On Saturday after quick coffee in Te Aroha, we went on to the Tuahu track, through beautiful bush, in lovely sunshine. We turned on to North/South track and on to Motutapere Hut (5hrs tramping). The hut was thankfully empty, as, although we all had tents, a fierce wind blew up and blew all night, making the hut tremble! It was very cold overnight, we rose early, had breakfast, and away by 7.45am Sunday, continuing South on the North/South track till we met the Thompson track. We went up to the Thompson Saddle, but the day was grey and overcast, so none of the great views we had experienced the previous day. Because of massive areas of erosion on the track, we lost our way for a while but finally found the track again and plodded on through some pretty serious mud, finally arriving at the Thompson carpark, where a farmer kindly drove us back to our car at the Tuahu carpark (5 hrs tramping). Lunch and a coffee in Te Aroha, then back to the big smoke.