Coronet Loop route

Name: Coronet Loop
Rating: 3.4

near Queenstown

31.0 miles

Distance

5,411 ft

Climb

-5,430 ft

Descent

3,035 ft

High Point

-18 ft

Altitude change

1,339 ft

Altitude min

1,366 ft

Altitude start

1,348 ft

Altitude end

-80.5%

Grade max

85.2%

Grade min

14 miles

Distance climb

15 miles

Distance down

2 miles

Distance flat

NOTE the Pack, Track and Sack is a Grade 4 with some steep rock drops. To bypass the technical challenges, take the Skippers Pack Track, or follow the Skippers Road before joining the climb to the Greengate Saddle.

The Coronet Loop trail begins in Arrowtown at Butler’s Green, adjacent to the historic Chinese Settlement by the Arrow River. Whilst the trail can be ridden in either direction, we think it rides best in a clockwise direction, so start by heading up Bush Creek. The new bridges and repairs made in 2021 have made this a great climbing track which passes through native beech forest and towering schist bluffs. This is a two-way track and popular with walkers, so keep an eye out for downhill riders and hikers.

At the head of Bush Creek, the trail continues along the Coronet Face Water Race, which was the first part of the loop to be developed and was opened by the Queenstown Trails Trust and Soho Property in 2018. The Water Race weaves along the front face of Coronet Peak through remnant Beech Forest, passing old sections of flume pipe and the site of the old Racemans Hut at Station Creek. The race was developed in the goldrush era, with water taken from McMullen and Station Creeks being channelled all the way across the front face of Mt Dewar to sluice the Shotover faces at Arthurs Point. Work will soon begin on a restoration of the Racemans hut chimney to ensure it is there for generations to come. This marks a great place to pause and enjoy the view across the Wakatipu basin.

The connector trail climbs up and over into Skippers Canyon on the excellent Tradesmans and Pack, Track and Sack trails. These trails had a recent makeover from the QMTBC and the descent into Long Gully is a real highlight of the circuit. *NOTE the Pack, Track and Sack is a Grade 4 with some steep rock drops. To bypass the technical challenges, take the Skippers Pack Track, or follow the Skippers Road before joining the climb to the Greengate Saddle.

At Baldersons Hut, a right-hand turn enters the Loop proper and climbs to Greengates saddle. From the saddle a flowing downhill follows the historic pack track, past the historic Greengates Hut before it opens out high above Deep Creek overlooking the remains of the Old Greengates Hotel.

The Loop then continues upstream, over Picnic Rock with its amazing vistas before a long steady descent into Deep Creek, passing a couple of spectacular waterfalls on the way to the Golden Terraces visible in the distance. The track sidles in and out of the Creek and up the ‘Willows Climb’ before crossing Parkers Creek and emerging onto the high plateau of Golden Terraces. This section gives a stunning backcountry experience, linking sections of old pack track and passing old mining ruins as it weaves between the bluffs.

The terrain eases up a little before the Eight Mile saddle and passes beneath the Coronet Saddle Turk which is the final hut on the Mahu Whenua Traverse. After the descent to Eight Mile Creek (aka Coronet Creek), the trail follows an old miners track down the true right to join the Macetown Rd. The miners track here is narrow and exposed (Grade 4), and less confident riders can walk this section, or follow the Macetown Rd, but be prepared to get wet as the road criss-crosses the Arrow River.

The track continues on the Macetown 4WD road along the Arrow River. After the Norman Spencer bridge, there are a set of steep stairs to climb with some narrow sections before the track levels off to return you back at Butler’s Green in Arrowtown.

source: Queenstown Trails Trust

Detailed Description

Coronet Loop is a 31 mile popular intermediate route located near Queenstown. This mountain bike primary route can be used both directions and has a moderate overall physical rating. This route includes 3 trails. This route climbs 5,411 ft with a max elevation of 3,035 ft then descends -5,430 ft.

