Tākaka / Asbestos Hut track to Cobb Dam (Upper Tākaka), IV-V
The Takaka River has its headwaters on the table lands north of Mt Arthur. It has been paddled from the Grid Iron Shelter but there is an unrunnable section above the Asbestos Mine.Once on the river, or creek depending on your definition, get your brain into tight and rocky mode. About an hour of boat scoutable rock gardens leads into the first of the ‘disappearing horizon lines’. A series of very steep rock jumbles follows. Most will require scouting, portaging and some paddling. The last two kilometres continue steep and tight but all the drops have been paddled at the right flows. At 8-12 cumecs the run is tight and shallow. Above 12 cumecs expect fast continuous water with some authoritative hydraulics.To get to the take out: Drive up the Cobb Dam road from upper Takaka. Leave a car at the dam. To get to the put-in: Continue 2.5 kilometres past the dam to a hairpin corner. Signs to Asbestos Hut indicate the start of the track. Walk along the track for ¾ hour. Once around a BIG slip continue for about 300m then bash down a ridge to the river.
This section appears in New Zealand Whitewater, 4th edition, 2006 on p121.
