Distance: 2.8 km (6.0 DOC hours) - Unmarked route, hard - Hard terrain
Altitude: 745m to 1330m. Gain: 53m. Loss: 588m . Gradient: 13 deg (Moderate)
Skills: - Streams (2/6) Winter - Snow/ice underfoot (2/7)

Unmarked route, hard (8/9)
Unmarked route, no clear geographic features to follow

Primary, unmapped (2/5)
Route not on maps, but is principal access to hut or along range / catchment

Moderate (difficulty: 3/5)
Occasional moderate climbs

Hard (difficulty: 5/5)
Thick scrub-bash / continuous river boulders, waterfalls, or gorges

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

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

Snow/ice underfoot (difficulty: 2/7)
Snow/ice likely on track

From pt1350 a sparsely poled route runs SW towards Piripiri Hut. The route has a good ground trail, but is overgrowing with low leatherleaf across the tops. As the ridgeline narrows and starts to descent the leatherleaf grows to head height. An old cut track exists, but is very overgrown and easy to lose. If in doubt, follow the ridgeline SW until you spot a small (sometimes dry) tarn 15m below the ridgeline to the SE. The vaguely cuts track makes a left turn for a steep scramble down to the tarn. Viable campstops exist at the tarn.

From the tarn follow the new ridgeline south as it drops to a scrub-clad saddle visible below. A good cut track existed from here in 2007, but is now very overgrown.

On reaching the addle, the cut track along the ridgeline ends, and you must drop west into the head of the Piripiri Stream. The first few meters involve poking through / crawling under tall scrub, but you soon reach a steeply dropping gully of tall grass/low scrub. Follow the gully downriver as it grows to become the Piripiri Stream. There is no cklear track down the stream and it is slow, steep going. A creek joins from the north side, and some pinetrees occupy the valley face. Soon after a grassy slip/face on the northern valleyside is reached. A small DOC triangle exists here, but is hard to find. Climbing the grassy face you pick up an overgrown, sparsely marked track zigzagging up the valleyside to reach Piripiri Hut in the bush above. The hut is where maps say it is, so if you have a GPS you may have to resort to following that until you find it if you fail to locate the track. The hut is not visible until you walk into it.

2021. Follow the poled route from high point 1350 into Leatherwood that is soon above head height. Turn SSE at the tarn at 580642. Track exits at the SW most corner of the tarn. Navigation was by map and compass with regular checks of our position on the GPS. A combination of following a heading and staying on the ridge spur to the saddle at 581637. At the saddle drop into the gut/creek and head WSW. Found the hut by taking a couple of high confidence GPS positions first, then setting a waypoint at Piripiri Hut. Companions nearly climbed past the hut in the dark - it is well obscured.

As of October 2021 the track is non-existent. Windfall and all manner of damage. Left high point 1350 at just after 17:00 after doing Mid-Po to Ngamoko by bush bashing and river due to higher than normal flow. Made it into Piripiri Hut at 00:30 the following morning. 8 hour bush bash from high point 1350. Consolation prize: Spotted several deer.I picked the route. Opinions vary: "Horrendous" (my companions), "Authentic" (me). Would not recommend this route unless hard pressed to do so. Not for the unfit or inexperienced. Daylight only. Allow plenty of time. Estimate it could be done in 6 hours in daylight.

Note: Described in the reverse direction to your journey

From Piripir Hut, drop to the Piripiri Stream, and head upriver however works best for you. Take the southern fork leading east to the saddle where the creek forks, and climb the creek / gut / face to reach the saddle itself. Here and old cut track rund north along the ridgeline - overgrown but followable, climbing to the main Ngamoko Range to the north. Shortly before reaching the summit a small tarn is reached, providing possible camp spots. The track scrambles steeply to the ridgeline above the tarn then swings NE along the range. Very overgrown and hard to lose - you may end up resorting to scrub-bashing until you reach clearer tops 1km further along which are traversed by a sparsely poled route. Things become scrubby again at pt1350 where the poled route ends at the turnoff east to Ngamoko Hut.