Stairway to Heaven? The Coromandel and Pinnacles Track and Hut

We were sad to leave the Northlands area, but excited to move on to the Coromandel Peninsula.  We had heard much about this "playground," as it is a popular summer vacation destination.  Doing this trip in the Spring, we missed out on some of the fun because the ocean was still quite cold, but, on the other hand, we were fortunate to have relatively little in the way of crowds.

After spending a night in Thames, we did our big backpacking trek of our Spring Break -  a 3.5 hour tramp to the Pinnacles Hut in the Pinnacles area of the Coromandel. Prior to departing, we had been warned about stairs that never ended. They were right to try to prepare us. Warning aside, at some point all of us gave Lindsay a class in how to curse (figuratively) and we were all wondering how many more stairs there could possibly be to climb. In truth, it was an amazing hike. The DOC had built a hiking track with suspension bridges over rivers

and then carved stairs into rocks going up these very steep hillsides. Occasionally there would be railroad ties and 1.5 foot stairs built in. Very steep. Very long. Pretty wet, too, as if they had built the hiking trail right where the stream would naturally fall down the hillside. The weather was pretty nice and fortunately the hike went  through pretty dense bush, keeping things comfortable. Here are some pics from along the Webb Creek Track, the path we took on the way up to the hut.Notice that the first pic below is from the start of the hike.  All smiles.  The latter pic is toward the end, and Kendra has a look that says it all...

The payoff for this hike was incredible. The Hut is considered the crown jewel of the NZ hut system, a beautiful hilltop hut set above the hills and forest. There were 80 bunks split in two bunk rooms, and then a nice kitchen with eating areas, and some great outdoor decks with tables to take it all in. For services the hut had running water only, and outhouse bathrooms, and everything was pack-in, pack-out. So fairly primitive, but also ridiculously scenic. Heres a family shot of us in front of the hut.

Looming above the hut was a daunting 45 minute hike to the Pinnacle, a set of rock outcroppings that are the high point of the area. We did the hike at sunset the day we arrived, and it was truly epic. The wind was gusting at the top about 40mph at least, and the hike was a combination of stairs, ladders, ropes and rock scrambling.  You can just make out some of the ladders in the first photo, and the second shows some of the ladders built into the rock from up close.

Incredible views up top, as it was thankfully clear. You could essentially see out to the Pacific on one side and toward the Firth of Thames on the other side. But as beautiful as the scenery was, we were more than a little glad to be down and out of the wind and the scrambling we had to do. Here is one last pic of the sun setting on the Pinnacles.

On the way back down to our car the following day, we took the appropriately named Billy Goat Track. I think the consensus was that it was easier to climb the first day than it was to descend on the way out. Ouch. We discovered muscles that we didn't know existed.  Apparently we were not used to doing 4,000 squats a day.  Still, to make it a bit more fun, we did a cool NZ Frenzy excursion on the way out.  We found a small unmarked path off the main track, and this led to the top of a waterfall. The “waterfall’ was more like a series of waterfalls and pools that you could crisscross until it finally took a huge plunge downward at a pinch spot.  You could get perilously close to the top of this last waterfall and look over, which was pretty exhilarating.

At the top of the pools and waterfalls...

Here's a pretty pic of Jen at the last and largest pool (the pools go on for about a quarter mile).

The girls at the end of the trail, and top of the last waterfall.  They are on the lip of a 100 foot drop!

We spent over an hour having lunch and exploring, with the help of these ropes that were built into the hillsides to help you scramble around. Below is a pic of Pete in what can charitably be described as awkward. Thanks for taking this shot, Jen!

And the entire time we were in this spot, we saw…the five of us. No one else. Incredible solitude for such a beautiful no-named off the beaten track spot.

If you ever get a chance to hike this track, do it! But also start prepping by using "Stair Master 2020" at the gym...