As the Old Ghost Road reaches its tenth anniversary, we asked those who have walked and biked it to share their memories of the track.

Running the ultra

I’ve raced all over the world, but running the one-day Old Ghost Ultra brings me back to my roots – raw, rugged and real. It’s not just about competing; it’s about being part of something that celebrates the terrain, the people and the spirit of the Coast. Many races can feel commercial and almost transactional. The OGU is the opposite – it’s impeccably organised but there’s a humility in how it’s done. It’s clear the trail has been built by people who truly love it and want to share it, and you feel a genuine sense of belonging. 

What I also love is that the ultra is not just about celebrating the fastest. There are prizes for those who had the ‘longest day’, the oldest and youngest competitors, the fastest ‘local’, the most improved, and the ‘originals’ – who have competed in every OGU since its inception. 

– Ruth Croft, world ultra-running legend

A spectacular ride

The OGR is New Zealand’s toughest Great Ride. Rocks, ruts and climbs make it particularly challenging for bikers, whereas trampers find these obstacles relatively straightforward. Perhaps this is why the proportion of trampers has grown to a whopping 50 per cent. 

The big climbs and Grade 5 sections are not for the faint-hearted, and the West Coast now has easier trails for a wider range of bikers (the nearby Kawateri Trail is an absolute cracker). But for riders who do have the skill and fitness (or ebike) to tackle the Old Ghost Road, it will be remembered as one of the best rides of your life, even if just for the spectacular scenery.

– Jonathan Kennett, mountain-bike guru and co-author or NZ Classic Cycle Trails

Equal to the Great Walks

I arrived in style by helicopter to the first hut, as a slip the previous week had blocked part of the track to Lyell Saddle Hut. It was pretty surreal being dropped off in the middle of nowhere, surrounded by dense bush, but we were greeted by a couple of kakaruai that skipped down the path ahead of us. 

The huts on the track are amazing. A step up from your usual DOC hut – everything is provided for you and it feels like a real treat to eat off proper plates. The bush bucket showers were an added bonus. 

There were so many standout moments. If I had to pin one down it would be the scenery. Magnificent dense forests, huge boulders, turquoise rivers, vast drop-offs, views for miles. It is up there with the Great Walks but for me it felt different – more inviting, maybe. I’d definitely hike it again and hopefully get that sunrise at Ghost Lake Hut.

– Charlotte Lankshear

Bike encounters nothing to worry about

I’d never walked a dual walking and biking track before and was quite nervous about meeting bikes. As it turned out, there was nothing to worry about. We met a variety of bikers – retired couples, friendly young guys, two Canadian women and one guy riding it in a day. They were all very courteous as they passed us. 

There were quite a few trampers. We all enjoyed mixing and chatting in the huts. As an ecologist, I really enjoyed the variety of plants, some endemic to the Nelson region, and the birds were amazing. 

– Maggie Bayfield

An unforgettable journey 

As a mountain biker and lover of outdoor adventures, riding the Old Ghost Road had been high on my bucket list ever since the trail first opened. But, as is often the case with dream adventures, life got in the way and it wasn’t January 2025 that I finally made it happen.

One moment stands out clearly in my memory: the climb from Lyell Saddle Hut. After a steady ascent through dense native forest, we eventually broke through the bushline, only to be met with thick cloud obscuring the trail ahead. We paused for a snack at Top Camp Shelter, and as if on cue the mist began to lift. Slowly, the spectacular sight of the Rocky Tor came into view, along with the ribbon of trail winding across the tussock-covered tops.

The ride across the open tops to Ghost Lake Hut was nothing short of magical. With uninterrupted views stretching along the Lyell Range and far beyond, it felt surreal to be riding a bike at 1300m. That section alone was worth the 10-year wait.

What makes the Old Ghost Road truly unique is the way it blends the history of old mining routes with newly built sections – both a marvel of trail-building expertise. It offers a spectacular ride with stunning variety, technical challenges, and some of the most endless, grin-inducing downhills I’ve ever ridden.

It’s an unforgettable journey – and one I plan to do again. Hopefully, it won’t take me quite so long to line up the next trip.

– Grant Edwards

Running the trail

In April 2021, three weeks after winning my age group in the NZ Ironman, I ran the OGR in two days from Seddonville. 

Fresh from that success I thought I was a rockstar, but I can tell you, at the end of the first day heading up to Ghost Lake Hut in the dark, I did not resemble one. I could see the hut lights way up there, and when I got there I could have wept. 

The camaraderie in the hut was really special – you don’t know who you’re going to be sleeping next to and yet it just works. People were so friendly, all that banter. That’s what makes it. And it was so good doing it with a bunch of great women. 

The Boneyard was pretty cool to run through. And the views, and the robin striking a pose for my photos, such a little show-off.

– Anna Guy 

Butterfly discoveries

The Lyell Range is an interesting habitat for our butterflies. Tussock ringlets and ‘common’ coppers can be seen most of the summer, but other species are more elusive. After many trips up an old hunters’ route, in March 2007 Sarah and I emerged from the bushline and glimpsed an unfamiliar dark-coloured specimen. We took it to be a day-flying moth. Later we saw another on Mt Montgomery (on the tops en route to Ghost Lake Hut), which settled. I caught it under my hat. The underwing pattern of chocolate brown and white told us we’d met our first Butler’s ringlet, well north of its then known range. 

We have long looked for signs of the fast-diminishing forest ringlet. In 2023 a tramper photographed one just beyond Ghost Lake Hut, and now the hunt is on to locate the habitat where it is managing to reproduce successfully despite the upwardly mobile range of introduced wasps.

– Roger and Sarah Frost