The Kepler track

Information

According to DOC classifications the Kepler track is a 60km loop. It will take you 3-4 days and is made for intermediate walkers. (Click here for more information.) The track goes across tussic and bush. It has great views of Lake Te Anau. You can go explore the Luxmore Caves at Luxmore hut and go to the Iris Burn Falls at Iris Burn Hut. If you feel up for it you can walk to rainbows reach from Moturau. The seasonal restrictions this year in the Great Walks season are 24th October 2017 - 30th April 2018. Outside the Great Walks season is 4th May 2017 - 23rd October 2017. Mt luxmore peak is the Kepler track’s highest point reaching 1,472 M. (Dogs are not allowed on the track.)

My experience

To Luxmore hut

It was a steady climb up to the Luxmore hut. At that point we were going through bush and tussic. Some places it was rocky but most of the track was well formed and easy to Walk on. I was very windy as we came up along the top and I was nearly blown over.

The hut at night creaked in the growing and dying wind. For me it was hard to get to sleep even though I had ear plugs. Eventually I got to sleep.

To Iris Burn hut

To the Iris Burn hut it is a journey along the ridges of Mt Luxmore when we went it was raining and sleeting and the wind was bringing it hard into my face. It stung! I was told by my parents not to go far ahead. Eventually we started going down the mountainside towards the hut.

Nice and peaceful night with good bunks and I slept well.

To Moturau hut

The trip to Moturoa is mostly flat but the are some up and down pieces. Well formed track. It is long but there are some good views along the way. Overall a nice trip.

In the afternoon we ate in a well sized kitchen and slept comfortably.

Trip Home

If you came through our way you could either go right out or come out at Rainbows Reach. We decided to go out Rainbows Reach which is shorter. Once we finished I thought about our walk. I thought that it was definitely worth it. It had great huts, well made tracks and excellent views.  

Mt Herbert Track

According to the DOC walking track classifications Mt Herbert Track is an intermediate walking track in the Banks Peninsula area. MT Herbert Track is a 5-6 hour return from Diamond Harbour with a highest point of 919m. It is an exposed track on farm lands and is closed from the 15th August - 15th October because of lambing season. Be prepared for any whether for there is a saying that goes ‘Failing to prepare is preparing to fail’ so check the forecast. The length to MT Herbert Track’s highest point depends on where you start.  From Diamond Harbour it is 7.4  km, or from Orton Bradley Park it will be 7.5 km.  There are other ways to do the MT Herbert Track just do some research. Other starting points shouldn't be to hard to find. If you're starting from Diamond Harbour you can drive round. You can  put a bit more adventure into your journey by taking a ferry from Littleton.


We chose to take a ferry from Littleton to Diamond Harbour because it's much more fun than driving. To get to the start of MT Herbert Track you have to walk up along the road. Before long you should see a sign to your right. Be careful the sign is easy to miss. The track starts of in a little bit of bush and quickly opens up into a small beach before climb into more bush. You will have to cross a few roads and at the last road crossing you have to walk a wile down the road before you reach the other side of the track. Eventually the track will open up into farmland so you need to cross styles. After crossing a few styles you will come across a gully and if you go strait up the gully you come across a big water-tank. That means you don't have too far to go. After a while you will come across two paths. The one on the right will lead you to the shelter, while the other one will lead to the highest point.


On the way down it is definitely worth getting an ice cream because you have worked so hard to get to the top and deserve a treat.

Mt Nimrod Track

Mt Nimrod Track is a thirty-two kilometre drive from Timaru. It is located in the Hunter Hills. Mt Nimrod Track has a length of 4.59 km and a highest point of 646m.

Mt Nimrod Track is averagely a 3-4 hour loop. (I smoked it in one and a half hours). You will need moderate to high fitness level because Mt Nimrod Track is an advanced tramping track.  There is one river crossing and if you travel five minutes upstream you will come to an amazing waterfall that bounds through a hole in the rocks. In my opinion the waterfall is a must see!

Mt Nimrod Track starts out in the car park then you climb into the bush. Eventually the bush opens up into the grassy mountain tops where you can see the beautiful coast. Later you climb down through more bush to a river. You can choose if you want to see the waterfall (by going five minutes up stream) or go straight to the other side of the river and continue walking. I chose to walk five minutes up stream to see the waterfall so I had to be careful of slippery rocks. Once I had got a good look at the waterfall I crossed the river and climbed up a steep slope to the highest point.

On the way to the highest point is a real rock scramble and the rocks can be really slippery when they are wet. After I got past the rock scramble I made a quick descent down the ridge to the car park.