AKA Coro Street
 

Words & Images: Dave Mitchell & Ditte van der Meulen

The NZ Secret Service has long debated the directional merits for riding Coro Street and as part of the great unwashed we were tasked to put the matter to rest once and for all. Alas I suspect this debate will rage for eternity in the halls of power regardless of our input. Many say power corrupts but this I doubt. No it attracts the corruptible. As my old boss use to say “I would if I could but I can’t so I won’t”. We were sitting on the fence with no preconceived notion or bias. Either way Patagonia icecreams were waiting for us in Arrowtown at both ends of the roller coaster.

Take One, Coro Clockwise

We took the cycle trail through Millbrook Resort aka ‘golf heaven’, not wanting to brave the damp cold Bushy Creek climb that starts from the stunning autumn colours that have engulfed Arrowtown and its adjacent hillsides. We managed to arouse a filthy look from a golf cart driver on the shared tree lined pathway, a wonderful achievement so early on in the ride. We lapped up the luxury knowing only a massive inheritance or the spoils of corrupted power would allow us to reside amongst the chosen and look every day upon the manicured fairways, giving filthy looks to anyone invading our space.

Our cycle trail popped out and wandered beside the main road where we hoovered up the distance to the base of the Dan O’Connell uphill. We climbed through thickets of elderberry, rose hip and blackberry over schist and into tussock country with expanding autumn views of the patchwork quilt of the Arrow and Whakatipu Basin, and across to the foothills and snow dusted Remarkable mountains of morn. The track bermed its way up to the Coronet Peak Road, crossed and climbed up the Tradesmans Track to Tradesmans Saddle.

At the saddle we layered up for the Pack and Sack and Skippers Pack Track downhill. These were so wondrous, smooth and flowing they could have bought a smile to an old Russian communist. The snow on the distant mountains told a different story, winter was coming and these beautiful tracks would become bitter and twisted with frost heave and soft slushy snow. Like sticky porridge without the brown sugar.

We turned sharply right just above the historic weatherboard hut overlooking the remains of the Skippers Hotel. This newly built climb takes flight gradually rising above a 'dead as a doornail' wilding pine block, a grey ghost where it should never have been planted. An old washed out 4WD track had once reached the Green Gate Saddle. This has been sliced in two by the new MTB track. The top delivered a view into a new valley of open tussock slopes with old water race lines high up remote hillsides and a descent to die for.

After another epic fun DH we reached historic Green Gate Hut, its weathered wooden door and schist stone work contrasting with the new tin roof and posh outhouse. A sunny spot for first lunch. A massive slip just up the track had blocked the small stream creating Green Gate Lake, home to a Paradise duck/Pūtangitangi couple when we passed by. Superb single track climbs and descends along high terraces above Deep Creek. Massive rock tors march impassively along the northern face of Coronet Peak. Excellent flowy DHs complemented the short sharp climbs and the scenery was remote and spectacular.

We second lunched at Soho Homestead Hut where a random Trek Bosch battery sat discharged on the sofa under the verandah. If only it could tell us its story. A short descent took us onto the historic Macetown Road for a bit of puddle jumping and a series of rocky fast downhills. Piles of alluvial tailings line the river banks in places dating back to the late 1800s. The massive Arrowtown water supply pipeline can be seen following the Arrow River. Sections of pipe by the road are the old riveted iron variety common during the gold sluicing era. We could clearly hear the water bouncing off the rivet heads as it rushed towards the taps, showers and toilets of greater Arrowtown.

For mountain bikers and walkers, strategically placed sections of single track bypass the deep rocky and freezing Arrow River fords, with a final stair climb and balcony section just before the return to civilisation. Arrowtown was festooned with full frame cameras capturing the shades of yellow, orange and red that coloured the hillsides and historic town centre. Quite a shock to our senses having seen not a soul all day. We were just a passing oddity, heading for Patagonia like a pair of robbers dogs.

