Mt Bealey, Arthur’s Pass National Park
A winter climb of Mt Bealey showcases the beauty of Arthur’s Pass National Park. The park has sometimes been referred to as the ‘poor cousin’ of national parks. It…
- Distance
- 3.1km
- Time
- 8hr return
- Grade
- Moderate
Find your trail
Canterbury
Travers Peak, Lewis Pass National Reserve
Travers Peak has been a day trip destination of mine for many years – so much so, that my latest outing here was the ninth time I have climbed…
- Distance
- 3.76km
- Time
- 2-3hr to summit
- Grade
- Moderate
Red Hill, Korowai-Torlesse Conservation Park
Tucked into a corner of Korowai-Torlesse Conservation Park, directly south of Porters Heights ski field, near Coleridge Saddle, is the seldom-climbed Red Hill, 1641m. It sits a few kilometres…
- Distance
- 4.38km to summit
- Time
- 2-3hr to summit
- Grade
- Moderate
Spurs Hut, Te Kahui Kaupeka Conservation Park
Huts in cold, wet weather are like a magnet for trampers. The warmth, comfort and shelter they offer is unequalled after a bitter day in the hills. Spurs Hut…
- Distance
- 7.09km
- Time
- 2-3hr
- Grade
- Easy
Avalanche Peak via Scotts Track, Arthur’s Pass National Park
Our climb to Avalanche Peak began with a mixture of excitement and trepidation. In resesarching the trip, we couldn’t help but notice the warnings from DOC: ‘Dying to see…
- Distance
- 3.16km
- Time
- 8h return
- Grade
- Moderate
Double Hut, Hakatere Conservation Area
It’s a nine-kilometre walk from the road end car park and the hut is easy to reach in three hours, which can allow the opportunity to also climb the…
- Distance
- 12.6km to Pt1201 (9km to hut)
- Time
- Car park to Double Hut, 3hr; Hut to Pt1201, 1hr
- Grade
- Easy
Mid Hill tarns, Arthur’s Pass National Park
Staying at huts, practical as they undoubtedly are, is not everyone’s cup of tea. When I was on the hunt for an easy but secluded overnight camping destination, the…
- Distance
- 7.5km
- Time
- 4hr to tarns
- Grade
- Easy/Moderate
Beuzenberg Peak, Te Kahui Kaupeka Conservation Park
One day, I picked up a hitch-hiker on the Matukituki Road. She was taking a break from the Te Araroa Trail to make the climb to Cascade Saddle. When…
- Distance
- 32km
- Time
- 9hr return
- Grade
- Moderate
Kaitiaki Peak, Aoraki/Mt Cook National Park
Since Guy Mannering and A. P. Harper first crossed Ball Pass in January 1890, it has become one of the better-known spots in the Southern Alps. We set off…
- Distance
- 28km
- Time
- Car park to Ball Pass, 7-9hr; To Kaitiaki summit return, 1-2hr; To Blue Lakes car park, 5-7hr
- Grade
- Difficult
Boundary Creek Hut, Hakatere Conservation Park
If refurbished old musterer’s huts are to your liking, along with grand scenery amid the stark beauty of the high country, then Boundary Creek Hut is a winner. The…
- Distance
- 13.3km
- Time
- 2-3hr to hut
- Grade
- Easy
Spurs Hut, Te Kahui Kaupeka Conservation Park
Spurred on by wild weather Our trip began with a car journey south from Christchurch through Fairlie and into the big, bare hills of the Sherwood and Ben McLeod…
- Distance
- 7.09km
- Time
- 2-3hrs
- Grade
- Easy
Stanley Vale Hut and Scotties Hut, St James Conservation Area
Fowlers Pass is part of a historic stock route lying between the upper Clarence Valley and Stanley Vale catchment, a feeder of the Wairau River in southern Marlborough. It…
- Distance
- 32.8km
- Time
- Fowlers Camp to Fowlers Pass, 1-2hr; To Stanley Vale Hut, 3-4hr; Scotties Hut, 6-7hr; To Tophouse Road, 2-3hr
- Grade
- Moderate
Cassidy-Blimit-Temple Basin Traverse, Arthur’s Pass National Park
Arthur’s Pass National Park is a wonderful playground in winter. There is plenty of variety from short walks through snow-laden beech trees to hard ice climbing routes in gullies…
- Distance
- 11.4km
- Time
- 9-10hr
- Grade
- Moderate
Ball Hut, Aoraki/Mt Cook National Park
