D27- Mohaka river (coppermine) to Mohaka river(McVicar road)

Based on the amount of footprints id say the mine gets a lot of visitors. There's a doc track leading 2km from here to Everets. Its a bit overgrown with blackberry but passable. Steel rope anchored to the rocks provides a route over bluffs. After crossing a stream it climbs a crumbling spur before descending back to river flats which are followed to the campsite.
From here i follow Auroa road for 2km to the Everts 'ford' campsite. It would be possible to go all the way to SH5 on roads from here but it climbs high and would be boring so i return to the river.
Theres 3 crossings required, while its still just as big, its slower flowing and can be swan using my pack as a buyancy aid. I get to a bit called the Organs, where the river flows in a large oxbow, by climbing the narrow ridgeline i save about 3km of river. Going down the other side is much steeper than expected and i end up repelling on my paracord- meant for tieing up tarp. From here its 500m of wading to the Waipunga confluence. The Waipunga itself is a big river and requires a difficult mid rapid cross. Above the Waipunga the Mohaka is manageable, and able to be crossed without a swim.
Its easy going as far as Glenfalls- another busy campsite, where the river enters a gourge between limestone cliffs.
Im still pondering on wether to try the gourge or take the longer road route when i meet an aussie raft guide who tells me it's not possible and id kill myself- decision made.
The gourge starts off wall to wall water, but only knee deep so its possible to wade, its just 3 steps forward 2 steps back against the current. It then opens up a bit with a few stony banks, regular crossings between them, some requiring a swim. Then i see the sight i waa dreading- wall to wall water, this time out of my depth. There's not a lot of current but its too much to swim against. In the end i manage to pull myself along the edge of the rock, using pack as a float. Doable but id have to recommend the road. In anything other than low summer flows it would be unpassable, in anything other than 30deg sun in would be miserable. After this it opens up again and eventually i hear the sound of cars and trucks and the napier/taupo road appears. Another busy highway passed, and this time i walk underneath it, not even a crossing required.
There's 2 more river crossings untill the end of the gourge. McVicar road follows the Mohaka on the true left. Whilst theres some good campspots here i decide to get some easy ks in on the road. Its about 3km to the McVicar bridge. Unfortunately theres no great campspots here and i end up on some fine stones right by the road, lukily its very light traffic. Im only about a foot above the river so it better not rise. It seems more like a place you'd take the dog for a crap than a campsite, but it'll do. The wind picks up and cloud comes in.