Head to Chateau Mosquito Track carpark on Anawhata Road.Go up this track, then This track veers to the left and is fairly wide , more than enough for a quad bike.
Also at the start of this track is a small unmarked track on the right (leading to a paddock) that we pass. The Chateau Mosquito Track slopes slightly upwards at the start and then undulates at reasonable gradients. The ground is orangey brown clay & can be a tad slippery at times.
After about 25 minutes from starting this track you’ll pass the RGB track on your right, continue straight ahead & upwards. Soon enough the bush closes in around you and you can really start to enjoy the green hue with plenty of moss ,flora & fauna . The track now starts to slope downwards too. There’s also fallen trees to go through & duck under and you need to keep an eye out for roots underfoot as well . After a while the track gets even steeper as it makes its way down towards Anawhata Stream which we arrive at about 45 minutes or so from starting out.
We cross this stream & continue on this track which veers to the right and is alongside the stream for a bit (& across a couple of slippery rock parts) before it heads steeply upwards . This uphill bit has plenty of mud & roots. Close to 15 minutes after the stream crossing we reach the top and also the end of the Chateau Mosquito Track at a Junction. To the left is the Sisam Track and pretty much straight on is the Simla Track.
From here, you can hear the waterfalls on the Symth Stream below in the direction of the Simla track. We actually take an unmarked & fairly undefined track on our right (& also pretty much follow our ears) and come out at the bottom of the serenely tranquil water fall with a lovely round blue pool and the Smyth Stream. From here we follow the Smyth Stream (downstream).
There is a bit of wading a few obstacles to negotiate , but nothing too hard. After about 10 minutes or so we reach where the Smyth Stream joins the Anawhata Stream. Here we head left and follow the Anawhata Stream upstream. This starts off fairly tame with a few small rapidy things and a few small rocks. After a while the wading gets a tad deeper in places, then there is a bit of rock climbing (some of it slippery). There are some wonderful large mossy rocks and plenty of Parataniwha about too. After our first cooling wade, we decided it was a great time to stop on a flat rock in glorious sunbeam for a nice hot cuppa & some Golden Crunch cookies.
The deepest wade would be just over waist deep. There are no compulsory swims, as there are ways on either side of the stream (but plenty of swimming options for summertime though) around lovely large blue pools. There are a few waterfalls to negotiate around too, each one stunning in their own right and very inviting for a dip. After about 2 hours in the stream, we reach RGB track on either side of the stream and also the wee waterfall and small pool of where the Pig Wallow Stream meets the Anawhata Stream on the left. We head right & climb the steep RGB Track.
After about 20 minutes or so we reach the top of the track where it ends & meets back up with the Chateau Mosquito Track. We back track towards the carpark, just before the track turns right, we head up the unmarked track to the left & have lunch in the paddock resting on the long grass looking over the Waitaks. Here we enjoy a lunch of Avocado & Fejoa Chutney & Sundried Tomato Sarnies. Afterwards it’s about a 2 minute walk back on the track to the car.