- Distance
- 26.1km
- Total Ascent
- 2445m
- Time
- Road end to Cone, 5hr; Cone to removed Winchcombe bivvy site, 7hr; Bivvy site to Kime Hut, 3.5hr; Kime Hut to Field Hut, 2.5hr; Field Hut to Otaki Forks, 2.5hr
- Grade
- Moderate
- Accom.
- Kime Hut, Field Hut
- Access
- From Waiohine Gorge Road end
- Map
- BP33
- Notes & Map
- Neill Ridge (pdf, 1 MB)
- GPX File
- Neill Ridge (gpx, yo 219 KB)
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An alternative Southern Crossing
From a casual glance at the map, Neill Ridge looks like a handy shortcut to the Tararua Southern Crossing. But look again and you’ll see it’s no soft option. There are no midway huts on this seldom-used track, so trampers must either brace themselves for a very long first day, or carry a shelter and camp. I’m a slow tramper, so I chose the latter. The trip begins with a face-reddening climb out of Waiohine Gorge. The weight of my full pack had me puffing, but the next stretch to Cone Saddle was much more gentle and quite pretty. I startled two deer on the plod up to Cone, where few day-walkers venture. Approaching the top, a yellow-crowned kakariki chirped excitedly – and the views deserved the fanfare. The Tararua Peaks stood proudly to the north, the Wairarapa Plains rolled away to the south-east, and Neill Ridge beckoned me north-west. First though, I detoured along Cone Ridge to seek water in a mapped tarn, approximately 400m past the junction at Cone and Neill ridges. It was easy to find, and was such a lovely spot that I decided to make an early camp. The next day was down to Neill Saddle to enjoy the atmosphere in the goblin forest. The track was well marked, but not well trodden, with thick ground cover. [caption id="attachment_43468" align="aligncenter" width="1980"]
- Lauren Schaer