On Tuesday I walked up Mount Herbert, the highest point on the Banks Peninsula, at 919 metres. The walk was about 16 km return, and pretty easy going, although there were a few steep sections. I surprised myself at the pace I set; in all the literature I read, the estimated time is 6 - 8 hours. I completed the walk in 3.5 hours, although I ran most of the way back. I’m not sure I’ve ever seen cows grazing so high above sea level. They were all over the summit; I found this quite amusing.

Not much else to say, except it would be wise to stock up before reaching Diamond harbour; there’s not much in the way of hiking food, and I paid $27.50 for a bottle of suncream. I’m not sure how much snow the area gets, (I assume a reasonable amount, as from what I’ve heard Christchurch city gets one or two days a year), but I feel that it would be a nice and easy walk to do in snow - no rock hopping or scrambling involved.