Aoraki/Mt Cook National Park is a climber’s paradise, with 19 peaks that extend higher than 3000m and 40 per cent of it glacial terrain. The park lacks tracks and…
- Distance
- 8.71km
- Time
- 3-4hr one way
- Grade
- Easy
Godley Hut, Aoraki/Mt Cook National Park
Deep in the Southern Alps, Godley Hut has one of the best alpine views in the country, looking out to the terminal lake of the Maud and Grey glaciers,…
- Distance
- 24.4km in 4WD plus 3km to walk
- Time
- 3-4 hr in 4WD; 1hr further walk
- Grade
- Moderate
Sebastopol, Aoraki/Mt Cook National Park
Boasting New Zealand’s highest peaks, expansive skies, turquoise lakes, dynamic glaciers and braided rivers, Aoraki/Mt Cook National Park is a mecca for climbers wishing to scale high mountains. But…
- Distance
- 2.64km to summit
- Time
- 5hr return
- Grade
- Moderate
Mt Cloudsley to Mt Enys traverse, Castle Hill Conservation Area
The Craigieburn Range provides ample opportunities for outdoor enthusiasts. Boasting five ski fields and 12 named peaks above 1800m, there’s plenty to keep skiers and trampers happy, all within…
- Distance
- 17.4km
- Time
- Car park to Mt Cloudsley, 3-4hr; To Mt Enys, 1-2hr; To car park via Whitewater Stream, 4-5hr
- Grade
- Moderate/Difficult
Braun-Elwert Peak, Te Kahui Kaupeka Conservation Park
Gottlieb Braun-Elwert, the well-known and respected climber and mountain guide who died of a heart attack while ski touring with former prime minister Helen Clark in 2008, justifiably deserved…
- Distance
- 30.1km
- Time
- Camp Stream Hut to Braun-Elwert Peak via Snake Ridge, 4hr; To Camp Stream Hut via Braun-Elwert Ridge, 4hr
- Grade
- Moderate
Mingha-Deception Route, Arthur’s Pass National Park
The Mingha-Deception covers, in just two or three days, all of the most notable features of Arthur’s Pass – braided rivers, open tops, a mountain lake, beech forest, waterfalls,…
- Distance
- 24km
- Time
- Mingha Corner to Goat Pass Hut, 5-6hr; Goat Pass Hut to footbridge, 7-8hr; Goat Pass to Lake Mavis, 3hr return
- Grade
- Moderate
Canyon Creek Route, Ahuriri Conservation Park
From the road end, the track heads through grassland down the Ahuriri Valley with the peaks of the Barrier and Huxley ranges on either side and the braided Ahuriri…
- Distance
- 5.87km
- Time
- 7hr return
- Grade
- Moderate
Turtons Saddle to Redcliffe Saddle,Hakatere Conservation Park
The Canterbury high country is best in autumn when the red tones add to the space, beauty and grandeur of the Alps and foothills. With a good forecast, cold,…
- Time
- Three days. Road to A Frame Hut, 4.5hr; To Comyns Hut, 2hr; To Cookies Point, 4-6hr; To Tribulation Hut, 2-3hr; To road via Redcliffe Saddle, 3hr
- Grade
- Easy/Moderate
Brass Monkey Bivouac, Lewis Pass Tops, Canterbury/West Coast
According to legend, the expression ‘cold enough to freeze the balls off a brass monkey’ originates from the idea that in exceptionally cold conditions, ship cannonballs would fall off…
- Time
- 6-9hr to Brass Monkey Bivouac
- Grade
- Moderate/Difficult
Black Hill Hut via Townshend River, Oxford Forest Conservation Area
If bushline huts and Alp views are what you look for in an accessible weekend tramp, then Black Hill Hut in the Lees Valley area of Canterbury is a…
- Distance
- 13.2km
- Time
- 5-6hr to hut
- Grade
- Moderate
Godley Hut, Aoraki/Mt Cook National Park
Godley Hut is a gem. Built pile-less in 1934, directly onto a slightly elevated rocky shelf at 1100m, it looks out to the terminal lake of the Maud and…
- Distance
- 30km in 4WD, plus 3km to walk
- Time
- 3-4hr in 4WD; 1hr further walk
- Grade
- Moderate
Broken River Hut via Torlesse Range, Korowai/Torlesse Tussocklands Park
The Torlesse Range is one of the most accessible weekend destinations for Christchurch trampers. And yet, apart from perhaps climbing Mt Torlesse, Foggy and Castle Hill peaks and visiting…
