Banks Peninsula is full of fantastic day walks that are achievable for all levels of fitness and the Packhorse Hut track from Kaituna Valley is a great option for families and those just starting out with hiking. With a new baby in tow we were looking for something easy to stretch our legs on a stunning clear winter's day and we were rewarded with fantastic views and a beautiful drive with this trip. From the city, drive south through Tai Tapu and Motukarara before turning off up Kaituna Valley Road. Follow this just past the Kaituna Valley Scenic Reserve to Parkinsons Road (this is easy to miss as it's a small gravel road). There is plenty of parking just before the farm buildings and the track starts right over a stile in front.

The track itself is a wide 4WD track with a few ankle deep stream crossings and a fair bit of mud depending on the weather. It is well signposted the whole way so perfect if you're not too confident with your navigation! After crossing through farm land you begin to climb steadily in open country directly towards the hut itself. Once on the ridge expect great views of the south side of Mt Bradley in the north and back out to the ocean and Lake Ellesmere in the south. The climb is gradual but sustained so take plenty of water especially if it's hot. Our family of six plus a rather heavy baby took around an hour and a half to complete the 4km to the summit (this would be a nice, easy trail run for anyone needing to train some hills).

The Packhorse Hut itself has been renovated and now has one large bunk room with 9 bunks in the back and a fire with plenty of seating in the front. A non-flushing toilet is situated behind the hut. Although there is water in a tank it isn't treated so bring plenty of your own unless you can boil it. This hut has to be booked if you want to stay overnight but would make for a great weekend adventure with kids or a first overnighter for beginner hikers. We had lunch sitting in the sun out the front of the hut before descending the same way we had come up. This took closer to 45mins as it is all down hill and easy walking.

On your return trip to Christchurch stop at the Gebbies Garden Cafe at the turn off to Gebbies Pass Road for a coffee and to soak in the country atmosphere a bit longer before having to return to the city.

Total Time - 2.5 hours
Difficulty - Easy
Bonus Points - Continue on to the Mt Herbert Summit (DOC puts this at 3hrs)

3am Monday - Poulter Hut.

The rain has been hammering down on the roof non-stop for the past 9 hours. Coming down the valley in great waves, easing slightly every now and then. When it does ease the sound of the rain on the corrugated iron roof is replaced with the roar from the river. The river we rock hopped across yesterday trying to keep our feet dry. The only way home. The forecast was for 20mm of rain overnight - we probably got twice that in the first hour. Shit.

3:30pm Saturday (two days earlier) - Mt White Road car park.

We were blessed with an absolute stunner of an afternoon as we started to mountain bike up the 4WD track alongside the true right of the Poulter River through Mt White Station towards the national park boundary. The track climbs gradually (and sometimes less gradually) all the way up the valley and it wasn’t long before I felt that perhaps I had left my legs and/or fitness back in Christchurch. Just over 2 hours saw us pedaling over Rabbit Flat in fading light before the obligatory stop to don our head torches. With the temperature beginning to drop off and the kilometres starting to take their toll we were well pleased to hear the lads who had started earlier that morning yelling from the Trust-Poulter Hut. The fire was cranking and the beer waiting for us was cold. Legends.​

The Travers - Sabine circuit is an undisputed New Zealand classic. Venturing through the beautiful Nelson lakes national park the track travels through lush forested valleys, over an alpine saddle and with a short side trip visits the clearest freshwater lake in the world - the stunning Blue Lake.
This 4-6 day tramp is on a well marked trail and is a very achievable goal for anyone with a moderate level of fitness. 

Day One:
We parked our car up at the Robert Ridge car park at about 10am and shouldered packs for what I knew would be our biggest day. We were intending to complete our circuit in just 4 days so as to make it back to a family celebration. This deadline meant that on our first day we needed to push well up the Travers valley in order to be able to make it over Travers saddle the following morning. We also had a slightly dodgy looking front coming in over the next couple of days so were eager to make it past the saddle before the weather packed it in. 

We started out and headed down the Robert Ridge access road towards the start of the lakeside track car park. This involved backtracking where we had just driven but would save us having to walk the same stretch of road a few days from now. Reaching the track it was a short wander around the lake edge to Coldwater Hut where we slapped on the insect repellent and grabbed a bite to eat. We had passed a steady stream of people on their way out from Coldwater Hut, many of whom appeared to have stayed overnight. The sandflies were out in force and it didn't take long before we were all ready to get moving again.

