Field Hut and Table Top
Track category
Tramping track
Time:
5 - 6 hr return
Description
Field Hut
The day trip to Table Top is the classic climb to the tops of the western Tararua Range. It is also the entry/exit to the Southern Crossing, the classic tramp in the Tararuas.
From the Otaki Forks carpark, the Field Track crosses the Waiotauru footbridge and climbs steadily through rather sombre kamahi and beech forest for 2 - 2.5 hours to the historic Field Hut at 900 m, not far below the bushline.
Above the hut, the track climbs through a good example of leatherwood shrubland, to emerge on the tussocklands beyond Table Top (1047 m). A boardwalk and metalled track extend across several hundred metres of vulnerable subalpine bogs. The peaks of the Main Range and the gorges of the Otaki River sweep in an arc from east to north. The return trip can be completed in 5 - 6 hours.
Getting there
Otaki Forks is 19 km inland from Otaki township - approx. 1½ hour drive from Wellington or Palmerston North. The easiest turn-off from State Highway 1 is at Otaki Gorge Road, just south of the State Highway 1 bridge over the Otaki River. The last 5 km of the Otaki Gorge Road is unsealed, narrow and windy - please drive carefully.
Plan and prepare
Before you go into the outdoors, tell someone your plans and leave a date to raise the alarm if you haven't returned. To do this, use the New Zealand Outdoors Intentions process on the AdventureSmart website. It is endorsed by New Zealand's search and rescue agencies and provides three simple options to tell someone you trust the details about your trip.
Guides and commercial tourism providers