Distance: 4.7 km (2.5 DOC hours) - Marked route - Moderate terrain
Altitude: 772m to 1499m. Gain: 66m. Loss: 793m . Gradient: 11 deg (Moderate-hard)
Skills: Alpine weather (2/7) Winter - Iceaxe/crampons (4/7)

Marked route (6/9)
Uncut route, with markers normally within sight

Primary, mapped (1/5)
Formal route, on maps, principal access to hut or along range / catchment

Moderate-hard (difficulty: 4/5)
Continuous moderate climbs

Moderate (difficulty: 3/5)
Low scrub in open or bush / river rocks

Alpine weather (difficulty: 2/7)
Tramp on open tops, exposed to alpine weather

None (difficulty: 1/6)
No unbridged river crossings

Iceaxe/crampons (difficulty: 4/7)
Ice axe and crampons required in winter

Heading south from Kaiarahi the track drops steadily out of rock and tussock and in to low alpine scrub, crossing a saddle to reach the The Tits. Swinging SW on the summit, it continues to descend a further 1.5km to the head of The Rogue spur. The route is sparsely poled, but well traveled, so the ground trail is generally more obvious than the poles.

At The Rogue, the route swings SSE and drops out of nice alpine vegetation into scratching, thick subalpine scrub. This soon becomes dominated by pinus contorta, which covers the lower slopes. The route is uncut as far as pt1106, and can be a bit of a bushbash - though the riudgeline is well defined and easy to follow.

Swinging east at pt1106, a cut, marked track commences. The track has steep, gravelly sections, .and drops over 400m in 1km to reach its base where a signposted marks the junction with The Lakes Carpark - Mackintosh Hut track

Note: Described in the reverse direction to your journey

The ascent up The Rogue is steady and continuous up a cut, marked tramping track. Native bush slowly succumbs to invasive pinus contorta as you climb. The track has steep, gravelly sections, but is not a tough climb.

At the highpoint (pt 1106) the cut track ends and a route begins through the scrub. As the vegetation is often over head height, this involves some pushing and scrambling at first through manuka and invasive pines. Soon, however the scrub drops to knee height, then ends completely and we emerge onto the true Kaweka tops to that typical orange-yellow-grey mixture of lichens and alpine plants, rocks and clay-pan. The route continues to climb NNW to reach reach the ridgeline at the next highpont, 1km after the top of the climb.

Swinging NNE gentle climbs continue as the ridgeline rises and falls over The Tits, and on to Kaiarahi. The route is sparsely poled, but well traveled and easy to follow, but the ridgeline is high and exposed to the prevailing westerly.