When is molesworth station open

Driving the Molesworth Station is something that I had always wanted to tick off my bucket list. You would only do it once but it is worth doing. Starting in Blenheim you head to the Awetere Valley and once off the sealed roads its a good 2 plus hours to the start of the station. A lot of dust and gates to open but the scenery is worth it. Make sure you stop at the cottages as they are worth while seeing and reading the history of the place.

It can be dangerous when you meet another car coming the other way. Usually you can see them coming from the dust but be careful on corners. We took the Jollies pass which was a mistake as there was one large rut that we had to navigate carefully over.

Better to take Jacks pass. Keith C Dorset, UK 1, contributions. After 50 years of reading books and viewing photos and videos of Molesworth, we finally got there! And it was Firstly, the weather was optimal for us - clear blue sky, little wind and warm 21C and you cant help but marvel at this big countryside and mountain landscape. We had taken our SUV to drive through from Blenheim to Hanmer Springs, camping overnight at the Acheron camping area at the southern end of Molesworth.

We werent in a hurry, so we stopped when we wanted to, there were minimum safety issues on the dusty gravel and sometimes corrugated roads though the first part up the Awatere is sealed and in excellent condition. The glacial blue river, the different shades of 'brownscapes' and the crystal blue sky are a dazzling experience.

The frequent splashes of verdant green pasture adding further to the contrasts and the richness of colour. And when we thought we'd seen it all It was the end of the tourist season early April , which probably explained why we nearly had the camp area at Acheron to ourselves one other camper. We knew we had to be self-sufficient because there is only a toilet a sweet-smelling DOC long drop , so with tent, sleeping bags, stove and ready-meal Just beware of the persistent sandflies!

We drove through to Hanmer Springs the next morning, sad to leave a magic place. But we'll be back again to take the other road up to Lake Tennyson and the Rainbow and do some of the walks available on this remarkable high country farm.

Bill P 87 contributions. I did the trip with a group of 4x4 enthusiasts. The road was in good condition. The only issue was the dust requiring at least m separation. The only tough part was the Jollies Pass road requiring high clearance 4x4 vehicles. It was bumpy however a couple of family cars past us coming up the hill. Well worth the trip.

Herbie15 contributions. Has always been on my bucket list so decided to spend the weekend doing it. Great to travel and saw normal cars and a motor home doing the trip. I would imagine it would be a bit harder if the rivers were higher.

Stop at the information boards. Well maintained sites, and that's what you get with DOC. The toilets were well maintained. Most buildings are sealed off due to earthquake damage. Did the Rainbow Station on the way back. Definitely 4x4 material there but we did see some bicycles doing the track. Stunning country there as well. Kiwiseley Auckland Central, New Zealand contributions.

The back of beyond of the back of beyond We filled the car up at Hanmer Springs and headed towards Molesworth. You drive for around 15 minutes until you reach the station. A signpost reads km to SHI The first part of the road is relatively smooth and you travel at around 60kph that soon changes. We passed three campervans coming the other way within fifteen minutes. It is around 20 minutes to get to the Acheron "homestead" where there is a DOC campsite.

For those that want just a taste of Molesworth, you probably should turn around and go back to Hanmer. We continued on the unsealed gravel road for four hours. The road winds through the station, following the Acheron river. As it is a working farm, you need to open and shut many gates to ensure the stock stay where they are meant to. A four wheel drive is not required, but be sure to have a vehicle with good ground clearance.

Signage along the way is minimal and if you break down it may take hours for you to be rescued. The scenery is spectacular and you certainly feel the remoteness. Once you get back onto the sealed road, you still have to take care and beware of oncoming traffic.

If not used to driving on the left then you should probably avoid this road. Scenic drives in Norway. Romanian high altitude roads. The best canyon roads in Spain. Highest asphalted roads of Europe. The world's northernmost road ends. Most hairpinned roads in the world. Periodically flooded roads around the world. Australia's best 4wd tracks.

Top haunted roads on Earth. The road is only open from early October to early April and is described as a narrow, unsealed backcountry road. Seems to be a reasonable test road to us!

We will let them take up the story; "Molesworth Station has long been on our potential destination list and we had the opportunity to go with our friends Shirley and Arthur Taylor.

They are experienced motorhomers and were happy to have us tag along behind them. Our expectations were both for some wonderful views and, together with that, challenging driving conditions for our brand new Aviano. Along the way, we have to say we experienced both, however we should point out that the Aviano exceeded our expectations. We are aware that are there are some concerns about the front wheel drive Fiat Ducatos but we have to say front wheel drive proved to be remarkably good for the conditions we experienced.

It pulled us through the wet and dry fords easily and up short, sharp inclines very effectively. Although the driver had to be aware of the rear overhang when driving across fords and other hazards, by taking things slowly and at an angle, we never got stuck.