Canaan to Birds Clearing

This is a point to point so is best if someone drops you off at Harwoods Hole Carpark then drives around and up to Birds Clearing to pick you up. Or to make it easier on the driver and to add 9 km of long downhill to the runner you could arrange to meet at Pohara Beach for a swim !! If you've never been to Harwoods Hole itself its worth the 6 km detour before you start as it is the deepest hole in the Southern Hemisphere and you could put the Empire State Building in it and still have 100 metres to fall to its roof !!!

Follow the well marked DOC mountain bike/walking track out of the carpark north on the Moa Park Track which gently climbs to Pages Saddle, where you turn left onto the Wanui Track. The track turns into a rough trail but is well marked and easy to follow.

After 2 kms you come to the cute Wainui Hut beside the river. There is also a large aviary here used as part of Project Janzoon to house Kaka and Kakariki and various other species pre-release into the wild (check out details on Project Janzoon website for more info). From here skip or splash across the river to continue on down the valley and at the junction of Inland Track detour carry on down the Wainui track where you will again cross the Wainui River (this is the last place for water so fill up here).

The track now climbs up onto the Pikikiruna Range and follows it down till you break out onto the Birds Clearing with stunning views out over Golden Bay. There is a small grassy area with a small DOC kiosk - this is the official end of the track and from here out is a grass road at first, then a gravel road that drops 500 metres down to the village of Clifton. It pays for the driver to be really clear on where to go as the access to the track isn't easy to find with no signs on main road in Clifton, but its an adventure for both the driver and the runner.