From here the track climbs slowly up the valley passing both the Cascade Track (to Lake Angelus) and the Hopeless Track (to Hopeless Hut). The legs were definitely starting to feel the miles by the time we sauntered in to John Tait Hut for a well earned rest. John Tait Hut has ample room for tents should you be camping but our goal was to be further up the valley for the night. 

After a short break we continued our relentless forward progress up the valley. I had picked out a small clearing on google earth just above the turnoff to Travers Falls that looked like a perfect camping spot. As we started getting closer to the campsite I started getting a bit anxious as to just what it would look like. I have to say I was pretty relieved to find it was a beautiful soft patch of grass at the rivers edge, plenty big enough for our two tents.
​ 
27km - 750m elevation gain - 9.5 hours

Day Two:
The next morning dawned clear and we set out early to make the most of the weather. The occupants of Upper Travers Hut were just getting ready to head out for the day as we filled our water bottles at the tank and started the climb up towards Travers Saddle. Having left the bush behind we headed towards the first small climb which led us up to a plateau at the head of the valley. I made a mental note that there were plenty of great spots to pitch a tent and water around as well should a high camp tickle your fancy. A further short sharp climb ensued before the gradient mellowed out a little for the final push to the saddle itself. Here the wind was starting to pick up so we hightailed it down the other side after just a short break. 

The descent to the Sabine Forks is steep and took us more than an hour to lose the 1000m of elevation and get down to the Sabine River. I wouldn't want to be heading up to Travers Saddle from the Sabine side - it would definitely be type 2 fun. 

Shortly after gaining the Sabine River we crossed over from the true right to the true left via a bridge over a nifty chasm. Here the river has gouged its way deep into the rock and the river is a good 30m below the bridge itself. From here the track meanders its way downstream before turning to the southwest just prior to West Sabine hut. We refueled at West Sabine then crossed over the swing bridge and continued up to Blue Lake Hut. The track climbs steadily from West Sabine Hut up to Blue Lake Hut, with a short sharp bit of climbing immediately before reaching the hut itself. 

19.7km - 1895m elevation gain - 11 hours

Day Three:
Today was our "rest" day as we only had to make it down to Sabine Hut at Lake Rotoroa. The weather in the morning was clear and we were quickly retracing our steps back down towards West Sabine Hut. We soon reached the track junction with the swing bridge back across the river. A lunch stop ensued followed by a cruisey afternoon wandering down the track alternating between the bush at the rivers edge and the odd open river flat before a decent climb up and over a short spur, then a final descent to the bridge crossing the Sabine River. Within half an hour we had reached Sabine Hut and set up our tents on the lake edge. A refreshing swim in the lake off the end of the jetty was the perfect way to unwind after the last couple of days and the lake itself was surprisingly warm! Later that night we returned to the jetty with our head torches and watched with trepidation as dozens of large eels slithered out and around the very same spot....
20.8km - 207m elevation gain - 7.5 hours

Day Four: 
On Day Four we awoke to the incessant buzz of bumble bees, wasps, and sand flies that had worked their way under the tent fly overnight. DOC have been running a wasp control operation in the Nelson Lakes national park but from what I saw the wasps had simply been replaced by bumble bees - I have never seen so many in my life! I was less than impressed at the thought of having to pack up the tent surrounded by all of the insects so decided to sleep in a little bit and let the rest of the party head on intending to catch up with them later in the day. After finally getting motivated I packed up camp and started on the track towards Speargrass Hut.

The track starts with a decent uphill grunt and I relished the chance to get the heart rate up and stretch out the legs. The track then passes by a cool tarn and continues to skirt the edge of the range on its way to the hut. I was treated to the sight of a Kaka flying and screeching overhead at this part of the track as well as a number of bush robins and fantails flitting about. Once you break out of the trees the track turns into a short section of boardwalk from which you are offered some magic views in all directions. Speargrass Hut itself is reached shortly thereafter and we met a number of parties heading back from trips to the ever popular Angelus Hut. From here the track descends steadily alongside Speargrass Creek back to the Robert Ridge car park.
16.81km - 950m elevation gain - 7 hours

If you're driving towards Arthur's Pass from the wide open expanse of the Canterbury Plains, chances are you've spent some time staring at the beautiful ridge line of mountains which mark the border between civilisation and rugged wilderness areas. The Torlesse Range features some great tramping mountains which are very climbable year round and easily accessible from the main road as it heads up to Porters Pass. While Castle Hill Peak is the highest summit in the range at 1998m, Mt Torlesse which lies a little further to the north east, is just as imposing at 1961m. You can link these up with a traverse of Foggy Peak, Castle Hill Peak, The Gap, Red Peak and then onto Torlesse or if you're after a shorter day out you can summit either of the peaks easily in a few hours.

