Urban fringe
Loop
Undulating, small hills only
Dog Friendly
Native bush
Plantation/exotic forest
Open tussock/grasslands
Open ridges/tops
Gravel Road
Farm Road / 4WD Track
Easy Single Track
Moderate Single Track
Technical Single Track
Untracked / Route only
Average Uphill Gradient: +13.7%
Average Downhill Gradient: -13.3%
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1:50
Slow
1:25
Moderate
1:00
Fast
A short but pumping circuit that takes you over Mt Vernon, Sign of the Kiwi and Mt Victoria. Has a bit of everything (bush, panoramic views, steep ups and downs, and cruisy ridge running) -- the "challenge" part is to see if you can do this in one hour or less.
From the car park, run to the end of the gravel road, then up steep trails (or steeper shortcuts) to join the upper Huntsbury 4WD track to the main road and then one last direct shortcut to Mt Vernon summit. Stop the watch, climb onto the rock and admire the views! Run back along the Crater Rim Walkway which takes you over three small bumps and some native bush on the Lyttelton side to Sign of the Kiwi, then run down the popular (Harry Ell) track beside Dyers Pass road; cross the road to Victoria park, and continue on the Harry Ell track until you meet some steep steps going down.
At this point sidle right and follow a track directly up to Mt Victoria, passing by the octagonal visitor centre, and round to the right to pick up the descent track. This heads down (north) for 10 metres then loops back to the south, heading down. After about a minute (by a short orange Walkway marker on the left of the track) leave this trail and dive left down through the trees on a faint trail and pick up steep, dusty mountainbike trails through the trees wherever possible - the valley floor is just a few minutes away with careful routefinding, mostly off the main trails (which will take longer). You will eventually come out on a 4WD road, which leads back to the end of the original gravel 4WD road and back to the car park.
Plenty of parking (safe) at end of Bowenvale - also for bikes too.
7 km
16 minutes
Yes
No
Moderate.
Mostly on well-marked tracks. On the way up, some shortcuts on faint trails up the side of the hill help (if they are not overgrown).
On the way down through Victoria Park routefinding is more of a mission (i.e. you won't get seriously lost, but if you want to do this in under an hour you'll probably need a few tries probably to find the right lines!).
Generally good.
Whistle, First aid kit, Cellphone, Map.
Water at Sign of the Kiwi
Crater Rim Walkway section behind Sugarloaf can get pretty greasy in winter or after heavy rain.
Watch for mountainbikers on the 4wd section near the start/finish, especially on weekends.
Fava Cafe
236 Centaurus Rd
Excellent food and coffee
Trail Legend
Fastest Known Times (FKTs)
You and VKV challenge
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You’d be hard pressed to pack more into a 10k run, wow! It is a tour de force of the central Port Hills. Pretty grunty till the top of Mt Vernon; then it really opens up.
February 24, 2021
Grunty 3k to top of Mt Vernon before I could stretch me legs and get a running rhythm going. I ran past the final descent turnoff in Victoria Park but enjoyed the trail. But wiser now so hoping to score a better time next time, maybe 1.5hrs on a good day.
January 12, 2021
Do not use the .gpx track as it will take you on old trails that really no longer exist. Run Hunters has it correct - up Hidden Valley, not through a field. I will try it again now that I know this!
December 6, 2020
Just as brutal on my 2nd attempt but least I can say I knocked the bastard off. Still struggled to find my way between the hidden valley track and the next bit up as I'm sure the trail shown on the map doesn't exist! Most of the elevation gains are in the first 3km making it over 15% grade up. Mostly technical running around to the start of the Harry Ell so make sure you pick your tired feet up and don't trip on the roots or rocks like me. As a mere mortal this took me closer to the beginners time estimate tho i would call myself an intermediate runner...just old and slow!
February 13, 2020
These overlap with this trail to some degree. You may wish to combine them but please note that to qualify for FKTs on these runs you should record a separate activity for each.