Mt Herbert, Banks Peninsula: 20 November 2021

My annual pilgrimage to Mt Herbert...

A couple of weeks ago I completed my annual pilgrimage up to the summit of Mt Herbert. I try to get up here at least once or twice a year as it is an excellent walk with some stunning views of Canterbury and Banks Peninsula from the top. 

Kaitorete Spit and Birdlings Flat from Mt Herbert

I use a number of access tracks to get to the top of the maunga but my usual route is to walk up Monument Track from Purau Saddle to the summit. This route is steep but it is also the shortest track to the mountain top and covers about 5 kilometers over 2-3 hours each way. 

Silver Surfer parked up at Purau Saddle

It was a decent tramping day with overcast skies but little to no wind so it was not blazing hot as there is little to no cover on the way to the top. I was partially using this trip as training for my tramp of the Heaphy Track but I love walking on Banks Peninsula anyway.....

The Monument is obvious from the Purau Saddle

This is my third visit to Mt Herbert this year as I have walked up from Purau Saddle and also from Port Levy Saddle in the past 12 months. Monument Track is just one of Seven ways to the top of Mt Herbert...

On the Monument Track to Mt Herbert:

Monument Track is 5 kilometers from Purau Saddle to the top of Mt Herbert and while not the easiest way it is by far the shortest. You are walking across farmland for the first hour and then climb over a fence into the reserve land recently purchased by an outdoor consortia and destined to eventually become a new conservation park. It is to be called Te Ahu Patiki....

New course of the Monument Track along the fenceline

There is a stile at the start of the track at Purau Saddle and a newly marked track follows along the fenceline for about 500 meters to near Monument Hut. This section of track is new and is the result of an agreement between the farmer and the Rod Donald Trust. I think the farmer is trying to keep walkers off his land and this is a long term negotiated right of way along the old paper road...

Port Levy Settlement from the Monument Track

Monument Track sidles around the farmland

Passing view to Monument Hut as we climb to Mt Herbert

Past Monument Hut the track starts climbing along an old farm track below and past the Monument (711) and up the side of a spur leading to Little Mt Herbert (Pt. 913). The track is well marked and easy walking except for the gradient which is very steep. The Monument is a rocky Tor popular with the Christchurch climbing fraternity...

On Monument Track below the Monument

There are great views down to Port Levy, Lyttleton and the Port Hills almost from the start as you are starting at a height of around 500 meters asl. Mt Herbert is 919 meters so you gain roughly 500 meters over the course of the track so it is a good work out. I saw no other trampers till almost on the summit so I had the track to myself for most of the morning. 

View down Purau Valley to Lyttleton Harbor

Mt Herbert is on the right of the distant ridge...

Once you start climbing up past the Monument you can see right down to the coast at the head of Purau Bay. You can also see over to the Port Hills and as you go higher you have views of the Canterbury Plains. Visibility was good on the day so you could see right up the coast to Kaikoura and the Seaward mountains there. 

You have stunning views of Canterbury from Monument Track

Mt Evans (703) from the Monument Track

There are a set of switchback track sections about 45 minutes into the walk and above them the gradient of the track eases a lot. It is still steep but it gets flatter the further you walk up towards the junction of Monument Track North and the Summit Link Track. 

Switchback track along the edge of the Monument

Canterbury, Pegasus Bay and the Port Hills from Monument Track

You can see down to the carpark near Purau Saddle and below is a long range photo of the carpark taken from near Pt. 806. Purau Saddle Road was busy on the day with cars heading to Port Levy and quite a few motorcycles heading up to ride over Port Levy Saddle to Little River.  

View down to the Purau Saddle from near the Monument

The gradient eases near Pt. 806 enroute to Mt Herbert

Good study of the Monument (711) from near Pt. 806

Pt. 913 or Little Mt Herbert is to the left....Mt Herbert to right

The view of the Canterbury Plains and the distant Canterbury Foothills gets better the higher you climb...eventually you can see over the Port Hills and make out some detail of the houses in Christchurch over 20 kilometers away. 

Lyttelton and the Port Hills from near Pt. 806

You can see the full curvature of Pegasus Bay from the track...

Monument Track turns into the Summit Link Track near a fenceline and stile on a small plateau between Pt. 806 and Pt. 913. The Summit Link Track is heading up to the saddle between Pt. 913 and Mt Herbert and you can see the track climbing uphill towards it.

