Chook's Tracks
Round tramp approx. 8.65 km
By seeking permission of the owners it is possible to do a round tramp in this old timber milling valley and early 1900 farming area.
The sawmill, to which the logs were delivered via tramline, was situated in the river paddock behind the letter boxes before crossing the ford onto the wires track road.
The telegraph line (1872) passed through the Te Hue Valley.
After walking up the farm for 10 minutes and crossing a small side stream, one leaves the valley floor and climbs to the left up to a fenceline with a style, over which lies the start of the old Sterling Bros. logging road put in around 1930.
A further hours walk brings you to a spot (Log hauler road to right) on the right of the road where the hauler was situated along with a small Kauri Tree.
Further on after a steep pinch is the junction (Turn left to big kauri tree) where the left hand track leads to the Te Hue Kauri tree. Girth 11 metres, bole height 20 metres.Volume 115.48m³.
There are some white markers on this part of the track.
The track to the summit of the range climbs slightly right from the junction and onto a benched track which leads to the main ridge, a little over 30 minutes.
At this point, left takes one out onto Whakapiro (Whakapiro lookout) ,around 15 minutes, to the most wonderful views reaching across to the Wires Track, Golden Cross, Marototo Valley, Paeroa, Hauraki Plains and down to Thames.
Retracing your steps and passing the junction down to the Sterling Track lands you at a junction on the main divide (Turn right to "Rat's Tooth") where right goes to the Rats Tooth and straight ahead puts you onto the old Mangaroa Pack Track which ran from the Old Marototo Road to south of the Omahu Hills.
Down the pack track for approx. half an hour is the junction (Turn right to Maori canoes and Onetai Valley) which leads down to the Onetai Valley.
Ten minutes down the main track from here (Turn left at this junction) one turns off to the left and drops down rather sharply onto a ridge where views of the side of Whakapiro can be seen on your left followed by an easy down hill run to cross a small stream and come out across a paddock by the bridge by the homestead.
P.S. Straight ahead at (Turn left at this junction) passes Dog Rock and a private dwelling before coming out onto farmland.