Balmoral Lookout Walk
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Name	Balmoral Lookout
Location	Culverden
Co-ordinates	1581323  5253100
Alternative co-ordinates
Configuration	Linear
Distance	1.5 km
Status	On-leash
Grade	Moderate
Access	Turn onto Hurunui Bluffs Road, off SH7 ca. 2 km north of Hurunui; park within ca. 150 metres; walk starts on south side of road.
Description	This walk involves a steady climb up a dirt track, across areas of grazing land, to a historic fire-lookout station on a spur of the Huruni Hills. The first half of the walk is steep - but it's well worth the effort for the stunning views and to learn about the history of the lookout.
Connecting tracks
Further information	https://www.doc.govt.nz/parks-and-recreation/places-to-go/canterbury/places/cheviot-area/things-to-do/balmoral-fire-lookout/

This walk starts with a steady and surprisingly tiring climb along a broad track through old pastureland, before levelling out as it contours around the head of the gulley. A short final steep section takes you up to the lookout, where there's a navigation column, an information board and, on a platform above, a wooden hut that is the oldest surviving wood-built lookout post in New Zealand.

​The hut was used to watch for fires in the forests on the valley floor, though - as the information panels in the hut explain - the only fire that was ever spotted was outside the authority area of the post. Today,the views across the Hurunui Valley are stunning. On clear days, however, it can be a challenge to see against the glare of the sun. For that reason, the post was abandoned in 1979 and a new post built on Green Hill, on the other side of the valley.  

For the views and the visit to the old lookout post, this is a walk well-worth the effort.

Click on the map to zoom in​