- Distance
- 22.5km
- Time
- Car park to Avoca Homestead 20-30min; Homestead to Broken River Hut via Lansdowne Spur, 6-8hr; Hut to Avoca Homestead 2hr
- Grade
- Moderate
Coal Hill Track, Mt Peel Conservation Area
Dawn was calling. Not unusual perhaps, except that this dawn was a rendezvous I had made with the summit of a minor foothill in South Canterbury – and I…
- Distance
- 6.6km to summit
- Time
- 3-4hr to summit
- Grade
- Moderate
Tasman Lake, Aoraki/Mt Cook National Park
The Blue Lakes and Tasman Glacier viewpoint has unrivalled views of Tasman Glacier and its terminal lake, as well as some of the tallest and most magnificent mountains in…
- Distance
- 561m
- Time
- 60-90min return
- Grade
- Easy
Mt Oxford, Oxford Forest Park
Even though Mt Oxford lies 50km from Christchurch, it can be viewed from many places in the city – it looms in front of the higher summits to the…
- Distance
- 6.34km
- Time
- 2-3hr to summit
- Grade
- Moderate
Moa Stream Hut via Kiwi Stream, Craigieburn Forest Park
The route begins at the end of the Wilberforce Canal Road and follows the riverbed vehicle track to Fanghill Stream. Kiwi Stream enters the Wilberforce River directly opposite Fanghill,…
- Distance
- 42.5km
- Time
- Fanghill Stream to Kiwi Stream pass, 5-6hr; Pass to Moa Stream Hut, 3-4hr; Hut to Fanghill Stream, 3-4hr; Fanghill Stream to Canal Rd, 2-3hr (walking), 40min (4WD)
- Grade
- Difficult
A Frame Hut, Hakatere Conservation Park
The Rakaia Valley is immense. Some 4-5km wide and draining a vast tract of the Southern Alps, the river courses over a stony riverbed, flanked by huge terraces and…
- Distance
- 9.11km
- Time
- 3-4hr to hut
- Grade
- Moderate
Tekapo Mount John Walkway, Tekapo
A sign at the top of Mt John, where there is also an observatory, states: ‘Probably the best place on the planet for a café’. Mt John is also…
- Distance
- 8.03km
- Time
- 3hr
- Grade
- Easy
Manuka Hut, Hakatere Conservation Park
Tucked into a little corner of a high country valley, beneath the towering flanks of the Mt Somers Range, is an archetype of the rustic musterer’s hut. Manuka Hut…
- Distance
- 6.88km
- Time
- Two hours to hut
- Grade
- Easy
Peak Hill, Peak Hill Conservation Area
One of the best things about Daylight Saving is how it allows you to do something a little wild in the afternoon. Case in point: Peak Hill near Lake…
- Distance
- 3km
- Time
- 2-3hr to summit, 4hr return
- Grade
- Easy/Moderate
Kelly Range tarns, Arthur’s Pass National Park
A break in the storm Summer had not been good to us and we were itching to get out again. With one stormy weekend after the next, we had planned, attempted…
- Distance
- 3.45km
- Time
- 4-5hr toters
- Grade
- Easy/Moderate
Ball Pass Crossing, Aoraki/Mt Cook National Park
From the Whitehorse Hill car park, follow the Hooker Valley Track. Just before you reach Hooker Lake, the Ball Pass route is signposted, branching to the right off the…
- Distance
- 26.8km
- Time
- Hooker Valley to the Playing Field, 5hr; Playing Field to Ball Pass, 2-3hr; Ball Pass to Ball Hut, 4hr; Ball Hut to road end, 2.5hr
- Grade
- Difficult
Youngman Stream Hut via Tarn Hut, Puketeraki Forest Conservation Area
Lying north of the inland expanses of the Lees Valley, the Puketeraki Forest Conservation Area covers 6750ha and boasts two huts. Both can be linked on a lovely two…
- Distance
- 30.3km
- Time
- Ashley River to Tarn Hut, 4-4.5hr; Tarn Hut to Youngman Stream Hut, 2.5-3hr, Youngman Stream Hut to road, via Ashley River track, 4-5hr
- Grade
- Moderate
Cameron Hut, Hakatere Conservation Park
Moraine terrain Cameron Valley and its promise of a barren and hostile landscape at the end of its namesake glacier had caught our attention on a previous trip to…
- Distance
- 16.5km
- Time
- 6hr one-way
- Grade
- Moderate
Faust, Lewis Pass National Reserve
