We had 5 trucks & roughly 20 people (not all 4 wheeling of course).
Roll Call was as follows:
Te Rino (92 Nissan Terrano, Myself)
Sooty (89 Nissan Safari, Brandon)
Toyota Hilux (Cameron)
Toyota 4Runner (Brett)
91 Nissan Terrano (Kieren)
2nd Jan:
Kieren, Brett & myself were the first to pull into the Kakaho campgrounds at around 10:30. A few things of note since last year were the shiny new dunnies & the large amount of resident wasps (quickly taken care of with a coke bottle trap). We setup camp and immediately set out on a firewood mission as there was nothing at the campsite and we all know how cold Pureora can get. After a quick collection Brett's 4Runner suffered a breakage so it was a tow back to camp. Thankfully our resident mechanic, Cameron, was onsite by then to diagnose the problem. We spent the afternoon doing a quick run up "Dead Dog Hill" before heading back to camp for dinner & beers around the fire.
3rd Jan:
As Brett's truck was still out of commission it was Cameron, Kieren & myself that were up bright and early for the day ahead. We loaded up and headed out along Bog Inn Road, poking our noses in tracks to check their quality since last year. We headed down a track near the 40 Acre which didn't seem to have been attacked in a while. We walked each hazardous bit with spade, chainsaw & axes making alterations to ensure safety was maximum. The climax of this track was the long rocky luge through which every truck got a few wheels off the ground. All in all a very successful day's driving running with the motto "What needs to be done to make this track drivable?"
It was off to the Tihoi trading post for Dinner & a beer then back to camp to await the rest of our Party; Sooty, it's driver Brandon & our resident track guide, "Happy Das".
4th Jan:
With Happy Das in tow & Sooty's winch in the front, we headed out for day 2 of adventure. Brett was back in action but Kieren's Terrano was left at home as today was gonna be a little rougher. We headed into the Rotorua Highway and our motto of yesterday disappeared, today was all about "how can we complete the track" & team recovery. Drivers, Co-Drivers & trucks limits alike were all tested. The highlight of the day had to be Cameron's Hilux driving a monster of a hill that the rest of us had to be smartly winched up. Top marks his way for that. In the end every truck got through although the Toyotas did come out a little worse for wear Panelwise.
We had a fun little competition going today which saw:
The Toyota's Outdrive the Nissans in more parts
&
The IFS trucks outdrive the SA trucks in others
5th Jan
Our final day at camp was pouring with Rain so we all decided to pack it up and head home by mid afternoon. A weekend of accomplisments and I must say, I was very impressed with "Te Rino's" first trip through Pureora. Bring on Easter weekend when we return again.
Here is the compilation video of our trip:
See ya'll out in the mud.
