Tūpari Reserve Packhorse Hut Track

Time: 3 hours and 45 minutes (includes lunch)
Distance: 8.8 km
Start: Car park at the end of Parkinsons Road, Ataahua
Finish: Same place - it's a loop
Date: Friday 17th April 2026

Whiro. New moon and a spring tide. Today we were travelling stylishly in Kim's new waka which has heated seats to warm one's bottom. Lovely! It's about one hours drive from Christchurch to Kaituna Valley Road via Lyttelton Harbour and Gebbies Pass. The Kaituna Valley contains a small settlement called Ataahua which means "beautiful" in Te Reo Māori.  "Kai" means "eat", "tuna" means "eels". We parked at the end of Parkinsons Road having just reached a consensus that a certain U.S. President is, in fact, a misogynist cockwomble.

The Mikimiki Trust, established by Mark Nixon, Megan Renolds, Ed and Megan van Opzeeland in 2022, purchased (for multi-millions of dollars) two separate blocks of Kaituna Valley farmland (about 730 ha) and created the Tūpari Reserve as a "gift to the nation". I love stories like this. Volunteers cut the Tūpari Reserve Packhorse Hut Track which opened 31st January 2026. This new track provides a nice loop when combined with the Kaituna Valley Packhorse Hut Track.

The Tūpari Reserve is still work in progress (according to the notice board at the carpark), and part of a movement to recloak Te Pātaka o Rākaihautū with native forest. A korowai. We pfaffed around for a couple of minutes scanning the map, wondering exactly where the track starts, but once through the open gate there was clear signage directing us up the hill.  

Both Kim and Jane have been doing a lot of hard core walking lately, and we set off at a cracking pace. After about 30 minutes of continuous exertion we reached the memorial to Peter Robert Barrett who was the original farm owner. He sold the land at a lower-than-market price to the Mikimiki Trust, thereby playing his part in all of this. 

The track alternates between farmland and bush remnants (tōtara, matai, kāhikatea).  There was evidence of multiple slips from the February 2026 storms. Dried out now, and tracks repaired - but land damaged none-the-less. In one forest remnant, two adorable piwakawaka flitted about us.  One was pied and the other was entirely black - which, according to nzbirdsorline.org.nz, is rare.

The track passed some rocky outcrops then levelled out, with views of Moana Nui a Kiwa on the horizon. Ataahua. We crossed the last bush remnant before joining up with the Kaituna Valley Packhorse Hut Track. As we neared the saddle and the Sign of the Packhorse Hut, we were buffeted by Nor' Westerly winds.

At the hut, three friendly teenage girls were sitting around the wood burner toasting marshmallows. Cosy! They cleared the table for us and Kim reached into her small backpack and flourished hot chocolates. Such a luxury!! Bless her!! The girls joined us for lunch at the table, hovering over their shared packet of cheds and two tins of tuna - munching and chatting. It turns out, Jane is good friends with their mother's, friend's second cousin once removed. Or something like that.

It was time to get back out into the bluster. The Kaituna Valley Packhorse Hut Track is an old farm road that mostly follows the ridge. Wide enough so that we could chitchat and sing 80's refrains from Chrissie Hyndes and Blondie. Half way down we stood aside to let some horses and their riders pass by.  

We had a second lunch at The White Rabbit Cafe. Rosemary had run away but Thistle was blobbing out - looking rather large. On the drive back to Crikers we worked on our 10-point-plan to solve the world's problems. This includes: reeducating all misogynist cockwombles; eating 10 servings of vegetables every day; doing some fucking art.

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