Fenceline near start of the Link Track to Mt Herbert

View east to Kaituna Spur from the Summit Link Track

On the Summit Link Track to Mt Herbert

 There is a side track called Monument Track North that takes you to the Te Ara Pataka Walkway past Pt. 913 and heading towards Kaituna Spur Reserve. I walked this direction back in 2019 on my way back from Mt Herbert to Port Levy Saddle..

Junction of Summit Link Track and Te Ara Pataka South Tracks

Te Ara Pataka follows the ridges east to Port Levy Saddle

It is about one kilometer from the turn off to Monument Track North to the top of the Summit Link Track and climbing up the side of Little Mt Herbert will take about 15 minutes...

The Link Track climbs to the saddle between Pt. 913 and Mt Herbert

Climbing to the saddle between Pt. 913 and Mt Herbert

View north up the East Coast of the South Island

Jon on the Summit Link Track to Mt Herbert

You can see the whole route of the Monument Track once you are near the saddle of Mt Herbert and both Port Levy and Godley Heads come into view over the intervening ridges...

...full course of the Monument Track laid out...

Looking towards Mt Herbert....

Near the saddle between Pt. 913 and Mt Herbert

From the saddle you can turn left and head up to the top of Pt. 913 (aka Little Mt Herbert) or right up to the main summit. I visited the top of Pt. 913 earlier this year so I set off for the top of Mt Herbert instead...

Mt Herbert from the Mt Herbert Saddle

Mt Herbert Reserve is on the eastern side of the mountain

From the saddle between the two peaks of Mt Herbert you have a great view south to Lake Ellesmere, Kaitorete Spit and south down the coast as far as Timaru. You can also see most of Kaituna Valley spread out before you. 

Looking south to Lake Ellesmere, Kaitorete Spit and South Canterbury

Mt Herbert is not a peak rather it is a long rolling plateau so once you make it to the eastern edge you can see right along it to where it starts to drop down towards Mt Herbert Shelter and Mt Bradley. 

Climbing up the eastern side of Mt Herbert

The summit is marked by the radio antennas...

Because it is such a long rolling crest you cannot see off all four sides from the top so you have to walk from side to side to see the views. In the photo below you can see down the ridgeline that the main Mt Herbert Walkway follows. This is the usual route to the top of the mountain but also one of the longest as it takes eight hours to do the return trip from Diamond Harbor to the crest. 

The Mt Herbert Walkway heads down this ridge...

Purau Bay, Lyttleton and Pegasus Bay

From the eastern edge of the plateau it will take you about 15 minutes to walk to the trig point at the crest of Mt Herbert...

On the top of Mt Herbert:

I eventually made it to the top of Mt Herbert after just over 2 hours of walking time...there were a few other people on the summit as there are on most fine weekend days. I walked around the top taking some photos and filming some clips for the vlog. 

On the summit ridge of Mt Herbert

Atop Mt Herbert....Banks Peninsula

The actual highest point of Mt Herbert is marked by a cairn with a orange topped snow pole in the middle. There is a datum post here with the trig point information for the mountain...longitude and latitude, height, and the NZGS data reference point information. There used to be a much larger trig point here but it keeps getting blown over so it has been removed. 

The actual summit of Mt Herbert (919)

Mt Herbert is the highest point on Banks Peninsula so from the top you have some stunning views in every direction. You need to move from place to place to get past the curvature of the ridge and there is plenty to see at all points of the compass...

Mt Herbert Summit: north to the Canterbury Foothills

Mt Herbert Summit: north west to Head of the Bays

Mt Herbert Summit: south to Mt Bradley (855)

There are a series of antennas atop Mt Herbert that are a retransmission point for the emergency services over Banks Peninsula and the outer bays. They are solar powered and there is a small shed with the radios inside and a nearby tank that once held diesel when they had generators running the equipment. I tucked myself behind these while eating my lunch as there was a strong, cold wind blowing over the top of the mountain. 

The emergency services transmitters on Mt Herbert

Mt Herbert Summit: looking north towards Kaikoura...

...having lunch in the lee of the transmitter building...

If you are coming up here make sure you have warm and windproof clothing with you...it can be cold and windy as there is nothing to hinder the weather this high above the ocean. Bring plenty of water as there are zero places to resupply along the Monument Track although there is a rainwater tank at nearby Mt Herbert Shelter if you really need some water...

