Tag Archives: show your skills

Piano Flat and Waikaia Bush Road

I was planning this trip for some time, the preparation was done but the weather was not suitable, the track is very challenging with many unexpected obstacles. The Waikaia Bush road or Whitecoomb road goes from Fruitlands to Waikaia through private farmland and later through DOC land. The road is much easier if you start by Fruitlands and continue to Waikaia. We took Waikaia Bush Road the access is just around the corner by Shingle Creek coming from direction Fruitlands.

On the first 8 km are few farm gates to open the road is in a very good maintained condition. After the last gate DOC land begins and the road is not maintenance, the road is filled up with rain water which could be front wheel deep or only few inches, but the mud in the paddle is very soft bike is drifting from one side to the other, most difficulty is the tyre marks from 4WD cars which can’t be seen at all, then relay to your luck to get through. I cannot recommend to try riding around the paddle, the ground is very soft as well and the tussock very thick. I drove through all paddle it was very slippery. After I managed the last paddle the road got rockier with wash outs, I decided to drive in the washouts which are not very deep, but without any mud, the tyre had a reasonable grip too. On the next section I experienced a lot of rock steps which remained me more riding down a staircase than anything else. The steps were as high as 40 cm and super slippery covered with a very thin layer of mud and gravel. It is possible to camp beside the track and the scenery is very beautiful, there is a swamp on top of the range too. After the 4WD club stuck in May 2016 the last part of the road (on the Waikaia site) has been improved a lot, there are no wash outs or gaps in the road. It is extreme slippery in wet condition. I put on a brand new Heidenau Scout 60 tyre I have had to work very hard to keep my bike on track.