in a few days time. A few weeks later I paddled on the Waiohine river in the Wairarapa - I had full range of motion but my shoulder felt weak, sore and clunky. At first I instituted a self-developed rehab plan. This plan involved some randomly chosen band and free-weight exercises. I worked reasonably hard and went to the Tongariro a month later to test. No dice. Finally, in March I booked an appointment with a physio. An x-ray and an ultrasound later the verdict was a large tear in the subscapularis caused by a blunt force impact. With the right exercises and dedicatio...

Nothing, absolutely nothing. The whitebaiter sat on a drainpipe, the dull grey concrete in contrast with the surrounding spring green grass. He must have been an optimistic chap as the drainpipe in question was located about 3.5km up the Waiwhetū Stream. The Waiwhetū winds through the Eastern suburbs of Lower Hutt - Naenae, Epuni, Waterloo, Waiwhetū, Gracefield. It empties into the Hutt River just before Te Awa Kairangi greets Te Whanganui A Tara. While the catchment is small, the tidal nature of the lower stream allows almost 4km of paddleable waterway. The key factor to a successful trip is ensuring the paddling coincides with high tide. The Waiwhetū experience begins on the wide tidal reaches of the Hutt, where wind often drives fledgling waves up or down the river. Slipping under an unlikely looking low bridge on the true left gives access to the Waiwhetū itself. Here the Waiwhetū is penned with uniform concrete walls topped by steel fences. The stream is soon released...

I first visited the Mangahao slalom course in 2013. The course is an inspiring place, with continuous class III rapids lined with native bush. Five minutes drive downstream is the Manawatū town of Shannon. Conversely, Shannon is not an inspiring place, the sort of fading rural town where the buildings quietly ignore the passing of the last half century. The course is situated on the Mangaore Stream but the water comes from the Mangahao River. This occurs because a system of dams in the Managahao River divert the water through a power station which, while generating, releases into the top of the course. Consequently, the Mangaore Stream frequently receives about twenty times it’s natural flow. The slalom course spans around 200m of the stream length and, like any slalom course, the normal mode for paddlers is to yo-yo up and down. Stretch the spraydeck over the cockpit, dance with the water, pop the spraydeck off, contemplate or commiserate on the walk back. Every time a slight...

The Upper Wakamarina is the 2 km of river between Doom Creek and Butchers Flat. It's an easy walk on a four wheel drive track the majority of the way to the put-in. I was first alerted to the section on the Kiwi Canyons website and since then a few people have mentioned it as worth a look in kayaks. It's pretty unlikely this is a first descent as it's readily accessible, immediately upstream of the kayak guidebook run and there are even pictures of some rapids in the canyoning guidebook! In saying that I haven't seen any information about it in kayaking circles. On the 18th of November 2018 we went up there for a look on the way to the ferry. We were suitably tired after a previous exploratory mission (subject of future post) and were looking for some easy adventure. We put-in at the Doom Creek bridge and scratched through two rapids to the Wakamarina proper. The scratching didn't stop there as the river was much lower than anticipated! Rapids consi...

It was somehow fitting that the hillside that had been beaten by fire was currently having a good attempt at breaking our morale. The top of Kapakapanui peak in the Tararua range was cleared by an accidental fire in 1903 [ 1 ]. Nowhere is this more apparent than on the peaks western slopes, which we were halfway up. It had been a very long day. The final climb to Kapakapanui from the west. Image from http://www.topomap.co.nz/ The Southern Crossing of the Tararuas is a classic tramp known for its long history, windy tops and mountain running. Perusing maps in an idle moment it was clear to me that the classic southern crossing is not actually the most southern possible crossing of the range. If Waterworks Road in Kaitoke and Ngatiawa Road near Waikanae could be linked this route would cross the range further to the south than the classic. Thus began the Southerner Crossing. Hutt Forks We began very early at the Norbert Creek track which climbs quickly and pleasantly...

This site is a journal of adventures in New Zealand inspired by The Unlikely Voyage of Jack de Crow by A.J. Mackinnon. This book is the inspirational story of the authors journey across a continent in a small sailing dinghy. Whilst the story is told with a copious amount of artistic licence and somewhat impenetrable literary references (for a layman such as myself), it beautifully captures the spirit of the everyday adventurer. The Morda Brook is "a sinuous little blue line on a map that should not be considered a navigable waterway".  Near the beginning of his voyage Mackinnon embarks on a descent of the Morda Brook as the only route between the English canal system and the river he intends to travel seaward. The canals are left behind as 5pm recedes, which the reader will recognise as the official start time of all good weekend adventures. Unsurprisingly the evening is not straightforward. Encounters with overhanging trees, muddy water and darkness damage his boat a...