Otira, New Zealand

Park at the Craggyburn Valley Trailhead for a longer, more scenic hike, or continue driving to the Ski Field Parking at the road's end.The trail follows the true right bank of Craggieburn Valley as it climbs through a thick and scenic beech forest. After an hour it reaches the bush edge just shor...

Being a cloudy and gray day in Christchurch, we decided to pack the bikes up and drive the 100kms on SH73 up to the Craigieburn Forest Park. There are several entrances to the tracks. You can either park up in the Castle Hill Village and enter the Hogs Back Track from there, or park in the Broken...

Park at the Hogsback Trailhead in Castle Hill Village. Follow the Hogsback trail by staying to the right at both upcoming "Y" intersections. Once you reach the bush edge, Long Spur and Mt Cloudsley come into view. Break off from the trail aiming for the toe of Long Spur. Then climb along the cres...

Follow the Hogsback Track until you reach the clearing just after the Waterfall Creek crossing. Hike through the clearing towards the toe of Mt Cheeseman's east ridge.Work your way up the ridge by linking a network of tussock slopes, ledges, scree slopes snow patches and crumbly rock. Eventually ...

Follow the footpath from the car park. You will quickly arrive at Castle Hill, famous for it's incredible array of giant limestone formations. There is no official path so you are free to wander the maze of rocks. Look for arches and even signs of ancient Maori inhabitants. Its fun to climb among...

From the carpark follow the signs to the gorge. The trail goes through the forest for approximately 10 minutes downhill before reaching the swing bridge which spans the gorge. After the bridge you can continue walking down to another viewing platform and opportunity to go further down, closer t...

The hiking trail first ascends a hillside to about 1,500 meters. It then follows the crest of a ridge in a southwest direction until you reach the "trig", a marker used in geographical survey. The maintained track ends here but hikers wanting more can continue traveling cross country to Rabbit Hi...

Park in the gravel roadside parking area at the highpoint of Porters Pass. Follow the faint use path up the lower scree slopes of Foggy Peak northward towards the summit. Upon reaching the summit of Foggy Peak the alpine traverse to Castle Hill Peak becomes obvious. The hike between the two peaks...

The Foggy Peak trail is an unmarked path leading from the carpark at the top of Porters Pass to the summit of Foggy Peak. The clouds can get very low here so be sure to bring a GPS or be knowledgeable in the mountains. From the carpark just duck under the fence and head on up to the top. The way ...

Rising about 600 meters from the Canterbury Plains, Peak Hill offers everything New Zealand is famous for: a steep climb to get your heart pumping, views of a gorgeous lake (Coleridge), ever-changing weather, views of the Alps, and views of wide, braided rivers. It is well worth sticking with the...

This 150 km long Rakaia River starts in the Southern Alps and continues east to be an awesome feature of the Canterbury Plains. The track isn't too long - a great day trip. You'll start where the river opens up and begins to braid, and hike to the gorge, where it narrows. Getting There: The trail...