Note

The described route, including the GPX, crosses private land. You must obtain permission before following it. Steepface Hill can be climbed via Terrible Gully without the landowner’s permission.

Route description

The route starts at the intersection of Hutt Stream and Double Hill Run Road. This is a very wide shingle area with plenty of suitable parking. From here, the route follows Hutt Stream all the way to the saddle at pt1574. The stream bed rises steadily, and several compulsory stream crossings are required. The stream is usually small, and crossings are straightforward except after heavy rain. There are a couple of short, scrambly sections, but nothing exposed.

A major waterfall can be found about 200 m downstream from the confluence of Hutt Stream and a creek draining the eastern scree slopes of Steepface Hill (the creek is visible on the TopoMap). The waterfall is located at approximately BW20 8265 9088 (-43°25.55′S 171°33.01′E). A well-trodden, clearly visible track bypasses the waterfall on its true right, skirting around a giant landslide.

At around the 1100 m contour, the true left fork of Hutt Stream can be followed directly to the saddle at pt1574. This last section is steeper than the lower valley and carries a fairly high rockfall risk, as it is essentially an avalanche chute. From pt1574, the route follows the ridge directly to pt1876. This section is very straightforward.

From the top of Steepface Hill, there are several options for descent. A common route heads down towards pt1488, from where it is possible to drop into Terrible Gully. Another option is to continue onto a very narrow scree chute, marked on the TopoMap as a blue creek starting at about the 830 m contour, draining the eastern slopes of pt1488. The scree is rough and bony in its upper section but improves lower down. This scree chute, including its slightly problematic upper sections, is visible from the Hutt Stream carpark. Yet another route follows the fence that starts even before pt1488 at around 1600 contour and goes down along the eastern ridge of pt1488. On the TopoMap, the lower sections of the fence are clearly visible as a black line starting at 1000 m

The final section of this route, starting from the gate at about the 650 m contour, is overgrown with matagouri unless you cut through the paddock on the northern side of the fence. A clearly visible 4WD track then leads back to Hutt Stream, which is followed to the carpark.

My notes

As the name suggests, the slopes of Steepface Hill are truly very steep. We descended via the fenceline from pt1488, which I found to be one of the steepest 1000 m I’ve ever tackled. Our total time was 8 hours, but we took plenty of generous breaks thanks to the fantastic weather. On a less ideal day, with fewer breaks, I’d expect the trip to take around 7 hours. If descending via Terrible Gully, technically no landowner permission is required.

Stats: 11.74 km, 8 h, 1640 m ascent. Route shown on NZ TopoMap (GPX download below).

Participants: Michal Klajban (leader, scribe, GPX), Jason Bartlett, Michael Phethean, Emma Rogers, Jim Schofield, James Schofield, Michael Drawbridge, Jan Kupka

Tramped on 24th August 2025.

Photos

Map

Download file: GPX-hikingisgood-com-nz-2025-Steepface_Hill_with_the_CTC.gpx