Day Walk in Canterbury: Walking Little Mt Peel (with Kids Guide included)
Day Walk to the Summit of Little Mt Peel
Lets just start off by saying, that Little Mt Peel, is not all that little, so don’t be fooled. But if you are looking for a great day walk in Canterbury, with expansive 360 degree views, then this is of the best half day walks you will find.
Little Mt Peel can be found about 20 minutes out of the lovely country town of Geraldine, in Peel Forest. It sits right on the border of South Canterbury and Mid Canterbury. If you are driving from Christchurch to Lake Tekapo, or even from Christchurch to Queenstown, then Geraldine is a great little spot to stop on the way. So why not make it an overnight trip and you can explore a part of New Zealand that is way off the tourist track. So if you are the type of adventurer who likes to buck the trend, support local and get those photos that you don’t see everyday on social media, then this is the adventure for you.
Seriously, it has to be the most beautiful walk in Peel Forest, so don’t miss it!
This guide to Hiking Little Mt Peel includes:
- Where is Little Mt Peel?
- How to get to the start of the Deer Spur Track
- How long does it take to tramp Little Mt Peel
- What is the terrain like on the track?
- The Summit and hut at Little Mt Peel
- Is this Peel Forest Hike suitable for kids?
- Safety on Little Mt Peel
- Other Activities in Peel Forest
- More walks in Canterbury
- Rangitata White Water Rafting
- Things to do in Geraldine Township
- Local Accommodation in Peel Forest
- Accommodation in Geraldine
How to get to Little Mt Peel in Peel Forest
Peel Forest is easily accessible from Christchurch, Ashburton, Timaru, Oamaru and Tekapo in a day trip. In fact, when we walked, there was a group from the Christchurch Tramping Club who had headed down for the day.
The drive will take around 1 hour and 50 minutes from Christchurch and Oamaru, 1 hour 20 from Tekapo, 50 minutes from Timaru and 40 minutes from Ashburton.
Follow the signs for Peel Forest and head to Blandswood Road, which will be on your lefthand side, not too far past the Peel Forest store. Do be aware that there is not a lot of cellphone coverage in the Peel Forest area, so if you are using Googlemaps, set this up earlier while you still have service.
Head to the end of Blandswood Road (the road will bend to the right after the ford) and you will see the small carparking area. While you do have to walk a short stint up the road, you aren’t able to park up here. It is a residential narrow road, so please respect the locals privacy.
Getting to the start of the Little Mt Peel Track
Head up the short residential road, but go right to the end. Half way up you will see the start of the tracks to Emily Falls and the South Ridge Track. (on your left, but don’t turn here!) This South Ridge track is a longer and more advanced tramping track to the summit of Little Mt Peel and from what I have heard from others, not recommended for kids.
The main track to Little Mt Peel is the Deer Spur Track, so follow the signs for this trail. It will be at the end of Blandswood Road on your righthand side.
How long does it take to walk Little Mt Peel?
According to the Department of Conservation, this walk is supposed to take 2-3 hours one way. But if you have a young family, it is going to take a bit longer than this. Let me premise this by saying that I, somewhat naively, did this walk with a 5 year old, 4 year old as well as a 1 year old on my back. We did stop for a number of breaks along the way, but in total, it took us a whole 7 hours and 25 minutes (including stops, so maybe it did take us 6 hours return). We left at 9.50am and arrived back at 5.15pm.
Our food breaks probably added up to about an hour of stops, but I wouldn’t count these as leisurely where they were able to play and explore. These were mostly just food breaks, but enough for a rest.
In a nutshell, it took us
- 1 hour mostly uphill through the forest to the little tarn.
- 15 minute morning tea break
- 1 hour 50 minutes to our lunch stop where we could see the summit. This was on the ridgeline where you had great views, but was quite muddy. Still uphill.
- 25 minute lunch break
- 1 hour to the summit up the last steep hill which was rocky and the kids required hands and knees at times. Adults would have paced up this much faster of course. It was a hard climb this last bit, and also because we had already been going a long time.
