We parked at the top of the hill near the monument, leaving one car at Purau then headed down to the start of the track at Port Levy. I had done the Adventure Events hillclimb so knew how to get to the top, I needed some advice on which tracks to take down the Lyttelton Harbour side. The farmer was most helpful.

The track climbs 700m over about 5km. The first half seemed easy with most of the climbing after the old homestead (although GPS plot showed a fairly steady climb). The track is said to be rideable all the way but we found it easier to walk some of the step rocky bits. Climb took us two hours, over twice the time I took in the race. Someone rode it in about 38 minutes.

Mt Evans - Elevation Chart

The weather still looked threatening so we had a quick lunch on the big rock at the top and headed down. There may be an easier way but it was not obvious so we carried bikes 50m or so over rock and tussock to the track. A few minutes down then a sharp left which would have been easy to miss if we had not been warned then a traverse to the next ridge. Down a bit, the track seemed to fade away. Aha, the gate back there must be the one where we hop across to the neighbouring property for a while. The neighbour was not keen on mtbs but gave the OK to us following the edge of his property for a few hundred metres. More descending on good tracks with great views and we were on Camp Bay road then on to Purau to fetch the cars the easy way.

Conclusion

 It is a big hill! A nice ride on a good day but some fitness is needed. 700m does not seem like much but it is a continuous climb and steep in places. It would be best ridden in the warmer months as the south facing climb can be muddy in the winter.

Notes

Most of the land we crossed is owned by R Barnett 329 4690. Brian Keenan 329 4849 leases the adjacent block. Brian also owns the land between Mt Herbert and Diamond Harbour and is not at all happy with mountain bikers returning that way.