Take Two Coro Anticlock

With Jack Frost on the ground we pedalled through a thick layer of brightly coloured leaf litter on the short slice of the Arrow Gorge Track that drops you onto the Macetown Road. Stunning autumn colours distracted us from the bitter cold. We were rugged up but still were feeling it through three layers of GE kit. The road climbed steadily to a locked gate where miraculously the sun had risen above the mountains and was blazing the trail ahead of us. We warmed somewhat before returning back into shade. This dance between warmth and cold continued to the sweet single track turn-off that went west and climbed back into full sun before reaching the Mt Soho Hut in the Coronet Creek Valley.

It soon became apparent that this was a totally different ride. Just before the hut an old caravan sitting under a collapsing willow tree is easily missed while riding clockwise, but the Trek Bosch battery of unknown charge and ownership had not been claimed since our clockwise visit. Maybe because its state of charge wouldn't have knocked the skin off a rice pudding. Climbing from the hut was gradual and warm so we were soon stripping off layers to compensate. Hardly a breath of mountain air moved through time and space in this remote valley.

We climbed away from the Coronet Creek over a low saddle and down into the Deep Creek catchment. Soon we were fording Deep Creek looking for gold that the posted prospecting notice had promised. Between the fords we came across two old timers having a brew and just enjoying a day out in the sun. A short climb from Deep Creek delivered us onto a high terrace for first lunch, where we admired the view and soaked up the warm rays. Two groups of bikers buzzed by intrigued by our antisocial direction.

The flowing DH to the Green Gate Hut revealed the remains of the Green Gate Hotel site, surrounded by tall poplar trees in their autumn coat and the gigantic slip above the hut. This appeared a much bigger monster from this direction. A large group of bikers were relaxing around the hut with their bikes parked randomly with one in the middle of the track blocking the flow. We took evasive action, narrowly avoiding the owner's bum bag positioned beside it. "Sorry mate" he said. I thought back to something my father used to say to us kids: “If your brains were made of gunpowder it wouldn't blow the wax out of you ears”. Dad survived Burma during WW2. Who were we to argue.

We climbed steeply above the hut to the top of Green Gate Saddle, a familiar place but in the opposite direction. From the saddle a new section of single track had been marked. It plummets down through the grey ghost forest above the Skippers Road. This was super fun and a bit loose as it wound through the lower reaches of the dead trees. We popped out near the old Skippers Hotel and commenced the climb up to Skippers Saddle. Below us the Skippers Pack Track made its way below Lighthouse Rock and beside Dirty Four Creek as it tumbled towards the Shotover River. Some old telegraph poles and random rock outcrops amongst the golden tussock and autumn colours completed the picture. There were no rental cars on this road, just one considerate 4WD kicking up no dust on a road that was as dry as a wooden god.

The top arrived with little fanfare and we descended the short stretch to the Coronet Ski Field road to where Morning Glory DH commences. This bermed its way in style down to the 1860-built gold mining water race track, a historic gem on the flanks of Coro Peak. It follows the contours around the open hill side to Bushy Creek Saddle. There were loads of small creek crossings and a final climb up to the saddle. Much of the track was shaded as alas the sun in May wasn't getting far enough west to light and warm up our way. At the saddle we loaded up on layers figuring that Bushy Creek wouldn't have seen much sun all day. It’s a fantastic fast and flowing DH that just keeps on giving all the way to the very end. A few short sharp uphills in the beech forest stressed the legs and lungs,  warming us up for the frosty flatter sections.

We rocked into Arrowtown ready to compare notes. It was the same 53km distance but with an extra 100m of climbing for our anticlockwise sins. Did the Bushy Creek DH make up for the lost Skippers Pack Track DH? "Hell yes", but you be the judge. Anticlock has a bit less single track and the Skippers gravel road climb, so in a way it’s like having your cake twice with two completely different great adventure trails in Arrowtown’s backyard. We loved riding it both directions, it just fits like a glove on a chickens lip.

The NZ Security Service won't be pleased!