- 15-20 minute break at the summit for photos and the rest of their lunch
- 2.5 hour straight downhill with a drinks break. (little legs slows this down a lot)
I felt like we could see the summit for quite a long time, but took forever to get there. In saying that, you could fake out the kids and say we are just going up there… so it was good for a while that they could see it.
What was the terrain like up Little Mt Peel?
At the very beginning, you park at the carpark, near the toilet block, and you have to walk up the road from there. It actually starts very steeply, but don’t worry, it doesn’t last long. You will pass a number of residential houses, head right to the end of the road and the track starts on your right.
The first ⅓ of the trek up to the wee tarn (alpine lake) was through forest and bush. The track was leaves and dirt, plenty of tree roots to climb over and quite a lot of stairs. These stairs were quite large steps that the kids little legs really had to work to get up them. I think this made them a little slow
The next section was a path out in the open which was a narrowish dirt track, but it was quite muddy and boggy in patches. If you have tramping boots or hiking boots, I would bring them along, but the kids were just in shoes, so spent some time walking around these sections, or I would lift them over.
There was a section of boardwalks which was great in the dry, as there was a lot of traction, but some experienced trampers who have climbed it before mentioned it can be really slippery and even icy when it has been wet and cold. So with young kids, if it has been raining recently, I would perhaps give this a miss.
The last section, which is a really steep hill right to the top is a bit of a rock scramble. I didn’t feel this was unsafe at any stage going up, as the track is quite cut into the hill. But when we came down this section, the kids slipped over quite a bit on their bums, as it was dry and the scree type rocks were slippery. We are quite lucky that some members of the tramping club helped us out and walked in front of the boys. To be honest I was a little nervous going down by myself with them. Nathan, our 5 year old would have been fine, but our 4 year old was starting to get tired and lose concentration by this stage. We were fine, but just something to be aware of.
The Summit and Tristam Harper Memorial Shelter
The Summit is marked by a trig station, a white tent shaped wooden cross at the very top of the mountain. You can spot it from miles away, but when you finally get there…. Phew! You made it!
After you have taken your obligatory photo and taken in the view, head inside the Tristam Harper Memorial Shelter. This is not a hut to stay in overnight, unless in an emergency. There is a toilet and a water tank, but this water should be treated before you drink it. Another tramper did note it was very icy by the toilet, and you don’t want to slip off the mountain so be careful.
Inside the hut, do make sure you sign the guest book and also leave your intentions from here just in case. See if you can find the kids names (they wrote them themselves) from September 2019. You will find a table and bench seats to have your lunch inside and shelter from any inclement weather.
If you had time or were looking for a longer hike, there is also the option to walk across the ridgeline and further on to Big Mt Peel, however I believe this is a much larger journey.
Is the Little Mt Peel Walk suitable for kids?
Let me just say that this walk was pretty tough. It was my first major walk with my new baby hiking carrier, with me carrying close to 20kg, and I found it tough. There were some times on this walk when I did have to question how much I really liked tramping, and why I was doing this with kids. But I think that just tells you that is a challenging hike.
The kids walked uphill about 4.5 hours with stops. It wouldn’t take adults that long, as the kids just have smaller legs, find it harder to climb up big steps than adults would and are much slower on the flatter sections (which there aren’t many of. It took us 2.5 hours to walk all the way back down from the top, and we only stopped to put on a jacket and have a drink. So we motored down this track in comparison.
If you had older children I would think you could do it in the designated time of 4-6 hours return. To be safe, make sure you leave early in the morning. I really wish we had more time at the hut at the top and to really look around the Little Mt Peel Summit but as we got up there, the clouds started rolling in very quickly, the temperature dropped a couple of degrees, and this just made me worry a little, so we hightailed it out of there. Being stuck on a mountain with 3 kids under 6 years old was not something I wanted to test out.
I was very impressed that our 4 and 5 year old both managed to walk this without complaint. If I knew it was going to take us 4.5 hours uphill, I doubt I would have attempted it. So if your younger kids aren’t great at walking, and you haven’t had much experience, I would skip this one, or perhaps just walk up an hour and see the view and head back down.
