The Tramping Club has been wanting to assess the condition of the walking tracks around Saddle Hill/The Doubles for some time. The cancelled Starveall tramp provided the opportunity to do exactly that. There were 4 ‘starters”.

Chris and Andrea road their bikes up to Maungatapu Saddle (740m) from the Maitai Dam, while Debbie and I drove up from the Pelorus side (approx. one and a half hours to the saddle – half on SH6 and half the slow climb picking our way up the rough and rocky track past  the infamous ‘Murderers Rock’.) We arrived within minutes of each other. The DOC sign said that Saddle Hill was 3 hours north, and Dew Lakes 2 hours south, then Dun Mountain.

After parking at the Saddle, there was a short, sharp climb up a service road to a large communications tower where the Ridgeline Track starts. It was then a slow steady climb for just over an hour through beautiful open beech forest to the first ‘Double’ at 1168 m where the track levelled off somewhat. The track was well marked in most places. We soon found the (old) DOC track signs pointing to the Zig Zag track back down to the dam, and onward to Saddle Hill.

After a short break for an early lunch, we continued along the track as it descended approx. 150m past a spectacular rocky spine on the ridgeline then down to a small grassy area obviously frequented by the local pig population. From there on it was steadily up again to Saddle Hill at 1210m. This took another hour and a bit.

There was another smaller communications tower on Saddle Hill. Nearby was a handy rocky outcrop that gave us a spectacular view back to Nelson city, Rabbit Island and the Bay, as well as a wider view of the Richmond Ranges. After a short break for more fuel and refreshments, we started to head back so that Chris and Andrea would be back to their car before the gates were shut at the dam.

The track to Saddle Hill requires a good level of fitness but is not hard. Allow 6 hours return to Maungatapu Saddle. The descent via the Zig Zag which involves some forestry roads remains to be explored at this point in time. It has been described as overgrown and hard to follow. That is the next stage of this exploration.

Trip Participants: Graeme F (Trip leader & scribe), Debbie H, Chris L, Andrea C