Waterfall Track, Hanmer Springs - Trail Guide

I had heard great things about Waterfall Track staying overnight with colleagues in Hanmer Springs, so I sussed out heading back up there with my eldest daughter (eight). Then my parents let me know they were coming up to stay for a few days, so I added them into the day trip from Christchurch. Rather than hanging out with my youngest one (five) in the town centre, my mum decided she and her were going to attack the walk as well. What had started out as a trip for two became one for six. Whilst having its share of bumps, it turned out a pretty good trip.

We stopped in Hanmer for a pie from PJ’s Pies as a slightly late lunch. We arrived at the track around 2pm. The DOC information said it was about 90 minutes each way to the waterfall. It was April and so the days were starting to shorten and get colder as the afternoon got on. We needed to get a move along.

We weren’t helped when I discovered my water bottle had leaked all through my bag. I had refilled it in the town centre and not properly latched the lid. We pulled up into the fairly full carpark. I reached over for the bag and found the seat it had been sitting on was sopping wet. Well, I lost it. I spouted a tirade of profanity that must have sliced like a thousand tiny knives at my mother’s decency. I feel bad for that. Sorry, mum.

Signs warning of wasps do adorn the carpark, so do be wary of these, particularly in summer. DOC recommends wearing light coloured clothing and carrying antihistamine tablets or cream as a precaution. We entered into beech forest that runs along the true left of the small valley. Looking across to the other side, you can see lots of luscious native bush rising up towards Mt Isobel (1319m) far above you.

My children were doing surprisingly well. The older one has done one proper hike with me. Tears were involved. The younger one still likes to be picked up and carried about the place. A lot. Grandparent power is amazing though, you know. They were happy-as-Larry wandering along yabbering away to my mum. That’s why it was so disappointing when the weather started packing up. It had been shite all school holidays and this was one of the better days we were supposed to get - sigh.

This is when we hit the second speed bump of the day - we had forgotten to bring the kid’s jackets out of the car with us. In all the kerfuffle over the spilt water it just totally slipped past me. We walked a little further and the drizzle continued to set in, so my mum made the call to turn around with the girls and head back. They had walked in a good half an hour and I was really pleased they had had a fun bush experience. I didn’t want it ruined by them getting soaking wet, cold, and miserable.

So, my father and I carried on together. We were expecting another hour or so to the waterfall, but it only took us roughly another 30 minutes. We were covered by a nice temperate rainforest canopy as we got closer to the valley’s head. A number of quite steep stairs are dotted along this last part of the track. I was surprised how much these knocked the wind out of my old man. I had a bit of a laugh at him, but it was disconcerting too; not only in regards to his health, but as a glimpse into the future just as I really am starting to feel the effects of aging a bit more.

There was a cool diversity of people out on the track. Young families and older folks. We met someone we knew from the kid’s school in Christchurch. We met a Samoan aiga (family) at the waterfall, just leaving as we arrived. Another group was a family on holiday from Belgium who were testing to see who could keep their hand in the cold stream the longest.

The waterfall itself is a lovely straight drop. Backed by gorgeous two-toned green mosses, it tumbles 41m like a long white ribbon of light. The approach to the waterfall is an incredibly peaceful spot, with the burble of Dog Stream, and the warm embrace of the valley walls and their greenery around you.

On the way out, my father and I talked about Adolescence, the new Netflix show taking the world by storm. Dad had heard of it, and I filled him in on the one-shot episodes, the questions it raises about parenting and being a father (so rarely seen in film or TV!), and the effect that the internet, and in particular, the “manosphere”, is having on the way young men think and how they see the world.

The walk back follows the track you came in on. Sloping downhill, it is a fair bit easier than coming up. Just watch for things being slippery in the rain. We arrived back at the carpark a little earlier than rendezvous time, so started walking back down the forest road to the main road, meeting our ride (i.e. my mum and my two daughters) three quarters of the way back.

All in all, a good day despite the leaking drink bottle and the weather not really playing ball with us. The waterfall is well worth seeing and at just two hours in and out, the walk is a really great stretch of the legs in the morning before a nice lunch somewhere back in Hanmer and a laze in the hot pools for the afternoon.