In general for young ones, the safest bet is to have a carrier in case they get tired. But if you have adventurous kids who are used to hiking, then it will be possible to do it. But don’t take this as advice that any 4 and 5 year old could do it. The group from the tramping club who were with us for a while said that “normal kids” wouldn’t be able to do it…. I had to laugh. I feel like my kids are normal kids, but I totally get what the intent was.
One thing I would recommend is some decent kids hiking gear such as a backpack and good boots for this hike. It will make it a whole lot easier.
Safety on Little Mt Peel
While the first part of the walk was sheltered under the forest canopy, the majority of this walk was open and exposed. We completed the Little Mt Peel hike on a beautiful sunny spring day, forecasted for 17 degrees celsius. If this had been a windy day or the weather had been in doubt, this could be a really dangerous hike with kids. So please, do keep yourself safe.
While at the base of the Little Mt Peel track, there was very little cellphone service, however up on top, I did have mobile coverage. I managed to send some text messages, updating my husband on my progress and I did have 4G in patches. So for safety’s sake, this is good to note.
If you haven’t hiked an alpine trail in New Zealand before, be aware that the weather can change dramatically and quickly. Within 20 minutes of us reaching the top, it went for clear blue skies, to chilly cloud coming in at pace. We were well prepared with at least three layers each, but we also packed up pretty quickly and headed down just in case.
If you’d like some more information on hiking in New Zealand mountains with your family and all the things you need for just in case, check out the Mountain Safety Council
Activities around Peel Forest
If you are wanting to spend some more time in the Peel Forest Area or are looking for things to do in Geraldine while you are here, then check out some of these walks and attractions in the Geraldine region.
Walking in Peel Forest
There are many more great walks in Peel Forest, and many are far less taxing that hiking Little Mt Peel. Check out some of the best walks in Peel Forest below
More walks at the Blandswood Road Carpark
- The advanced tramping track to the Little Mt Peel Summit, the South Ridge Track which takes around 3.5 hours one way
- The Emily Falls Track (45 minutes each way)
Walks at Te Wanahu Flats
Te Wanahu Flats is a picnic area and carpark, basically a good starting spot for a number of hikes in the area.
A great little walk for toddlers is the Big Tree Walk. It only takes 10-15 minutes at toddler pace and at the end you will find an enormous Totara tree which is 3m wide. When one of my boys was 18 months old, he happily toddled this track so a great place to start for young ones.
The 14m Acland Falls is a good short walk for kids. There is a steep hill to climb at the start of the track, then it heads down towards the stream and out to Acland Falls. It is not a hugely impressive waterfall (well there wasn’t a great amount of water when we were there) but a destination nonetheless. You can walk back up the hill towards the carpark, or follow the alternate track back out the road, and walk along the road back. (there is no footpath and can be a little dangerous, but there isn’t a lot of traffic on this road, so be careful if you head back this way)
Other walks from Te Wanahu Flat include the Fern Walk and Allans Track.
Other Walks in the Mid Canterbury Region
- Mt Sunday: Short 1 hour return walk at a Lord of the Rings Film Location
- Woolshed Creek Hut: 4.5 hour return walk to the Hut in Mt Somers
- Our “Best Walks in Canterbury” article
Rangitata Rafts
If you’re ready to get your adrenaline going, check out the Rangitata Rafting, down the Rangitata River. There are two white water rafting trips available, from the grade 5 rapids rafting down the Rangitata Gorge and the Grade 2 trip, which is more gentle and suitable for children in the lower Rangitata River
Explore the country town of Geraldine
After this walk, you must check out the cute town of Geraldine. After one of the best walks in Peel Forest, you will surely need a fresh fruit ice cream, so why not check out the Geraldine Orchard and Farm Shop Cafe. I can attest to their deliciousness, and it’s always a treat to stop. It’s a great thing to do in Geraldine with kids, as they also offer fun activities for kids like soccer golf and a bouncy castle in their grounds.
Geraldine has some great boutiquey shops and is home to Barkers, the famous jam, chutney and sauces company, right here in rural New Zealand. Everyone has a jar of something from Barkers in their pantry. They have just opened the Barkers Food Store and Eatery, is a great lunch stop and a good chance to try out their tasty wares.