Mt Herbert Summit: south east to Lake Ellesmere

Mt Herbert Summit: the antenna array...

The top of Mt Herbert is very wide...

...you cannot see off all the edges from the top....

There is a track sign and trig point on the summit of Mt Herbert

I spent about 20 minutes up on the crest before packing up my gear and setting off back down the mountain to my car. While I was there over 15 people arrived from different directions and there were several parties on the top sitting in the tussock and eating their lunch...

Jon near the summit of Mt Herbert

...a ship is leaving Lyttleton Harbor...

The return trip is back along the same route BUT if you can get someone to drop you at Purau Saddle you can walk several directions. North down the Mt Herbert Walkway to Diamond Harbor, south east past Pt. 913 to Port Levy Saddle or south to Orton Bradley Estate, Packhorse Hut and the Kaituna Valley. 

Looking down the Monument Track from Mt Herbert

Godley Head is tucked in behind Mt Evans

If you are walking the Te Ara Pataka Walkway you pass right over the top of Mt Herbert and sidle down the southern flank of Mt Bradley to Packhorse Hut and your second nights accommodation. That is a great trip I have covered here before...

Heading back to Purau Saddle:

I had contemplated a side trip up Pt. 913 but as I had been up there at the beginning of the year I just decided to forgo the short walk and head back down the Link Track. If you ever head up Mt Herbert take the opportunity to visit Pt. 913 as it is the second highest point on Banks Peninsula and it has some fine views down to Port Levy. 

Looking across to Little Mt Herbert (Pt. 913)

Port Levy from Mt Herbert-Pt. 913 saddle

The Gorse was in flower over much of Banks Peninsula

The descent off Mt Herbert is very gentle but do take care if it is misty or cloudy as there are some bluffs near the track and it is really easy to get lost in low visibility conditions. There are a multitude of tracks on the mountain and it is easy to follow the wrong one and end up in the completely wrong place on the mountain. 

Last view along the top of the ridge on Mt Herbert

Descending down to the Mt Herbert Saddle

The Link Track and Monument Track have good views of a distant Mt Fitzgerald

I was soon back at the Summit Link Track junction and heading back down the eastern side of Pt. 913...the sun started to break through the clouds at this point and it got warmer and sunnier as I went along. 

Back at the Te Ara Pataka-Link Track Junction

Last view of Mt Herbert and Mt Bradley

It was getting into the afternoon by this time but I still passed five people making their way up hill along the Monument Track. Mt Herbert is a perfect place for a evening walk over the summer months as it is still light enough at 10pm to navigate. You could get here at five and still be finished before the sun has completely gone down...

Looking down towards Pt. 806

I saw some evidence of wild pigs near the saddle between Pt. 913 and Pt. 806...the ground had been churned over around a mud wallow there. Pigs will turn the ground over looking for tasty shoots and insects and I saw several patches of this tell tale sign along the track...

Pig sign near Pt. 806 on the Monument Track

Pt. 761 and Pt. 807 on Te Ara Pataka

There are tracks either side of Pt. 806...go left...

Junction of Monument Track and Monument Track South

I carried on down the hill towards the carpark passing a couple of more people on their way to the top. I'm going to come over here over the summer and do an evening walk to the summit just for a different take on the experience. 

On Monument Track descending to Purau Saddle

I noticed some bluffs on one of the distant ridges on my way down...I have not really given them much notice before. They look big...easily from 60-150 meters high so you wouldn't want to be stumbling down there in a storm or at night...

Massive bluffs on a nearby spur...60 to 100+ meters high!!!

I stopped for a five minute break half way down to the car and sat on the side of the track enjoying the scenery. If you are going to stop it must be above or well below the Monument as random chonks of rock fall off it all the time. There are big piles of them on the section of track under the spire and some of them are the size of chest freezers...

Good view of the Monument from the track

The upper Purau Valley has a QE II covenant placed on it and it is slowly reverting to bush. In another 30-40 years it will be totally cover with low scrub and planted native trees. There are more and more areas on Banks Peninsula being given over to bush once again and it is a good thing...

Purau Valley is slowly reverting to bush....

First view of Purau Saddle on my descent

I soon found myself back at the switchbacks on the track which is roughly two kilometers from the end of the track so the day was drawing to a close for me...

At the top of the switchback section of Monument Track

There is a good distant view of the Monument Hut from the ridge running across the track and just below the Monument itself. I stopped here to take some photos of the Hut off in the distance as well as the slightly angry looking sheep. 

A distant view of Monument Hut from near the Monument

...you lookin at me....!!!!!

Northern aspect of the Monument (711)

The sun had come out by this time and it was quite hot down in the valley and out of the wind. The local sheep were taking advantage of a patch of shade and laying there out of the worst of the heat. The marked track goes right past them but I climbed over the stock fence nearby so I did not disturb them. 

...the sheep were sheltering from the sun....

I was heading for the Monument Hut so I needed to walk around the new stock yard to get to the hut anyway...

The YHA Monument Hut:

I stopped by Monument Hut on my way back to the car...the hut is an old historic building from the 1940's and it lies about 500 meters away from the start of the track at Purau Saddle. It is kind of isolated now as it is behind several fences on private farmland but people are still allowed to visit the hut by keeping close to the fence-line near the hut. 

Long view of Monument hut on Banks Peninsula

It was originally built by the Youth Hostel Association (YHA) as over night accommodation for people walking on Banks Peninsula. Not many people had cars back in those days so a lot more folk walked and tramped on the Port Hills and Banks Peninsula. They could use public transport to get to the tracks and then walk back to another public transport point to get home. Other huts built for this purpose included Packhorse, the Sign of the Tui and another hut long since removed close to Montgomery Park Reserve.

YHA monument Hut is close to Purau Saddle

By the time the hut was finished in 1943 the war had started and all the young men and women were too busy to use it.  Post war there were trains and bus services to more interesting places like Arthurs Pass, Mt Cook and Lewis Pass. They became the focus of tramping in Canterbury and the Port Hills and Banks Peninsula were largely forgotten. 

Monument Hut: information sheet inside...

Monument Hut: information sheet inside...

Monument Hut hardly got used but the local farmers have maintained it over the years so that it still exists to remind us of those times. It is available to use by arrangement with the farmer but it would be a dank, dirty and cold place to stay overnight. There are dusty Kapok mattresses for eight people with a small table and a couple of benches...much like a mid 1950's dog box bivy...

Basic arrangement inside Monument Hut...small, dark and dirty...

The next time you are passing over Purau Saddle think about heading along the track to check out this historic reminder of times past. It is on the Hut Bagger site and can be bagged as a backcountry hut if that is any incentive to you...

Back to Purau Saddle:

From Monument Hut it is a short 500 meter walk back to the start of the track at Purau Saddle along the newly marked track. There is an excellent view of Port Levy from here and you could see the detail of the settlement, the experimental Kumara planting on the hillside and Horomako Island which also has a historic hut on it. 

Looking down to Port Levy from Monument Track

There is a farm track just above the new sidle track and I cannot for the life of me understand why they just didn't run the walking track along it. I suppose they are worried about people getting run over by machinery using the track but the area is hardly ever used so it would be a tiny risk. 

The track sidles around to the Purau-Port Levy road

View of the carpark on Purau Saddle

None the less it is a requirement for trampers to use the track so we can maintain some degree of access to the Monument Track going forward...

You cross the fence using the supplied stile...

Monument Track crosses private farmland....

There is an excellent view of the bottom half of Monument Track and the Monument itself from Purau Saddle so it is worth while taking a couple of minutes when you get there to look back over the ground you have covered. 

The Monument overlooks the track for most of its length

Mt Herbert should be a destination for every self respecting tramper from Canterbury and I think a walk up to Mt Herbert and others to Mt Grey near Amberly and Mt Oxford give you an ideal cross view of the Canterbury Plains. Add a visit to Mt Herbert onto your 'to do' list immediately...

Access: The track starts at Purau Saddle about 20 minutes drive past Diamond Harbor, it climbs past the Monument to join the Summit Link Track & Te Ara Pataka to the top of Mt Herbert.
Track Times:1.5-2 hours to Pt. 913 (Little Mt Herbert), another 30 minutes to reach Mt Herbert, 1.5-2 hrs return to the Purau Saddle car park.
Hut details: Monument Hut: (Historic) basic, 4 bunks, no water, no toilet, no heating.
Miscellaneous: The car park at Purau Saddle occasionally falls victim to vandals, do not park your car here overnight. Be wary of visiting Mt Herbert in bad weather as it is extremely exposed to weather from all directions. It is easy to get lost up here in heavy rain, low cloud, mist or fog.