Time: 4 hours and 40 minutes (Leith Hill Loop on its own is 2 hours)
Distance: 7.9 km
Start: Opposite 60 Trelissick Loop, Castle Hill Village
Finish: Same place - its loopy.
Date: Friday 11th October 2024
Warning: From the highest point of the Leith Hill Loop Track (the picnic table), it is about 1 hour and 20 minutes to Leith Hill Summit, on an unmarked route. There is no track and no track markers at all
Another Plan B walk today - due to a towbar and the five fords of Double Hill Run Road. Too complicated a story to relay here. Foot flat to the floor in the tiny Toyota Witz (with the tight turning circle), we chugged to the top of Porters Pass with no mishaps and were soon parking at DOC signage opposite "The Doug", 60 Trelissick Loop, Castle Hill Village.
The Leith Hill Loop is an easy two hour track that DOC advises to walk in an anti-clockwise direction. Not sure why. At its highpoint, one can branch off on a more challenging route to Leith Hill Summit. The trick is to head up the steep ridge on the northern side of "The Depression", a distinctive scree basin that can be seen from State Highway 73.
Back at the starting point, we took the grassy trail between the flash houses and soon entered the beech forest and crossed the Thomas River - without getting feet wet - on a "logs and gravel" makeshift bridge (a quick ngā mihi to whoever did that). Up the hill, across the open tussock and then into the beech forest again. Gorgeous dappled light and the "small bells exquisitely tuned" of korimako who were flitting about in the trees above our heads. I will never get tired of this.
The track meandered along pleasantly, mostly through the forest and slowly began to ascend. After about an hour from the car, we were at the bushline and the picnic table. This is the highest point of the Leith Hill Loop Track, and the place to branch off for the summit. We were going on Tony's instructions from the wildthings website: "Follow you nose to the top". Sage advice, although we didn't do ourselves any favours by choosing the utmost steepest path just to the right of the scree. With much scrambling, we gained the ridge. From there, it is a route to the top, not maintained by DOC - so no path or markers but you follow the ridge. It is steep, but straightforward. Just follow your nose.
Through scrub and the odd patch of scree, an hour and 10 minutes from the picnic table, we were on the false summit. Someone had erroneously erected a large cairn. But the true Leith Hill Summit (1384 m) is a little further (10 minutes walk) to the west. From the false summit, the true summit looks deceptively lower and has a smaller pile of stones. We had to go there of course. The views were so spectacular, we lingered, taking panomaras and summit selfies and eating nut mixes.
We decided to descend the spur on the southern side of "The Depression". That was also steep but straightforward. The last bit, was through scree, down the ridge to the trees. Slipping and sliding. Nicole got her shoe lace caught in a matagouri bush, but managed an elegant extraction.
We completed the Leith Hill Loop, through the beech forest - bellbirds belling - very pleasant indeed. We were soon back at the Toyota Witz and zooming at 80km/hr back to Crikers. It was a gorgeous walk. Highly recommended.