Hello,

How are you?

Today I'm here to tell you about our walk to the last hut we visited last week, which I hadn't been to before, the Totara Flats Hut located in the Tararua Forest Park.

This time, we did something different from usual. We started the walk at Waiohine Gorgewhere a friend dropped us off 25 minutes from home. And we left the car at the other exit of the park, so we went one way and came back another, which makes the trip more exciting as we don't pass through the same places.

We started the walk at midday in light rain and ended up in a thunderstorm, which turned an easy trail into a long and tiring one. It's a 9.5km flat walk, and the sign says you can do it in 4.5 hours (the signs give a reasonable time for the trails).

Halfway along the trail, the rain and wind started to get stronger and stronger, but walking through the trees you don't feel it so much. The problem was a large open lawn just before reaching the hut. The wind and rain made this stretch difficult.

We arrived at the hut at around 3pm and I confess it was a relief to get to the hut, put on some dry clothes, eat and sit by the fire. It rained all afternoon. When we arrived at the hut, a couple was already there, and later two families arrived with four children and two dogs. Totara Flats is a service hut which had firewood (sometimes there isn't any), 26 mattresses, a sink inside the hut and a clothesline, the price is $15 per night.

The next day we got up early, had breakfast and set off for the other side. The other way was 10.3km uphill. We did it in 3 hours and 40 minutes with 6 small chocolates and water lol.

Finally, we arrived at the parking lot and went home with one more cabin to add to the bill. The trail is beautiful with lots of bridges and crystal-clear streams that must be great for swimming in the summer, we'll definitely be back! ◕‿◕

Have a good week!

With love,

Cha ღ