Heretaunga and Gisborne tramping club members have swapped walking poles for buckets and spades as they helped clean up following the devastation left by Cyclone Gabrielle.

Club members have been working in businesses and private houses.

“We’ve been at a nursery near Napier, which provides much of the native plants for revegetation projects in Hawke’s Bay. We were gumboot-deep in mud righting upside-down plant trays so they could be sprayed with water to remove the heavy silt. It was hard muddy work,” said Heretaunga Tramping Club secretary Glenda Hooper.

Most of the club’s favourite tramping areas had road closures and bridges missing, she said. “I don’t think we will be able to get to the central and northern Kāweka Forest Park for a long time as a number of bridges have been destroyed. There are trees blocking the Taihape Road so there is some hope that we will be able to access the southern Kāweka Range in the not-too-distant future.”

Members of the Gisborne Canoe and Tramping Club have postponed club trips and have been providing food for clean-up crews as well as helping to clean silt, carpet and soggy underfloor insulation from houses.

“The work to be done is really overwhelming,” said club president Gillian Ward. “As we make some progress though, I think what the tramping club can offer with day, or half day, walks out of town will be therapeutic for members who have been badly affected by the flooding. The change of scenery and people to talk to will be helpful.”

The cyclone caused slips, flooding and fallen trees that have destroyed and damaged a huge number of tracks across the North Island. The Department of Conservation is prioritising the reopening of its most accessible and high-use sites first. Mike Tully, DOC’s deputy director-general for organisation support, said it would take time to ensure conservation areas were safe.

“This is a huge job for DOC. Some sites will need initial checks, formal assessments and then full engineering inspections.”