Having already been to two of the above summits we decided to head up the Kowai River and climb Torlesse from the obvious spur to the south. We left Christchurch at around 6am to make sure we were walking just as the sun was coming up. Most trip reports had put the return journey at 8-9 hours and being August we wanted to make the most of the daylight in case we took any longer than that. A car park just off State Highway 73 has plenty of room to leave your car and the track starts just over the gate along a 4WD track. The track crosses private land to begin with and permission must be gained from Brooksdale Station (see details below) before passing through this way. The hut at the top of the valley also needs to be booked through the station and is a tidy 6 bunk situation with a fire and plenty of room to stretch out after the albeit short walk in from the road.

The track in from the road is indistinct in places but the terrain is easy to negotiate and you'll soon find yourself stumbling across it again if you stray from the main path. The journey up the river bed takes between one and one and a half hours and we brought running shoes for this first section knowing we would need heavier boots for our crampons later on. At the hut we switched out our footwear and had a chat to a couple of guys who had spent the night there. They had been up as far as the snow line the previous day but the conditions were a bit icy and they decided to stick to the lower slopes for the day. A track winds its way down to the stream behind the hut where the remnants of the University research project for which the hut was originally built are evident in the form of a concrete dam like structure.

We crossed here and followed a handful of equally worn paths in the general direction of the base of the spur. Having no idea if we would see water again (we didn't) we filled our bottles at the last point beside the stream before beginning the ascent up towards the ridge. A reasonably well worn track makes it easy to pick your way up through the scrub once you leave the flat. The point at which this track actually starts is more difficult to find so head for the middle of the spur and just start climbing, you'll find yourself on it without even seeing it to begin with. From here it's more than 1100m of ascent to the summit but the angle of the ridge is pretty kind to be fair. We gained height steadily without having to take many breaks before hitting the snowline at around 1300m. From here the snow was icy enough we had to use crampons almost straight away.

If you're not confident in your ability to self arrest then the next section is dangerous and shouldn't be attempted with snow on it. In summer the ridge is completely exposed and won't pose any issues for anyone with a good level of fitness so maybe wait until it gets warmer before heading up here. If you have the right gear then the rest of the route is straight forward and non-technical. This would be a good place to work on your crampon technique if you're just starting out and looking to build some confidence walking on slopes and kicking steps.

In the end we took 5 hours exactly from the time we left the car to standing on the summit (including breaks). This would be a little faster in summer if you weren't messing around with putting crampons on but in places the snow was probably easier to walk on than the scree would be. It was reasonably cold at the top so we didn't hang around long before dropping back down out of the wind for a late lunch and some blister maintenance. I was breaking in some new boots which were super comfortable for the first 4.5 hours before they suddenly turned on me and started to eat away at my right heel. We had also run out of water at this point so I was pretty happy to skip down the spur as quickly as possible and back to the stream and my lovely worn in trail shoes.

The descent was fast with the track making our lives easy through the scrub on the lower slopes and we made it back to the hut less than two hours after leaving the top. A swarm of sand flies which hadn't been there on our first visit that morning had appeared out of nowhere and dissuaded us from taking another break here. Be warned if you do decide to linger, an over confident Kea is creeping on the place waiting for some unsuspecting tramper to leave it something valuable to destroy.

Total round trip: 8hrs 20mins
Brooksdale Station Contact: Stu Gunn 03-318-4748
Pro Tip: 1 litre of water for the climb was not enough on a clear sunny day.
​Extra Pro Tip: Beware of the Kea, he looks shady

Not every trip need be an epic expedition into gnarly territory, full of hardship and suffering (although we do enjoy a good bit of suffering from time to time!). Sometimes you're just looking for a quiet weekend away from the city with a pleasant amount of exercise coupled with some beautiful views. The walk into Tribulation Hut from the banks of the Rakaia River certainly ticks these boxes and is a great introductory walk for anyone with limited experience or little legs. The hut lies on the edge of the Hakatere Conservation Area and borders a working farm on the far side of the valley. Drive south from Christchurch to Rakaia and then follow the river inland past Mt Hutt on the south side of the river. Blackford road will turn to shingle part way down and has some small ford crossings so a 4WD would be preferable especially after rain. Parking can be found through a gate on the left hand side of the road just before the bridge over Redcliffe stream.

