mountainz.co.nz

matteo · Joined: 29 Dec 2007 Posts: 15

Hi there,
has anyone driven up the Hopkins valley recently? Just wondering about the road condition up to monument hut
Thanks
Matteo

The Guyser · Joined: 02 Mar 2006 Posts: 92 Location: CHCH

The road was damaged years ago and as far as I know has not been fixed. Sad

There is a DOC carpark/roadend and after that a 1 hourish walk to Monument. Some folk take 4WDs through but unless there has been work its not for the family car...

Just one of many valleys in NZ where this phenomenon has drastically diminished the number of recreationalists actually visiting.

bugs · Joined: 20 May 2007 Posts: 104 Location: hooker valley

was up there in december and got the suby' up a few kms past the road end/doc gate..got to a river washout and could go no further,even the hunters with a hilux struggled to get through the last bit but managed..
was around 50 mins walk back to the car from monument.

highlandcraig · Joined: 08 Sep 2008 Posts: 24

We used the road about 2 weeks ago (thurs/fri 18/19-march) in a land rover discovery and made it to monument hut. Approx 1 km from the hut the road looks like it naturally goes through the river - no problems in normal flow.

ekul24 · Joined: 18 Feb 2009 Posts: 15 Location: Southland

Drove the road over Easter Weekend, went in Sunday morning after heavy rain the night before, parked the Suby wagon about 20 mins before the big washout further up. This was because the track had turned into a river and couldn't really see if there were going to be any big holes!

On the walk out though it was apparent the Subaru could have got all the way to that washout really easily. If you knew what you were doing you can get a wagon through the washout. Probably not without some scrapage though. We met a some people who had got their Sub Wagon to the end of the track before it goes into the river before Monument.

For those with more ground clearance the road would be in great condition, there were people driving up and down it all weekend from what we could tell.

GravelBen · Joined: 25 May 2009 Posts: 34 Location: Southland

As Luke says the track is pretty good at the moment, its had some serious upgrade work done since I was last there a year ago. There was a Subaru Forester parked outside Monument when we were walking out, as well as quite a few vehicles (4wds and Subaru wagons) which had parked by the last river crossing before it.

cragrat · Joined: 06 May 2005 Posts: 564

Dasler Pinnacles from Elcho Hut on the recent NZAC Hut maintainance weekend

Photo Nick Shearer