Distance: 12.1 km (4.0 DOC hours) - Road - Easy-moderate terrain
Altitude: 92m to 682m. Gain: 728m. Loss: 752m . Gradient: 7 deg (Gentle)
Skills: - Streams (2/6)

Road (1/9)
Formed road, 4WD track, etc

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

Gentle (difficulty: 2/5)
Gentle slopes

Easy-moderate (difficulty: 2/5)
Tussock / river-gravel / open bush / cut track

None (difficulty: 1/7)
No alpine skills required

Streams (difficulty: 2/6)
Small streams, danger only in extreme weather

None (difficulty: 1/7)
No alpine skills required

No description

Note: Described in the reverse direction to your journey

Current / historic logging tracks connect the Waikawa campground on Manakau Rd to Waitohu Valley Rd in Otaki. These make an easy, if unexciting daywalk through pines and native bush (2 cars required) or a 20km round run or mountain bike, returning by road.

From Manakau campground, ford the river on the concrete causeway (sometime dry, sometimes underwater) and follow logging tracks through pine forestry as they zigzag SE up the ridge. On reaching the ridgeline you hit a grassy area and a junction with a rough north-south roadbed. Follow this track south along the ridgeline through native and pines until finally you enter native bush at pt595. The roadbed from here is stony but broad. Meandering with the ridgeline it passes east of Thompson, where there is a junction with a dead-end track east.

From there the track drops SW, sidling the valleyside until it reaches the Waitohu River. A rough overgrown track heads upriver fro here to Mick highpoint. The Waitohu roadend is 1km further downriver along the flat and wet track.