Porters Road is a popular 4 wheel drive track near Lake Rotoma East of Rotorua and can be accessed from the Lake Rotoma backroads route.
Porters Road ranges from loose sand to firm but tree root crossed dirt and can get very rutted from 4×4 use and rain, due to this the track can be different every time you ride it. There are also a number of side tracks to explore that lead off into the forest either side of the main track.
As it’s very popular with 4 wheel drive enthusiasts you could come across groups of 4×4’s at any time however due to the nature of the track the 4×4’s are not likely to be moving very fast.
Due to the technical terrain of this track we recommend you do not ride it alone, or, ensure others know where you are going, just in case you come off. If cellphone reception is avalable using tracking software like Glympse could be useful.
Contributed by: @brainflex
Track type: Dirt track
Track composition: Rough, Loose, Undulating
Slippery when wet?: Yes
Suitable for bikes <650cc? Intermediate
Suitable for bikes >650cc? Experienced
River crossings? No
‘@Michael J Breen, @Sharn Amon @facebook-hadge-haine1 one for you guys to check out and track. If I can get my energy levels a bit higher I’d be interested.
Wow this looks great, certainly great for my light weight. but would probably judging by the depth of those trenchs and ruts be a summer track i would imagine those would be like deep drains this time of the year.
I had a ride along this yesterday. It is a awesome track, definitely not for the larger bikes, knobblies a must. I gps logged it and will post a ride report n track as soon as I sort it out.
You legend!
Your next assignment is https://www.adventureridingnz.co.nz/forums/topic/endean-road-ngongotaha-rotorua/
😉
I decided it was time for a run up Porters Rd and so, not knowing what to expect I took the ultimate machine, the mighty CT110.
I entered from the Manawahe Rd end and was immediately into the interesting stuff. It is a challenging track consisting of open double track but heavily eroded by water run off causing a deep rut along many sections of the track
The road has side tracks going off which can be explored, being on my own I left these for a later date. The track itself would be greasy in the wet but dries out to a very sandy base, some sections of track are deep soft sandy areas.
The track goes up, down and across. After a while it entered into a tree covered area and became more hard-packed but with tree roots running across it, these would be slippery when wet. The track could be ridden from either direction or as a lollipop loop from Manawahe end. I came out via Wairoa Rd to Hamilton Rd. Wairoa Rd is quite sandy in areas but otherwise easy going, Hamilton Rd is a normal gravel road.There are lots of other side roads to explore and if anyone fancies a look round, give me a shout and I will come along and share what I learnt.Or not, happy to advise if you don’t want me there (sob sob).
Personally I would recommend smaller bikes with knobbies, 650cc max, even for experienced riders but if someone wants to prove me wrong, bring some strong friends. lol. Edward is sorting out the gps log and making it usable for the site.
‘@Brainflex took me thorugh Porters Road recently, it’s awesome!
https://www.adventureridingnz.co.nz/forums/topic/random-adventure-riding-pics/page/6/#post-16398
Trying to convince a mate to do this tomorrow. We have no licences plates so it’s a tow in job. He’s a bit intermediate so wondering if it would be a good idea?
Mark
He’ll be fine, just adjust your pace to suit. I,ve used Porters to introduce quite a few beginners.
I’d like to do it again on something smaller.
You can use my postie if you want.
Porters Road Trails
A group of us went for a ride on Porters Rd and surrounding tracks on Saturday. The main road is getting really rutted out but still great fun. Go as a group, good knobblies and a sense of fun and you,ll have a great time. We did 18km in 3 n 1/2 hrs. All first gear stuff.
Sounds like a great ride but not sure I’d cope on the DR. Maybe you ride my DR and I ride your Honda? I’m keen to have a lash…
When do you want to go? Honda would be harder than the DR650.
Hi guys,
after it has dried up a bit I would like to finally check out the Porters Road – I’m from Opotiki and riding a XR650L or BetaRR525…
Better not to do it alone – who is interested ? Sometime later this month.
Oh – I’ll like to enjoy it and not blast through as fast as possible…
I would be up for that but need level 3 lockdown to finish for the Waikato first.
How do I get to this track please coming from Tauranga