Get ready for a spectacular Coromandel adventure on the Pinnacles Walk, which can be enjoyed in a day, or overnight.

The Pinnacles Walk is an intermediate route with expansive views of the Kauaeranga Valley, across to the East Coast and down to the Bay of Plenty. It is one of the most popular and accessible New Zealand tramps. The trail can be done as a day walk, but it’s worth staying overnight in the hut or at Dancing Dam Camp for the good times, epic views, sunsets and sunrises.

Enjoy a glimpse into the region’s history as you hike past remnants of the 1870s-1920s logging of the Kauaeranga Valley. These were used by kauri bushmen and their packhorses to travel to logging sites in the upper Kauaeranga Valley.

Park your car at the end of the Kauaeranga Road and start the hike moving through regenerating native forest and across swing bridges up to Web Creek.

After 10 minutes you can access Billygoat Landing which provides views of Billygoat Falls. In the 1920s, a rail incline was built around the falls and a steam hauler was used to lower the logs down to Billygoat Landing. The logs were then hauled across the main river and loaded onto the Kauaeranga Tramline to be taken back to Thames.

The hike continues along Webb Creek and when you get to the fork in the track, head right. The next part of the journey is climbing steps that were cut into the rock by loggers and gum diggers to make the journey easier for their packhorses. At the top of the climb, your path turns into the remnants of a skidded road, logs laid lengthwise with cross-pieces forming the ‘skids’. Logs were pulled along the skids by teams of bullocks or steam haulers.

Once you reach the Hydro Camp junction, you climb again to and along a ridge with great views of Table Mountain, the rugged volcanic plugs of Tauranikau and the Pinnacles that formed millions of years ago.

A highlight of the trek is the impressive 80 bed Pinnacles Hut, the largest Department of Conservation (DOC) hut in the country.

It offers a haven for those choosing to extend their adventure overnight. It is essential to book Pinnacles Hut as this walk is a popular destination, especially on weekends.

At the hut, look for the remains of the Dancing Camp Dam just 5 minutes down a track near the hut. This stringer flume dam, built in 1921, was the second largest dam in the valley and was partly restored in 1994. This is the only complete kauri dam remaining in New Zealand.

From the hut, there is a steady climb for another 45 minutes to the summit of the Pinnacles (759 m). It is steep in places along a well-constructed, stepped path, to a last scramble up ladders and steps – which can be hair-raising. But once atop you are greeted with spectacular near 360 degree views of the vast bush and mountains of Kauaeranga Valley up to Northern Coromandel on one side and the beaches of Tairua, Pauanui and The Bay of Plenty on the other.

The Pinnacles Location

To reach The Pinnacles Walk from SH25 at the southern entrance to Thames, turn right into Banks Street beside the service station. Banks Street veers right into Parawai Road, which then becomes Kauaeranga Valley Road.

Follow this for 13 km to the Kauaeranga Visitor Centre. This takes approximately 20 minutes. The road continues unsealed a further 9 km to the road end – about another 15 minutes driving. This is where the track starts.

The Pinnacles Info

From the carpark to the hut is approximately 3 hours, then from the hut it’s about 30-45 min up to the peak (less on the descent). That makes it a 6-7  hrs return trip, which is doable in a day, but an overnight stay in the hut is an experience worth having.

Contact

Kauaeranga Visitor Centre.