Local Accommodation in Peel Forest
Peel Forest Lodge
The Peel Forest Lodge has a 4 bedroom house that is perfect for families. It has four bedrooms and can sleep up to 10 people. It is a beautiful country house that looks like a log cabin right out of North America. It is really beautiful and you can find the latest prices here
Peel Forest Farm Stay
What better way to experience New Zealand, than in a farm stay in Peel Forest. With a number of rooms, including a family room sleeping up to 7, and breakfast included, this family accommodation in Peel Forest, Geraldine is one of the best on the list. To check out their prices, click here
Waikonini Homestead
This beautiful colonial style homestead is just picture perfect. With stunning original finishes and charm, this unique country house is something to be remembered. They have many rooms on offer, so check them out here
Peel Forest Campground
Not far from Te Wanahu Flat is the Peel Forest Campground. They are open from Mid September to April and is a Department of Conservation campsite. This means the campgrounds are usually quite basic and rustic, but has everything you need and a great price to match.
This campsite has powered and non-powered campsites, and cabins starting from $50 per night (bargain accommodation!) Click here for more information
Geraldine Accommodation
Geraldine has a great range of family friendly accommodation from local country B&Bs, holiday houses and motels. The greatest thing about this area is that Geraldine accommodation is very reasonable, starting from just over $100.
For more motel or holiday homes hire accommodation in Geraldine click here
Geraldine Top 10 Holiday Park
Top 10 Holiday Parks are great as they have added extras for the kids like playgrounds, and this one has a BMX track, a giant chess set, petanque, table tennis and a basketball hoop, with all the gear provided. Campsites are available, room to park your motorhome, as well as motel rooms and cabins
Click here to find the latest prices
Farmyard Holiday Park in Geraldine
What sets this holiday park apart, is the fact they have on onsite animal park with all sorts of farm animals, include alpacas, peacocks, donkeys and wallabies (along with your usual farmyard animals)
You can visit this place as a day visitor or it has to be one of the best places to stay in Geraldine for families.
Jennifer
Founder of Backyard Travel Family
Jen is a super organiser when it comes to travel. Having travelled extensively in Europe and Africa, has lived in London and the USA and holidayed in many parts of Asia, she is not a newbie to the travel space
Jen has three young children, 5 and under and travels around New Zealand with them.
what you need to know
Travel
- 40 minutes drive from Ashburton
- 50 minutes drive from Timaru
- 1 hour, 20 mins from Tekapo
- 1 hour 50 minutes from Christchurch and Oamaru
Head to the end of Blandswood Road off Peel Forest Road and park at the carpark at the bottom of the hill
The track
- Take the Deer Spur Track, it is shorter and is the main trail to the summit
- Forest and bush track, followed by exposed ridge walking
- Boardwalks near the top that can be slippery when wet or icy.
- Path is well formed. The trail is easy to follow.
Suitable for kids?
- Hard track suitable for older children or kids with hiking experience. You could do part of the trail with younger kids. This will take a long time.
My boys were just 4 and almost 6 when we did it and they made it, it was awesome, but a crazy long day.
- Backpack babies and toddlers
Facilities
- Small carpark on Blandswood Road
- Toilets at the carpark
- Map of area at the carpark
- Tristam Memorial Shelter just below the summit for shelter, a toilet is here also
What to bring
- This could take your family up to 7 hours, so take a days worth of food
- Warm layers, even on a hot day and it changes very quickly
- Lots of water because everyone will get really thirsty from all the hard work
- Tramping boots if you have them, as it gets quite muddy and these are better for stability.
- Walking poles would be useful, especially walking downhill
- Cellphone for emergencies
Food options
- Peel Forest Store about 5 minutes before the Blandswood Carpark
- Geraldine township for great offerings. Try out the Barkers Foodstore and Geraldine Orchard and Farm Shop. (also there are nice public toilets at the Geraldine Visitors/Info Centre
Further information
Click the ? to be taken to Department of Conservation Information
What the critics thought
