Child friendly rating: 4 stars

Distance: 10.3km

Signposted time: 4-5 hours

Bookings Required? Yes

Suitable in Winter? Sometimes

Camping Available? No

4wd required? No

Parking:

 Park at the Somke-ho Carpark at the very end of Blackball Road.

The Track:

 Because this is a mixed-use walking & mountain biking track, the gradient is very gentle the whole way, and the track is nice and wide too.

The first 8km are following the river, and mostly flat. It's not a super interesting walk which is why it's better for older kids.

2nd Hotel Site is a good spot to have a break for lunch - just watch the wekas.

There are several side creeks to cross, and in extreme weather these can flood - in regular weather you'll keep your boots dry.

The Garden Gully side trip is worthwhile if you have the time - just bear in mind that you will likely get wet boots as it does involve a river crossing.

After the Garden Gully turn-off, the track heads up the last 2km to Ces Clark hut - we honestly were surprised how quick the climb was with the gentle gradient.

It took us 1 hour 50 to get to the 2nd hotel site where we had lunch.

In total including lunch, it took 4 hours to get to the Garden Gully turn-off. We spent 1 hour 45 minutes walking and exploring the side track, and then it took us 1 hour to get to Ces Clark Hut from the junction.

On the whole paparoa Track, with a 6 year old walking the whole way with a pack and a 2 year old walking sections, we generally took around 25% longer than the longer signposted time including breaks. (Rather than the usual double)

Hut:

Recommendations: