The Mt Alford Track takes you to the summit of Mt Alford (1171m) for good views over taller mountains on the inland side, and the Canterbury Plains to the east.
Mt Alford sits on the edge of the Canterbury Plains, with taller mountains on the inland side. The walk up is not bad, passing through forested sections early on, a short while in paddocks, then back into reserve for the alpine portion to the summit. The main attraction of this walk however is the view from the summit, although the views over the plains as we descended were also nice.
I spent a fair bit of time up on the summit photographing the changing views as the weather began to clear, enough that my wife Sophia made a small snowman to pass the time (that gets into one of my shots). Track notes at the end.
Mt Alford Track: The Scenery
Once out of the forest there are views of the Canterbury Plains. The North Branch Ashburton River there. Our first look at the inland hills: The Pudding Hill Range. It looked quite wintery when we first arrived on the summit. Panorama looking north-west. The Pudding Hill Range Starting to clear. Panorama of the Old Man Range (I think). Nice lighting. Looking out towards the Canterbury Plains from the summit. The Old Man Range Panorama looking north west. The Old Man Range and Mt Somers Range (not Mt Somers the peak, which is nearby but stands alone from these ranges). Sophia enjoying the views after the weather cleared. The Pudding Hill Range looking different in the sun. Sophia had time to make a snowman while I took too many photos in the changing weather and lighting conditions. Coming off the summit. The North Branch Ashburton River. Looking down the ridge to the summit. Descending through paddocks. Interesting fungus. There was one stream crossing on the walk.
Track Notes
An obvious track at first then a poled route / track to the summit. Passes through private land (paddocks) and a reserve.
The track at first crosses a paddock, then enters beech forest, mostly within a reserve. After climbing for a while you gradually emerge from the forest into open country, mostly paddocks. It’s then back into a reserve, with alpine vegetation now, and onto a ridge for the final climb to the summit. When we did it in winter the track was pretty muddy on the lower sections, so consider that when planning your footwear. More information on the DOC website.
