By Ashley Lucas

Run under the direction of the Offlimits Charitable Trust (whose mission is to raise money to support the health and welfare of servicemen and women) Operation Stirling gives four-wheel-drive enthusiasts the opportunity to access land that is otherwise ‘off limits.’

The event is named after David Stirling, the legendary leader of the SAS and leader of daring vehicle mounted raids deep in the deserts of North Africa during World War II.  

And so it was that  55 four-wheel-drive vehicles descended on Waiouru at the beginning of December eagerly awaiting what lay ahead.

The participants had registered to be in one of four groups; Club, Adventurous, Dull Shiny and Shiny,   and lined up in these groups ready to be led out for a day’s exploring of the truly unique landscape the training grounds have to offer. 

Amongst the vehicles were several from the Military Vehicles Collectors Club with a range of ex-military vehicles from the original WWII Jeep of Philip and Gillian Avery to an ex-NZ Army Mercedes Unimog U1300L belonging to Stephen Davis.  There was also a 1978 Volvo C30 4x4 imported from the Netherlands along with a Dodge WC57 Command car and Dodge truck. 

Different routes had been planned for each group so that they didn’t conflict with each other and they were soon heading out of camp into the training area.  This time I was teamed up as tail end for the Shiny group lead by Stephan Collier and his son Jack in Stephen’s wife’s FJ Cruiser. 

Urban Contact Village

We headed on the Tarn Track with our first stop at the Urban Combat Village (UCV), a village built for training of troops who were deployed to Iraq and Afghanistan.  The entire village is built out of shipping containers and included houses and even a religious building. 

From there it was out toward the south eastern corner of the training grounds to a feature called Te Rei at 1021m near the southern boundary which borders onto Ohinewairua Station which is on the Taihape Napier Road.

From the point we could see up the gorge through which the Moawhango River flows and realised that there is some very steep, rugged and diverse country in there not seen from the highway.

Next part of the journey as we wound our way northwards was a stop at the CTOP observation bunker built into the side of a hill.  From here observers can watch live firing from the NZLAVs etc.

Home of the Kaimanawa Horses

Traversing the Argo Valley is where you often see the Kaimanawa horses grazing and we weren’t disappointed although one vehicle nearly had a couple of them on their bonnet as they ran in front of our convoy.  

Lunch stop was at the historic Westlawn hut, an old shepherd’s hut which is understood to have been built around 1900 for the musterers working on Ohinewairua Station, and is a historical reminder of Waiouru's pastoral industry that began in the 1870s.

River crossing

After lunch was a dirt track with deep ruts from the NZLAVs as we headed west before dropping down and crossing the Moawhango River.  As we crossed the river we passed the Club vehicles which were coming down a long clay and very steep track from a height of 1248m. 

This is a track not to be taken lightly and one vehicle ended up coming down the last bit in reverse after its driver touched his brakes and did a 180 on the track.  Thankfully he made it down safely.

Stopping at the Moawhango Dam and the outlet to the Tongariro tunnel the water level in the lake was down considerably as water was taken through the tunnel to the Tongariro hydro scheme and into Lake Taupo.  The water level was so low you could drive ‘into’ the lake.

From there we made our way up the hills and down to a small secluded bush hut beside a stream which is referred to as Club Med.  Unfortunately for us the nice fine sunny day had departed giving us a little moisture from above to dampen the experience.

Tanks for that!

Taking to some of the many ‘tank’ tracks we splashed through muddy water holes and ruts.  The Delica 4WD van of Aaron Patterson got stuck in a rut, but his father Wayne was driving.  I drove through the water hole immediately prior to it and after getting the photo decided the best option was to recover him in reverse. 

Back through the deep water hole and a text book recovery and they were on their way again.  But as I went through the water for the third time I ended up stuck myself and the water was deep.  I have the muddy tide mark inside the vehicle and wet carpets to show for it.

Those military collector guys weren’t afraid to get their precious vehicles dirty and were in the dull shiny group.  They were as keen as anyone to attempt anything and everything.  Having watched as the group leaders recovered a badly stuck vehicle out of one particular bog hole the military vehicles were keen to give it a go. 

First it was the 1944 Dodge pick-up truck that had no problems getting through then it was Rodney Lawrence in the 1942 Dodge WC57 Command Car who came out the other end a little damp. Not to be left out John Hewitt successfully took the Volvo V30 through.

Back to base

Back at camp there was the option of a guided tour of some of the behind the scenes vintage army vehicles and equipment not on display in the Waiouru Military Museum.

After dinner everyone gathered at the sports club to tell their various tales of their day and enjoy each other’s company. 

Sunday another bright fine day with most of the groups over on the western side in the Rangipo Desert and on the side slopes of Mt Ruapehu.  Initially the skies were clear of clouds allowing great mountain views but soon the clouds moved in to spoil the views as our group tried to pick our way through the boulders and rocky area referred to the ‘rock gardens’. 

It was precision wheel placement under guidance most of the way with several big boulders having to be manoeuvred out of the way.

All too soon it was time to head back to camp to clean up and head for home and the Army have the ideal wash bay with high pressure hoses to wash down the vehicles and remove the bulk of the mud.

Operation Stirling 2017 was another success when 4WD vehicles yet again raided deep into the vast Central Plateau army training grounds just as David Stirling did in North Africa all those years ago.

To read every story in the February 2018 issue of NZ4WD go to Zinio.com (Jan 20) or purchase your own hard copy at the Adrenalin store.