Steepface Hill ascent, Mount Hutt Conservation Area, Canterbury NZ
Really excellent views over the braided Rakaia River and countless mountains on this big ascent up Steepface Hill (1876m) in Mount Hutt Conservation Area.
Since moving to Canterbury (NZ) in Autumn 2020 I’d had my eyes on Mt Hutt (2185m), the high point of a prominent mountain range bordering the Rakaia River. This would be a big walk with limited winter daylight hours, so a good plan B was to first climb a peak at the northern end of this range, Steepface Hill (1876m): a 1500m vertical climb over just four kilometres, and the only ridge on the route up is mostly flat. It’s all in the name! It’s not all about the steepness though, because the views of the Rakaia River and countless surrounding peaks were just fabulous. Also very cool was Terrible Gully at the start, a rather jagged waterway cut out of the hillside.
Definitely worth the effort if you don’t mind a very steep climb off-track. Track notes at the end. And if you are keen for a really big day out, then you can walk along the ridge to Mt Hutt (2185m). I did this in March 2023 – see that blog post here.
Steepface Hill ascent: The Scenery
The Rakaia River at the start. Cabbage trees lining Terrible Gully as it flows into the Rakaia River. Terrible Gully. After big storms this can become a river of rocks.
Terrible Gully running into the Rakaia River. I liked these sharp cuttings in the banks of Terrible Gully. Sophia ascending steeply up the first big hillside: about 1000 vertical metres. The Rakaia River, and in the background the Big Ben Range. Great views of the Rakaia River for much of this walk. Lake Coleridge at the back almost makes an appearance as you climb higher. A fairly epic panorama of the Rakaia River Valley. A change of lighting as we got higher up the mountain with a little high cloud cover. The view from point 1488m. The summit to the right. I liked this aesthetic of rocks and snow, with the braided Rakaia River in the mid ground. Climbing steeply up the last section to the summit. Slow going at times. Overall there’s a 1500m ascent over 4km, with the one ridge being fairly flat. The lower slopes were very steep but the grass and tussock were a bit easier than this section of scree. We tried to stick to the snow where there was any.
Almost at the summit.
Looking down from the summit. The Rakaia River can be seen meandering its way over the Canterbury Plains to the sea.
Me on the summit. Lake Coleridge at the back. Sophia looking towards Mt Hutt (2185m). Views south-west from just a bit past the summit. A snowy valley. Sophia on the summit of Steepface Hill (1876m).
A video of views from the summit…
Leaving the summit. Lake Coleridge there in the mid ground. Our way down. Red hill centre left, and Blue Hill far left. The Torlesse Range including Castle Hill Peak to the right. Afternoon light was accentuating the braids of the Rakaia River. The Rakaia River shining in the sun. Looking back up Terrible Gully to the crest of the Mount Hutt Range. The Steepface Hill summit off picture to the left. Blue Hill I took this shot of cliffs lining the Rakaia River on the drive out. My phone did a good job considering I needed to use digital zoom to get this close. (My camera had run out of battery and I couldn’t be bothered changing it).
Track Notes
Starts on a vehicle track through private land. From the Mount Hutt Conservation Area boundary you need to push through some spiky Matagouri bushes for maybe 10 metres. It’s then straight up for roughly a thousand vertical metres, through grassland at first, then tussock grass with patches of scree. Once you reach the spur the incline eases, until you hit the final steep ascent through scree, and on the day we did it, shallow snow.
The route starts on a vehicle track through private land. From the Hakatere Conservation Park boundary you need to push through some spiky Matagouri bushes for maybe ten metres. It’s then straight up for roughly a thousand vertical metres, through grassland at first, then tussock grass with patches of scree. Once you reach the spur the incline eases, until you hit the final steep ascent through scree, and on the day we did it, shallow snow. May take 6 to 8 hours depending on how determined you are to make progress on the way up.
I’d read that the winds here can get pretty dangerous, so best opt for a calm-ish day. The slopes are pretty steep so you should check for avalanche risk in winter. No such problem on the day did it however, and in fact we could have done with a bit more snow up top to aid with traction on the final push for the summit.
6 thoughts on “Steepface Hill ascent, Mount Hutt Conservation Area, Canterbury NZ”
Thanks Edward for that excellent description of the hike to the summit photos were first class ….if weather is ok this coming Sunday I’ll go up there …. Views look fantastic. Sore legs here I come ha.
Hi Edward – the Steepface probably refers to that scree run that goes right to the road from the eastern face of Pt 1488. It’s a primo scree run to do. There’s a wee tarn to the west I’d like to check out sometime via Rat Hill and the saddle (Pt 1234) linking it with Steepface Hill.
If you do that scree run can you then walk out via Terrible Gully? It was a bit late in the day to make navigation errors so I returned the way I came. I very much liked the walk to Rat Hill and have thought about going up from that way but I had not noticed that tarn. An added bonus.
Hi Edward – the scree run takes you right down to the road and then there’s a 2.6km walk up the road NNW to Terrible Gully. Frank reminded me the top entrance to that scree is a bit bony but the moderate-graded tramping party we did it with were OK getting on to it.
Thanks Edward for that excellent description of the hike to the summit photos were first class ….if weather is ok this coming Sunday I’ll go up there ….
Views look fantastic. Sore legs here I come ha.
Cheers John 😀 take care of your Achilles tendon – it’ll be stretched on that first climb!
Hi Edward – the Steepface probably refers to that scree run that goes right to the road from the eastern face of Pt 1488. It’s a primo scree run to do. There’s a wee tarn to the west I’d like to check out sometime via Rat Hill and the saddle (Pt 1234) linking it with Steepface Hill.
If you do that scree run can you then walk out via Terrible Gully? It was a bit late in the day to make navigation errors so I returned the way I came. I very much liked the walk to Rat Hill and have thought about going up from that way but I had not noticed that tarn. An added bonus.
Hi Edward – the scree run takes you right down to the road and then there’s a 2.6km walk up the road NNW to Terrible Gully. Frank reminded me the top entrance to that scree is a bit bony but the moderate-graded tramping party we did it with were OK getting on to it.
Oh I see. I’ll have to look out for it next time I’m up that way.