Distance: 4.7 km (5.0 DOC hours) - Unmarked route, clear - Moderate terrain
Altitude: 68m to 924m. Gain: 564m. Loss: 1307m . Gradient: 24 deg (Steep)
Skills: Occasional scrambles (3/7) - Occasional rivers (3/6)

Unmarked route, clear (7/9)
Unmarked route, follows obvious geography (river, spur, trail, etc)

Secondary, unmapped (4/5)
Route not on maps, an alternative recognised access to hut or along range / catchment

Steep (difficulty: 5/5)
Steep climbs of >1000m

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

Occasional scrambles (difficulty: 3/7)
Tramp with some scrambles and exposure to falls

Occasional rivers (difficulty: 3/6)
Occasional rivers - impassible after heavy rain

Unknown (difficulty: 0/7)
Not specified

From the Oho / Fanny Bay saddle (pt869), climb 60m onto the spur west of the saddle between Oho Creek and Fanny Bay, where two small tarns are shown on the topomap. Drop slightly onto the obvious terrace/shelf above Oho Creek and sidle a further 500m west at around 900m to the head of the obvious spur dropping into the forks at the head of Oho Creek.

Follow the spur down to the forks in Oho Creek. There are excellent deer trails. Two sections are tricky. The first is the steep section at 550m indicated on the maps. This can be descended on the spur with care (though deer trails cut east and return later so that may be an easier option).

The second tricky bit is the very bottom tip of the spur. There is a 5m sheer bluff about 10m up from the base of the spur. This can (just) be descended by downclimbing trees. Descending instead to the west branch of Oho Creek is not an option to avoid this bluff as it is in a deep sheer gorge at this point and has an impassable waterfall 50m upstream. The east branch must provide a gentler option between the spur and valley floor (the deer manage it somehow!) but I did not spot where this is.

100m of slippery rocky gorge travel down Oho Creek is necessary from the forks before the valley opens out. Below here there are good deer trails on the banks, and frequent flat dry clearings and alternative dry riverbeds and travel is easy. There are several good camping options. It is about 2km from the spur to the lake head.

2.5-4 hrs down, more in reverse

Note: Described in the reverse direction to your journey

No description