This is a continuation of what Punga & Paua began with
‘Up The Umukarikari’, which points you in the right
direction to the start of this wonderful walk.
The track begins with a climb up through the beautiful beech forest
out onto the tops. This has got to be one of the most spectacular
walks anywhere in the North Island. You follow the poled route
along the ridge with spectacular views out over Tongariro NP in one
direction, right round to Lake Taupo in the other.
The cache coordinates will take you to the summit of Umukarikari at
an elevation of 1591m. It's about an 8 km uphill walk from the car
park, so allow around 3 - 4 hours to here. This route is very
exposed to the weather - please take appropriate clothing and water
with you.
The view from near GZ
A new track has just been cut going south from Umukarikari to
link up with the Urchin. This could be an alternative return route
if you only had a day to spare. You would still need to walk the
5km of road back to the start however, or arrange for alternative
transport. If time permits though, I would recommend you make it an
overnighter and continue on to Waipakihi hut - you're already over
halfway to there anyway!
Once you've found this cache, not only do you get to log a smiley,
but you have also officially bagged another peak as a bonus. Check
it out on www.peakbagging.org.nz
This cache is a 200ml sistema containing log book and pencil.
Not enough room for spare legs sorry. Please don't move the cache
camo.