Trail Issues on Route

Closed: 2 trails (newest: May 30, 2026)

Local Trail Association

Queenstown Trails (queenstowntrails.org.nz)

Please consider joining or donating to the local riding association to support trail development & maintenance.

Donate to earn trail karma!

Stats

Distance

31 miles
Avg time

6 hr 56 min
Altitude min

1,339 ft
Altitude start

1,366 ft
Altitude end

1,348 ft
Climb

1 mile
Descent

-5,430 ft
Grade max

-80.5%
Grade min

85.2%
Distance climb

14 miles
Distance down

15 miles
Distance flat

2 miles

18 Reviews & Comments

Score Time Route Post Comment

We hope you've been enjoying Trailforks!

Create a FREE account to view route comments and much more.

Create a Free Account

Trails in Route

	Bush Creek				4 miles
	Coronet Water Race Connector				1 mile
	Tradesmans				1,778 ft

Details

Riding area

Arrowtown Trails
Primary Activity

Mountain Bike
Other Activities
- Gravel Bike
- Hike
- Trail Running
Difficulty rating

Blue
Route Type

Loop
Bikepacking

Yes
Bike type

AM, XC, Gravel
Direction

Both Directions
Physical rating

Moderate

Distance (Trails & Routes)

click to load your map views

Collections

Trail Conditions

1 Day
1 Week
1 Month
All Time

Unknown
Snow Groomed
Snow Packed
Snow Covered
Snow Cover Partial
Freeze/thaw Cycle
Icy
Prevalent Mud
Wet
Variable
Ideal
Dry
Very Dry

Trail Flow (Ridden Direction)

Trailforks scans users ridelogs to determine the most popular direction each trail is ridden. A good flowing trail network will have most trails flowing in a single direction according to their intension.
The colour categories are based on what percentage of riders are riding a trail in its intended direction.

> 96%
> 90%
> 80%
> 70%
> 50%
< 50%
bi-directional trail
no data

Trail Last Ridden

Trailforks scans ridelogs to determine the last time a trail was ridden.

< 2 days
< 1 week
< 2 weeks
< 1 month
< 6 months
> 6 months

Trail Ridden Direction

The intended direction a trail should be ridden.

Downhill Only
Downhill Primary
Both Directions
Uphill Primary
Uphill Only
One Direction

Contribute Details

Colors indicate trail is missing specified detail.

Description
Photos
Description & Photos
Videos
Only trails in this region hierarchy

Trail Popularity ?

Trailforks scans ridelogs to determine which trails are ridden the most in the last 9 months. Trails are compared with nearby trails in the same city region with a possible 25 colour shades. Think of this as a heatmap, more rides = more kinetic energy = warmer colors.

most popular
popular
less popular
not popular

ATV/ORV/OHV Filter

ATV - 50 inches
OHV, SxS - 60 inches
Jeep - 72 inches

Max Vehicle Width

inches

Ridelog Year

Radar Time

Activity Recordings

Trailforks uses anonymized public activity data. ?

mountain biking recent
mountain biking (>6 month)
hiking (1 year)
moto (1 year)

Activity Recordings

Trailforks uses anonymized public activity data. ?

Downhill Ski
Backcountry Ski
Nordic Ski
Snowmobile

Winter Trails

Warning A routing network for winter maps does not exist. Selecting trails using the winter trails layer has been disabled.

trail	date	description
Tradesmans	May 31, 2026 @ 5:30pm (Pacific/Auckland) May 30, 2026	Closed for Winter! Please keep off the trail to prevent damage. Will let you know when it's back open in Spring!
Coronet Water Race Connector	May 31, 2026 @ 5:30pm (Pacific/Auckland) May 30, 2026	Closed for Winter! Please keep off the trail to prevent damage. Will let you know when it's back open in Spring!
Bush Creek	Apr 28, 2026 @ 1:13pm (Pacific/Auckland) Apr 27, 2026