History

Travel in New Zealand

The only way to travel throughout New Zealand in the early 1800's was overland on foot or on horseback, or from port to port by ship. Overland was difficult and time consuming, and the sea service was dangerous and unreliable.

In 1882 the government wanted a railway link between Auckland and Wellington.

The railheads at that time were at Te Awamutu and Marton.

Various rail routes were surveyed to find the best way to connect Te Awamutu and Marton.

The central route was surveyed by John Rochfort in 1883.

Rochfort's route, which crossed the high volcanic plateau along the western side of Mount Ruapehu, was recommended by government in 1884.

What the research discovered

In the 1870's a bridle trail crossed the central North Island volcanic plateau along the western side of Mt Ruapehu.

In 1887 a start was made to widen and upgrade the bridle trail to cart road status so it could be used to provide access for the few settlers wanting to farm in the area, and as a service road for the coming railway construction gangs.

The government plan was to advance the rail-laying from Marton north to Ohakune, and from Te Awamutu south to Raurimu. Once Ohakune and Raurimu became the railheads, passengers could be ferried by coach across the intervening gap.

Railway construction was relatively straight forward until the tracks reached Ohakune and Raurimu. Engineers recognised the Gap between these two railheads would be a slower build requiring complex structures to close it.

Most of the gap between the railheads is more than 2400 feet above sea level with Pokaka at 2730 feet.

The 700 foot climb onto the volcanic plateau from the north was solved with the famous Raurimu Spiral featuring two tunnels. Over the plateau, three viaducts were needed to cross deep ravines.

Another two viaducts and a tunnel were engineered for the 500 foot climb from Ohakune in the south.

The already upgraded cart road close to the rail route was to be further upgraded to carry coaches.
It had to be open all year through ice and snow in winter and hot and dusty conditions in summer.

The Public Works Department, under the control of resident engineer Fred Furkett, was responsible for road construction and in February 1906 his staff began upgrading the cart road.

Coach Crossing Sulphur Stream

A solid hard wearing surface was needed on steep sections between Ohakune and Horopito to give horses grip as they pulled not only coaches loaded with people and luggage, but also carts carrying supplies and equipment for the railway construction gangs.

Stones from the surrounding area were set on top of the cart road to create a hard wearing stone surface.

Near Ohakune, at the highest point on the Skyline Section, the cart road diverged from the planned railway alignment so a new road surfaced with cobblestones was built to service the Taonui Viaduct construction site.

From the Taonui Viaduct the new road continued alongside the railway alignment to Horopito where it rejoined the existing cart road to Raurimu.

The upgraded road between Ohakune and Raurimu was ready for coach traffic in late December 1906.

The first coach trip to cross the 24 mile “Gap” was on 10th January, 1907. At that time, the train journey between Auckland and Wellington took three days.

The first day from Wellington, was to Taihape, where passengers stayed the night.

The next day was by train to the Ohakune railhead station in the bush, (not the present station) where passengers boarded coaches and began the journey along the coach road to Raurimu.

The coaches from Ohakune climbed around 500 feet up to the plateau on the cobbled part of the road, crossed the mostly level plateau on a hard packed scoria and pumice surface to Waimarino (now National Park) then down 700 feet to Raurimu.

At Raurimu the passengers boarded a waiting train which took them to Taumarunui for the second night. On the third day the passengers continued their journey by train to Auckland.

Travelling south from Auckland, the first day was to Taumarunui for an overnight stop. The next day was by train to Raurimu, coach across the Gap to Ohakune, then train to Taihape for the night. The third day was by train from Taihape to Wellington.

A train full of passengers and their luggage needed between six to ten coaches to cross the Gap each way. The train became a caravan of coaches. Running the coaches was big business, for many people were needed to operate the shuttle service.

The coaches needed drivers and regular maintenance, the horses had to be trained, fed, shod, stabled and groomed, and staff needed accommodation.

Some of the coaches were the soft riding Concord type from the U.S.

The coaches were pulled by five horses, three in front and two behind. Perhaps this configuration was to keep the overall length of the vehicle as short as possible to negotiate the sharp corners and still maintain sufficient horse power to climb the steep sections?

In November 1907 when the Raurimu spiral was completed, the railhead moved up to National Park, and the coaching “Gap” reduced to around 18 miles.
When the railway tracks reached Erua, the coaching “Gap” was further reduced.

On May 1st, 1908, Makatote became the north end railhead making the coaching “Gap” 11 miles.

Ohakune remained the southern railhead for the two years the coaches were used to carry passengers across the Gap.

On November 6th, 1908, the Prime Minister Sir Joseph Ward officially opened the North Island Main Trunk line with a Last Spike ceremony near Pokaka.

The Gap was closed and the railway ready for through traffic. Coaching passengers across the Gap was no longer necessary. The last coach run carried railway passengers across the “Gap” on November 8th, 1908.

For two hectic years, the coaches made it possible for people to travel between Auckland and Wellington, and the railway Department to collect fares to help pay for construction before the railway was finished.

After the railway was opened, the coach road was used by locals for a short time until State Highway 49 was built, and Ohakune Borough Council placed large logs across the road to close it off.

The road was left to disappear in the bush. Tree branches grew across the road, grass appeared between the cobbles and toitoi took hold. The road was disappearing from sight and memory.

The road, although hidden, remained.

And has now been remembered.