Eketahuna to Cross Creek

It was cold night and a frosty start to today. The tent had ice on it again, so after a huge feed of porridge for breakfast Paul and I set about trying to thaw and then dry out our tents. By the time we'd finished and were ready to depart the two Dutch girls had risen having had some 12 hours sleep!

Paul and I said our goodbyes and wished each other luck in Eketahuna town where Paul stopped for a pie. He was only going as far as Masterton today and I wanted to get on a bit further.

My first stop was at the ANZAC memorial bridge in Kaiparo. It's a small bridge in an even smaller village but during the First World War six local men lost there lives and in 1922 the bridge was opened as a memorial to them. ANZAC day (25 April) is big in New Zealand and Australia and remembers not only those that fought in WW1 but all ANZAC servicemen and women who've fallen overseas.


Not far from Kaiparo is Mt Bruce and the Pukaha National Wildlife Centre. It was amazing to visit. the interactive section at the beginning is very fun and informative and just outside the cafeteria is a takahe enclosure. These birds were thought to be extinct until the 1950s but there are now about 225 remaining. Basically they look like big, overweight pukekos without the white trim, but it was really cool to see them.

The highlight of Pukaha for me though was the kiwi house. They artificially light and heat the enclosure so that the normally nocturnal kiwi will be active during our daytime. The light levels are really low but I was surprised to see the two kiwi as soon as I walked in. I don't know if they were fighting or preening one another but it was incredible to see them scratch at each others backs and necks with their beaks.


I tried a few different techniques to get a photo. Without a flash and in near pitch blackness this was about the best I could get. The kiwi is about 40cm long and went around grubbing in the leaf litter layer.

I also saw a kokako about 3-4m away - beautiful, but didn't manage to see a blue duck or the tuatara. Next time...

From here I had a tailwind all the way to Masterton and by pushing it along I managed to get in a foodshop, stop at the Corner Cafe in Greytown for hot chips - the BEST so far and they came with Watties tomato sauce - and keep on to Featherston. From there it's a further 10km south to the turnoff for Cross Creek and though I was starting to flag I started up the two km gravel access road.

Cross Creek is at the Wairarapa side of the old Rimutaka Incline railway which used fell engines to climb a 1:15 gradient up to the summit on this side. The railway has been replaced by a tunnel and now, with the tracks removed its a cycling and walking trail. At the Cross Creek car park I met two boys who'd cycled over. They said it was really easy and seemed to be a little bit disappointed by how easy it was. I was just lad to have arrived. Although I soon noticed that the Cross Creek campsite was a further two km up the track. Luckily the boys helped me manhandle the bike over the gate in one hit (taking off the panniers and reassembling would have taken about ten minutes and I was knackered) and then I set off half walking, half riding the narrow gravel track through to my home for the night.



What could be better than this? Shelter, a ready made fireplace (I don't know if fires are allowed) and a fresh, clean running creek one minute away. I settled in for the night hoping that the forecasted southerlies and showers wouldn't arrive tomorrow.