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2009 was the 5th year of the Motu – Minginui – Matawai Midwinter Madness ride and quite possibly the best yet.Wellington adventurers were well represented including a small contingent of five (John Forsyth, Tony Davies, Roger McMillan, Chris Mara and me) who met up early Friday morning at Waikanae. We travelled north in the remnants of the storm that had hammered Wellington overnight heading up SH1 to Levin then east to Shannon. It was still pretty damp but the roads were reasonably clear of traffic and we made good time to Ashhurst for the first fuel stop. The route north was pretty much determined by whether or not we could see clear sky ahead and we elected to head through the Pohangina Valley up to Apiti then cut down just north of Rangiwahia following the Mangawharariki River toward Mangaweka taking the eastern side of the main trunk line up to Taihape. The pace was quite enthusiastic for the first section of gravel, but as the drizzle turned to proper rain we slowed down a bit. Probably just as well as, just north of Mangaweka, Roger had a wee incident with a Ute resulting in a broken nose, a written off bike and the end of his weekend away. It could have been much worse and we were all very thankful he got off so lightly. Despite the weather the view was pretty good up there too!
After loading Roger’s bike on the Ute and making sure all was taken care of to get him back home we headed into Taihape for a bite of lunch at the Brown Sugar Cafe. The roaring fire was most welcome and a good chance to dry out soaking gloves etc.Onwards, and it was bloody cold on the Desert Road. John, intrepid adventurer that he is, led us off the Desert Road at the top of the Three Sisters onto a paper road into the Kaimanawa Forest that can best be described as a faint trail. “Don’t worry” he says, “I think I know where this goes”.
Sure enough, after much bush bashing and a few turns we popped out at the Rangipo Outlet. I knew where we were now as this road we ended up on was one I remembered from a previous adventure. Just along Kaimanawa Road a short walk brings you to the gorge known as the Pillars of Hercules. This deep gorge has a complex history of formation and the river has eroded a narrow channel through ancient lava flows (350,000 years and older) of andesite and ignimbrite rock.Time is pressing on though and the evening’s destination was the Rangitaiki Tavern on the Napier - Taupo Rd. After gas in Taupo where we met up with John Glasswell from Auckland we rolled in to find only a few others there so quickly established ourselves in the bar and organised a string line to get our wet gear drying over the fire.
A mighty fine roast dinner was put on by the new proprietors of the Tavern. After a few more beers it was off to bed. Marion at the pub had pulled out all the stops to accommodate our over-capacity crowd. Most had cabins but I didn’t think it a great hardship to be sleeping on a mattress on the floor of the bar right next to the fire.The morning dawned rather nippy, a -6 something degree frost. That didn't appear to deter Eddie, who had set off from Wellington at 4:00 am just to make the start line by 8:30. What a legend!28 keen riders set off from the pub, on a diverse selection of machinery ranging from a 250 Super Sherpa, a DRZ400 and 525EXC, the usual flock of DR650s, a big turnout of LC4s, a couple of KLR 650s, a Triumph Scrambler right through to the big KTM and BMW twins we were on. We collected a few more starters at the Waipunga turnoff then barrelled across the high Kaingaroa plains through the Whirinaki Forest to Minginui. We were running the corner man system through the maze of forestry roads. A stunning ride with a lot of ice lying to the side of the trail as we got higher, but at least the sun was out.
We regrouped at Minginui before heading 100km through the guts of the Urewera National Park to Waikaremoana. I just can’t get enough of this place. Waikeremoana is the land of the Tuhoe and is steeped in legend and mystery. By and large the road is still really narrow, winding, and unsealed. The scenery is stunning too, particularly up to the Hopruahine summit where we were soon above the snowline. 
