WHAKA WEEKLY 🌲25 June 2026

Kia ora whānau!!

shortest day has been and gone, we are officially on the way back to summer, and the forest is absolutely in its element right now. crispy mornings, clear trails, and behind the scenes....well lets just say alot has been going on and its been intense.

🔄 CORNERS – RADIUS OF THE LOST ARCS – WORKING BEE GLOW UP ✨

Sunday. volunteers. Corners.

blowing, surface repairs, hand build work, the lot. the kind of session where you turn up at 9am and suddenly its getting dark and you're wondering where the time went because you were just so locked in to making something beautiful.

Corners is one of those trails that rewards precision – get the line right and it flows like water. the working bee crew absolutely nailed it and the trail is riding as well as it ever has. go find the rhythm on it this weekend. you'll know when you've got it 🤙

🦁 HEMO GORGE – ADOPTER AROHA ON A SATURDAY 🌿

the Hemo Gorge trail is looked after one dude who is in there every week putting in the hard mahi to get it mint. this is what it is about: seeing the need and not sending off an angry email of complaining you fav trail is not mint (yes we get those on the reg!) instead this legend sent an eamil saying "I see you need help, and I will be that help"

this is what being part of a community is all about. legend.

we know this level of mahi is not for everyone, so if you see something in need, you DONT have to offer to fix it. you just need to make a donation so that we can. thats awesome too.

💎 MINERALS – ADOPTER DRAIN SESSION

the Minerals adopter was out on all day on Sunday sorting the drains all day. literally! from sun up to sun down. amazing stuff. Minerals really needed this love, so big thanks to the adopter that keeps heading out there without any fuss and just gets the mahi done. absolute gem behaviour 🤙

🥋 KUNG FU WALRUS – THE FULL TREATMENT

Kung Fu Walrus got an absolutely thorough going-over this week – multiple sessions across Monday, Tuesday, and Wednesday of blowing, vegetation, drains, and surface repairs. this trail has been waiting for this level of attention and the crew completely delivered.

Kung Fu Walrus has real character. proper roots, interesting features, nothing boring about it. and right now it is riding as well as it ever has. go find it if it's not already on the regular rotation 🥋

🎢 ROLLER COASTER, ⏰ TIME WARP, 🎸 SPLIT ENZ

all blown this week, multiple sessions on some of them. these three are the kind of trails that form the backbone of a great afternoon in the forest and right now all three are running clean and fast. string them together and you've got yourself a proper mission 🤙

🌿 TŪKONOHI, MAHANA & APUMOANA

blown and cleared this week, all three in great shape. that classic Apumoana into Mahana into Whāki lap? yeah it's absolutely firing right now. the pro tip from last week still stands. do it. trust us 🤙

🎠 FRANK N' FURTER & MOERANGI SUMMIT TRACK

Frank n' Furter got blown on Friday after trail inspections earlier in the week – clear lines, clean trail, proper fun. Moerangi Summit Track also got trail inspections and a blow – this is a walk with serious character and now it's in great condition for anyone keen to explore a bit further out. highly recommended for those who like their walks with a view 🌄

https://www.trailforks.com/trails/moerangi-summit-track/

🌲 FOREST LOOP – TANGAROA-MIHI

another week of consistent love on Tangaroa-mihi – vegetation, drains, day after day, section by section. the one dude who is working on this one is methodical and it shows. the Forest Loop is one of New Zealand's Great Rides and Tangaroa-mihi is a big part of why. it's immaculate right now 🌲

🧠 NO BRAINS

volunteers sorted the drains and gave it a blow on Sunday while the Corners working bee was on. some legends just can't help themselves – they show up for one trail and end up doing two. that's the kind of community this is and we are endlessly grateful 💚

🔗 FEEDER GRADE 2

the Feeder Grade 2 adopter was out on Monday doing surface repairs – keeping this important trail in great nick. Fantastic, fast a flowing trail though the natives and a unbeatable view of the lake at the end. a really jaw dropping moment on the forest loop. chur to the adopter for being consistently on it!

🐊 TE POU KOROPŪ

blown this week and ready to roll. this is a cracking little loop on the Tawa side of the forest that doesn't get talked about enough. if it's new territory – go explore. highly rewarding 🌲

🔍 THE GREAT INSPECTION CONTINUES

the crew has been systematically walking and assessing trails right across the network again this week – Frank n' Furter, Bush Road Trail, Moerangi Summit Track, Bush Buchanan Trail, Kung Fu Walrus, Jeff's Link and more. every trail assessed, every issue logged, every priority set.

this is the work nobody sees but everybody benefits from. smart maintenance means the right work gets done in the right place at the right time, and the whole network is better for it 🙌

👀 THE SECRET BUILD UPDATE

okay so. we've been dropping hints for a few weeks now and we reckon enough work has been done that we can say this:

the diggers and hand builders have been going HARD.

multiple trails. multiple sessions. real, serious, world class work being put into corridors that have been waiting for love for too long. when these trails open it is going to be a genuinely special moment for the whole community.

not saying which ones. not saying when. but donations are what make this possible and the rebuild fund is open right now.

$50 builds just 1 metre of world class trail. sound expensive? well the trail is going to be there for at least 15 years, and it comes with 300km of free trails to ride, so it's not too much really eh! Us kiwis are pretty bad at asking for help, but we are asking for yours, humbly and hopeful. Help us get er done, please.

will you be part of making the magic happen?

👉 www.rotoruatrailstrust.co.nz – 3 clicks. straight into the ground. into the trails. into the future of this forest 💚

THE VIBE THIS WEEKEND 🌲

bluebird days? tick ✅

grippy dry trails? tick ✅

fresh blown corridors across the whole network? tick ✅

Corners riding beautifully after the working bee? absolutely tick ✅

Hemo Gorge looking immaculate? tick ✅

the forest is in its element. go be in it.

aroha nui,

– the crew at rotorua trails trust 🌲

👉 www.rotoruatrailstrust.co.nz – donate, adopt a trail, share this post. every action moves the needle.

(yip, we put it in there twice, get the hint? lol)