Mt Rochfort Conservation Area and Lake Rochfort - New Years Day 2024

 New Years day 2024 dawned fine and all was ready for my planned Mt William SOTA activation on the West Coast. Just before I was due to leave camp, I happened across a news item that said the access road to Denniston had been closed by a slip and people were being rescued from the other side... 

I still went to check, not what you want to see...

Time to quickly re-plan, drat, no other accessible SOTA peaks in the area so it would have to be something else. I spotted Lake Rochfort in the Mt Rochfort Conservation Area and decided that would do.

It's a hydro lake, the walk up takes you via the 4.2 MW powerhouse/tail race and up the historic access track, complete with Totara steps in places.

Tailrace

Old Totara steps still in good condition

It's a nice walk and you soon arrive that the lake to be greeted with a shelter and picnic table! Well, it would be rude not to use it so I got set up using the shelter to bungee my pole, turned on the radio to be greeted with S9+ of QRM (from the solar regulators I expect). 

Too good to be true...

Quick pack up and head to the SE end of the lake, hopefully quieter there. Only marginally as it turned out. Tweaked the KX2 nose blanker and away we went.

Given that I had alerted for a SOTA summit, I didn't want to cause confusion by calling CQ so just chased the activators on SSB each side of the UTC rollover.

After getting John ZL3MR on his Goat summit (and fortuitously giving him his 4th contact to qualify as a Goat) I packed up and headed back to the car. Not quite a SOTA summit but a nice walk on a good day.

Good walk, 6km and 426m vertical, lots of SOTA summits that are easier than this!

Access is a small white sign on left about 20m before the bridge on Powerhouse Road (about 7km North of Westport). There's a parking area on the South side of the road. The track is well marked/used.

Cell service was fine with Spark/Skinny

ZL3/WC-638 Un-named summit near Reefton

 This is another one of Andrew ZL3CC's First Activation summits, in fact it hadn't been activated since he did it. We (like many!) have always driven straight through Reefton, however this year, we decided to stay a few nights and have a look around. The first town in NZ to have reticulated electric power, what's not to like?!

Thursday 28th Dec 2023 dawned warm and fine, the starting point at Blacks Point is only 3 minutes away from the camping ground and I was there and ready to go at 8am. Taking the left track directly up the spur, I was soon sweating out the Christmas cheer. The initial part is steep but well benched. Soon the exotic forest is left behind and we are into the native, lots of predator traps and wasp bait stations and the abundant birdsong proves their worth. I heard what I thought was a Kaka and sure enough, on the way down later, I was lucky enough to have a close encounter with one - very special! 

The remains of old goldmines are preserved as if they had just been abandoned. Very interesting relics scattered around.

I arrived at the Horse Whims turnoff which Andrew determined was within the AZ, I agree. However, like Andrew, I climbed up through the bush towards the summit a little to be sure and to get away from what looked like a well-used track. Another good call as two parties went through while I was there (but they were unaware of me).

Unusual operating surrounds for us Cantabs!

The bush is fairly thick so the EFHW wended its way through convenient branches then up to the top of the 6m pole and down again to a convenient trunk. I spotted a few wasps so was very careful where I walked...

Yellow antenna wire looped around the trees at head-height

The KX2 tuner made short work of finding a match so it was time to get out a spot or National System repeater call. No service from either, I think the Greymouth Nat Sys node has moved since Andrew used it as I could not access it at all. OK, call CQ on 7032 kHz CW so the RBN can let people know I am about. I then went to 7090 kHz and it worked, I worked Phil ZL3JD, ZL3PEA, ZL4AB and then Rick ZL3RIK who spotted me and it was all on! I got Dave ZL3DRN on his summit then worked my way up the bands. No VKs but Chris F4WBN, NW7E and WB6POT in the log on 15m CW. Nothing happening on 10m.

Expecting John ZL3MR and Nick ZL3NLA to arrive on their summit at 11am, I went back to 40m SSB and waited. As the day warmed up, the wasps were getting more active so I was keen to get moving. Once they were in the log, I packed up and headed down. Home to Reefton in time for lunch! There are several loop options to get back, the Konini fork would bring you right back to Reefton (if someone dropped you at the start point).

Want a Bach right at the carpark of a SOTA track?!

Time: 1 hour 15 min to the summit. 4.2 km with about 500 m vertical gain

Cell: No reception

Repeaters: None available

Trig: none, the summit is not even noted as a point on the topomap!

Mt Rochfort ZL3/WC-576

During our Christmas/New year break on the West Coast, I decided to do the first SOTA activation of this mountain, visible from Westport.

The summit is accessed from the Denniston plateau and could be a drive-up given a suitable 4WD vehicle. Not sure if permission would be needed but there is no signage and Kordia have  a substantial site at the top. The road is pretty good with just a couple of gnarly bits. Anyway, it's a nice walk from the Whareatea Road turnoff. I drove up a bit to find a nice parking area between the two sets of beehives. A very pleasant walk to the top with mostly easy grade. Plenty of things to look at on the way so walking is a good option.

Weather had been wet and windy but there looked like a bit of a window to exploit, Metservice forgot to notify the mountain though! It was claggy and windy at the top with intermittent showers. I set up just to the South of the tower with some protection from the wind. A convenient waratah supported the pole and the EFHW wire snaked around and over the bluff. There was no interference evident from the large commercial equipment on the tower, mostly microwave.

EFHW snaking around the bluff

I had worked one of the locals via the Westport repeater whilst driving to the start but after a couple of calls on the Wesport repeater from the summit, had no takers on 146.5 MHz. I wonder if people have forgotten how to use simplex?

HF was playing nicely and I soon had the loyal ZL chasers in the log on 40m SSB including S2S with Nick ZL3NLA on Trig M. I then headed up the bands and worked Scott ZL1KB on 20m; WB6POT, F4WBN and JH1MXV on 15m CW and K7SS on 10m. Cold and damp, I headed back to 40m to await a chance to work Dave ZL3DRN on Snowy Peak for another S2S. Duly achieved and also Paul ZL3PA who was having trouble hearing me earlier. A good haul so I packed up and headed down to find a sheltered spot for lunch and then back to the car.

The Escarpment, drops away pretty quickly!

This is a really nice summit, I'm keen to come back and do it on a good day to see the views! The abundance of minerals is obvious in the track metal and the walls along the side of the track, coal seams everywhere!

Getting there: Turn off the highway at Waimangaroa and drive up to Denniston, turn right onto Whareatea Mine Road and just before you reach the locked gates, turn right. Find somewhere to park and follow the 4WD track to the top.

Turnoff to the summit road

Permission: Not required Mt Rochfort Conservation Area

Distance ~4km to the top with ~400m of vertical gain. About 1 hour

Repeaters: Westport 675 accessible, Greymouth not. No local contacts.

Trig: Yes and substantial infrastructure towers and buildings

Cell - 4G on Skinny/Spark