We wound our way down to the lake and around its shore before calling into the motor camp for the smaller bikes to fuel up and the rest of us to eat all their pies.From there it was off to Wairoa and Osler’s Bakery for lunch. Wairoa was hot; and we gladly sat in the sun for while.From Wairoa we dealt to the only real stretch of highway so far, about 70 kms then, just as the clouds darkened and the rain intensified, we saw ahead a beacon, an oasis in a sea of wet tarmac and sodden paddocks. Yes, we’d reached the Tiniroto Pub!As it happens there was a party going on. All the locals had gathered for a baby shower. Oddly enough it seemed like all the young girls in the district were at various stages of pregnancy. One of the local ladies quipped, “Was a pretty boring spring we had here mate!”After a great stop, we headed out turning off the main road and into the sunset onto a scenic web of back roads. The gravel roads were in great condition and plenty of fun was had by all as we made our way through the hill country sheep stations. Our destination was Journeys End Station at the end of the road. Journeys End belongs to Rob and Ann Sherman. It’s a 4582ha working sheep, cattle and deer farm. The farm is steep to rolling countryside, with a 17km boundary that backs onto bush line and into the Urewera National Park.Our accommodation was the shearer’s quarters, and most salubrious it was too. Malcolm was there waiting outside the shearers quarters with a roaring fire and a trailer load of beer when we rolled in - what a legend! We parked the bikes under the woolshed and got stuck in.
Ann had been busy cooking up a huge meal for the masses and the home grown lamb and venison casseroles went down extremely well with the hungry horde.On Sunday morning we rolled out of Journeys End to take in some more enjoyable gravel back roads to Matawai. One KTM ran dry about ½ a km from the gas station and had to be topped up by a Suzuki, oh the shame! The Matawai Pub, at the junction of SH2 and the Motu Road, houses a varied collection of memorabilia of pioneer times. Matawai was a sawmilling settlement that gradually became a farming centre as the bush was felled.
After the team had fuelled up and raided the Hard Drive Café of anything resembling breakfast food, we set off up the Motu Rd. This route was well used by Maori Chief Te Kooti during the19th Century as the only direct route between Poverty Bay and Opotiki. Early in 1872 the pursuit of Te Kooti led to the upper reaches of the Motu River; however, Te Kooti escaped into the fastnesses of the Urewera Country. Motu means “isolated” or “severed”. The Motu Road is a winding metal road that sees little traffic, apart from the odd 4-wheel drive and stock truck (and a heap of mountain bikers these days), but is rich in history. This road is one of the best rides through native bush in the country, offering panoramic views from its various saddles.A couple of small, but deceptively deep, water crossings provided clear entertainment for some. Chris showed how it “should” be done on his 950SE.
We’d just arrived in Opotiki and sorted the first coffee when Clint turned up to let us know that Rob’s R1200GS had given up the ghost about 20 kms back in the Motu. John Glasswell, Colin and I headed out to see if we could assist. Having witnessed Rob’s “splash” in the last creek crossing, we armed ourselves with a can of WD-40 in case this was the cause of any problem. 
As it happens, the BSK unit had fried itself, not even WD-40 was going to sort that out. Colin duly went off to call the AA and we somewhat reluctantly left Rob with his bike to await a pick-up and a ride back to Auckland with his bike.We got back into Opotiki around 3:00 in the afternoon. All the others had headed of to Lake Rotoiti but John and I headed to Paengaroa for a cup of tea at my Mum’s place. I was planning on staying the night and John left for a straight run back to Auckland.The plan was to meet the guys I’d ridden up with in Taupo on the Monday morning. I left Mum’s at 7:00 am, and it was freezing. The mist between Rotorua and Taupo froze as soon as it hit my visor. Not the most comfortable trip and I looked like a snowman when I arrived in Taupo around 9:00. I had coffee and breakfast waiting for the others. At 10:00 there was still no sign of them, and my cell phone wasn’t working. Turns out they went somewhere other than where we’d arranged to meet. Not to worry, I had a good ride home despite a bit of ice on the northern side of the Desert Road. On the top though, the sun came out and the views over to Mt Ruapehu was just stunning.
I ended up heading back down the eastern side of the island in the sun, quite nice on my own after a weekend with so many great people. Got to make sure I do this ride again next year. There are plenty of other photos and more of the story at http://www.advrider.com/forums/showthread.php?t=489989
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