How to get there
At Upper Takaka (at the base of Takaka Hill on the
Golden Bay side), a narrow, 28 kilometre road, leads to Cobb Reservoir -
care is required.
There is a lookout and information kiosk on Cobb Ridge,
above the reservoir, and a telephone near the dam. The road follows the
lakeside to Trilobite Hut (12 bunks). Nearby is a camping and picnic area.
On-demand taxi services are available to or from the Cobb.
From the access road
Asbestos
Cottage. 1 hr 30 min, 6 km.
This track leaves the access road two kilometres past
the powerhouse and follows the old (now disused) asbestos mine access
road. Initially it is a path, becoming a tramping track at the first slip.
At the old mine, rusting relics remind us of another
era. Beyond the mine the track steepens and climbs for 30 minutes to
rustic Asbestos Cottage (4 bunks), home of Annie Chaffey and her intrepid,
Asbestos miner-husband, Henry, for 40 years.
Bullock Track (Asbestos Cottage to Cobb Reservoir). 2-3
hr, 4km.
The track goes downhill for 30 minutes from Asbestos
Cottage to join the Bullock Track, then winds up to the Cobb Ridge where
the gradient eases and it joins the Cobb Ridge Track at Peat Flat. It then
crosses part of the flat before descending steeply to the road beside Cobb
Reservoir.
Ridge Top Routes (Cobb Lookout to
Myttons Hut). 3 hr, 8 km.
This route leaves the Cobb Road near the information
kiosk and runs along the Cobb Ridge above the reservoir to meet the
Bullock Track near Peat Flat. From here the route climbs onto Peel Ridge
before decending on the Lake Peel Track to the head of Cobb Reservoir.
Short walks in the Cobb
Cobb Dam to Lake Sylvester. 2 hr, 5 km.
The walking track zig-zags up through beech forest and
levels as it approaches the open tops. There are a number of lakes, all
glacial in origin, within easy and not-so-easy reach of Sylvester Hut (12
bunks). There are no markers beyond Lake Sylvester.
Lake Peel Track. 2
hr 30 min, 41/2 km.
A short walk (10 minutes) leads up to Myttons Hut (4
bunks). Beyond the hut, the tramping track winds steadily up to Peel Ridge
(11 2— 2hrs). It crosses the ridge and then drops down, before sidling
around to the beautiful ice-sculptured basin that holds Lake Peel.
Cobb Valley Track
A well defined walking track leads from the roadend at
Trilobite Hut (12 bunks) up the valley, alongside the Cobb River. Walk as
far as you like - opportunities for picnicking, swimming and fishing
abound.
The upper Cobb valley
Trilobite Hut to Fenella Hut 4hr 30min, 12km.
Follow the walking track from Trilobite Hut to the Cobb
valley for 112 hours to reach Chaffeys Hut (derelict).
From there a tramping track continues up the valley
floor. It takes about 2 1/2 hours to get to Cobb Hut (4 bunks) where a
shortwalk will take you to Cobb Lake and Round Lake above it. These lakes
provided water to the earlier hydro-electric development.
Beyond Cobb Hut the track climbs for about half an hour
up a series of glacier-worn rocky steps to Fenella Hut (12 bunks). It was
built as a memorial to Fenella Druce, who was killed in 1977 when the
Three Johns Hut was blown over a bluff in Mount Cook National Park.
Beyond Fenella
Marked and unmarked routes branch off in all directions
from here. To the north lies the Douglas Range and a day trip to Kakapo
Peak (1783m) or a 4-day journey to Boulder Lake; to the west is the Tasman
Wilderness Area and eastward the Lockett Range, an adventurous return
route to the Cobb dam via Lake Sylvester.
Connecting Flora Carpark and the Cobb valley
For those seeking a longer (3-5 days) round-trip than
the Tablelands Circuit, there are connections between Flora Carpark and
the Cobb valley:
Over the Tablelands (Lake Peel-Salisbury Lodge). 3hrs, 7km.
From Lake Peel a tramping track sidles up on to a ridge
and then descends slowly to Balloon Hut (112 hours). Salisbury Lodge is 11
2 hours further on.
Via the Takaka valley (Upper Junction-Cobb Road.
From Upper Junction walk down to Lower Junction. Take
the left branch of the track, cross Broken Bridge (Takaka River) and exit
to the Cobb Road via the old asbestos works or Bullock Track and Cobb
Ridge.