DOC puts the 10km walk (one way) at 3.5 hours and this is pretty fair on the way in as the track climbs a fairly rough route  for the first 4km up the river. Although this is a poled route the track has been washed away in places and a few of the detours may take you a couple of minutes to find. Throughout the whole walk you should either be on fairly obvious tracks or see poles every 100m or so. This is by far the most challenging part of the walk and although you will encounter a few steep climbs they're over very quickly as the track deposits you on top of a wide grassy plateau. Redcliffe Saddle will open up in front of you and the track meanders gradually through tussock along the boundary fence with the neighbouring farm. Follow the poles another 5km before dropping down into the river bed just before the hut. This will be easy to cross at a low flow but be wary after heavy rain.

Tribulation Hut is a tidy 6 bunk hut with a long drop and plenty of water access. It doesn't have a fire unfortunately so if you're heading here in winter you'll need a good sleeping bag. While the trip to the hut and back to the road end is pretty straight forward, some parties choose to climb nearby Rat Hill for a bit more of a challenge. The return trip to the car is a good deal quicker as you're heading mostly down hill or along the flat.

Total Distance: 20km
Total Time: 5-7hrs
Pro Tip: Head back to Methven on your way out and get the Large Nachos from the Blue Pub

Things were going really well for us until we encountered snow from about 1300m. Areas of the mountain that hadn't seen much sunlight were icy and hard to walk on which left us wishing we had brought crampons with us. Thankfully there was plenty of exposed rock to keep moving safely but we would have been noticeably faster if we could have just stormed straight up the snow with spikes on our boots. Izzy feared a little better having inbuilt show shoes and had to keep waiting for us to catch up. From point 1362m to the summit is steep in places and provided more of a challenge with the snow and ice than I had anticipated having been up there in warmer months. We ended up taking around 2 hours from the river to the top at 1615m and 1 hour 15 minutes on the return journey. We were back in Hanmer with plenty of time to still enjoy the day but pretty happy with our efforts on a pretty cold and windy day. ​

About two hours south of Christchurch and directly inland from Hinds lies the Mt Peel Conservation Area. Popular with families for the variety of day walks around the forest park, the mountain is a great introduction to day hiking in Canterbury and like all of the foothills boasts beautiful views across the Plains all the way to the coast. We were taking a couple of friends out for the day to give them a break from farm life after making the transition back from living in London and even the threat of a 30 degree day wasn't deterring any of us. 

You may need a map to guide you to Blandswood Road as the area is not well sign posted from the Arundel-Rakaia Gorge Road. Turn right straight after crossing the Rangitata and follow the river back towards the hills. There are two carparks and a formidable long drop at the beginning of a gravel road which leads to the track proper. We took Deer Spur track to the summit which was a steep but well-maintained path initially winding through some really gorgeous native bush. ​

Much like Edmund Spenser's epic "The Faerie Queene", from which the mountain takes her name, our attempt to climb Gloriana Peak was incomplete but a great weekend away none-the-less. In the Lewis Pass at the top end of the well known St James Walkway lies the Spenser Mountains. Evidently named by men who knew their English literature, Faerie Queene, Mt Una and Gloriana Peak overlook the track between the highway and the wide banks of the Waiau River. This is an area we have grown to love over the past few years but it was my first time on the easy going St James and I was excited to see how far up the mountain we might get with an average weather forecast and only two days up our sleeves.

We left our little four legged terror in Hanmer Springs with family before jumping in our old blue station wagon for an early morning drive to the start of the track. Sam and I stared dejectedly out the windows at the approaching rain clouds from the back seat as the two boys in the front seemed oblivious to the ominous weather conditions. It was a shock to the system when we disembarked into freezing temperatures and the overwhelming quiet of the bush - Metallica had until then been blaring out of the speakers all the way up the pass. We shrugged on our packs with little enthusiasm and began crunching across the snow covered boardwalk into the cold and damp of Cannibal Gorge. ​