The Faust and the spur-ious… Faust offers an accessible high country experience in a region known for its magnificence. The 1710m peak rises directly above the confluence of the…
- Distance
- 13.4km
- Time
- 2-3hr to summit. Round trip 5-6hr
- Grade
- Moderate
Pinnacles Hut, Hakatere Conservation Park
Pinnacles Hut stands in a moderate alpine environment at 900m, right on the bush edge, below the north face of Mt Somers in central Canterbury. As part of the…
- Distance
- 4.67km to hut
- Time
- Car park to Pinnacles Hut, 3-4hr; Hut to Woolshed Creek Saddle, 3hr
- Grade
- Moderate
Royal Hut, Te Kahui Kaupeka Conservation Park
Reportedly once visited by Princess Diana and Prince Charles, Royal Hut is a challenging destination to reach in winter. Whether you approach from Round Hill Ski Area or Mesopotamia…
- Distance
- 23.7km
- Time
- One-two days from either end (summer); three-five days (winter)
- Grade
- Difficult
Lawrence Hut, Erewhon Station
All was fine and clear for our Saturday morning wander up the lower Clyde River and into the Lawrence, the Clyde’s largest tributary. The river has a very large…
- Distance
- 10.8km to hut
- Time
- 3-4hr
- Grade
- Easy/Moderate
Mt Herbert from Diamond Harbour, Banks Peninsula
This large rounded hill is a popular day trip for Cantabrians and particularly so in winter when, on a clear day, the entire Canterbury Alps from Aoraki/Mt Cook to…
- Distance
- 7.63km each way
- Time
- 5-6hr return
- Grade
- Easy/Moderate
Macs Knob via Hope Kiwi Lodge, Lake Sumner Forest Park
An island-like mountain rising from the broad valleys of the Hurunui River, Macs Knob is not the sort of summit you might be drawn to in summer. But coated…
- Distance
- 31.1
- Time
- 3-4 days
- Grade
- Moderate
Mt Wakefield, Aoraki/Mt Cook National Park
If you’re willing to endure a short but rugged scramble from the valley floor to the tree line than what’s required on the nearby Mueller Hut route, then there’s…
- Distance
- 5.87km to summit
- Time
- 9-12hr return
- Grade
- Moderate/Difficult
Mt Cockayne, Craigieburn Conservation Park
The crest of Canterbury’s Craigieburn Range presents an uninterrupted wall of peaks running for almost 30km in a north to north-east orientation and with many summits over 2000m. With…
- Distance
- 1.1km to summit
- Time
- 1-2hr
- Grade
- Easy/Moderate
Mt Temple, Arthur’s Pass National Park
Arthur’s Pass is known for its savage weather and as such, it’s not the easiest spot to pick a suitable time to climb. So, easy access and an escape…
- Distance
- 4.05km to summit
- Time
- Road to Temple Basin Skifield, 1hr; Skifield to summit return, 3-5hr
- Grade
- Difficult
Annette Plateau via Mueller Hut, Aoraki/Mt Cook National Park
Little wonder Mueller Hut is the most popular hut in Aoraki/Mt Cook National Park: the views, particularly at dawn and dusk, are fabulous and the route into this alpine…
- Distance
- 7.6km to Annette Plateau
- Time
- Road end to Mueller Hut, 3-4hr; Hut to Annette Plateau, 3-4hr
- Grade
- Moderate/Difficult
Tarn camping, Ahuriri Conservation Park
Wind and ice Lake Ohau is one of the more elusive of the big southern lakes. Unlike its larger neighbours, it is not a destination that sits conveniently at…
- Distance
- 7.87km
- Time
- Car park to tarns at Pt1479, 6hr; Pt1479 to tarn at Pt1929, 1-1.5hr
- Grade
- Moderate
Te Ara Pataka camping, Banks Peninsula
Christchurch is spoiled with geography, both beautiful and rumbly in nature. The new Te Ara Pataka Track less than an hour’s drive from the city is the latest addition…
- Distance
- 19.7km
- Time
- 6-8hr
- Grade
- Easy
Mt Somers, Hakatere Conservation Park
Topping out on Mt Somers I’ve often found the boring drive across the Canterbury Plains enlivened slightly by wistful glances at Mt Somers. I’ve had some great trips in the…
- Distance
- 7.33km
- Time
- 7hr return
- Grade
- Moderate