Clutha Gold Trail

What to expect on the trail

Winding along the Clutha Mata-Au River between Roxburgh and Lawrence, this cruisy ride gives you a taste of the Teviot Valley amongst orchards and small settlements.

Starting at the Roxburgh Dam (Commissioners Flat), the first part of the trail (9.4km) heads alongside the river and bypasses the Roxburgh township, or you can veer off for a quick ice cream/café stop.

Continuing south to Millers Flat, passing through stunning rural and riverside scenes with striking mountain scenes up above, there are plenty of hillside rock formations and native regenerating Kanuka to make the track more interesting (19km).

Stop off at Pinders Pond 5km south of Roxburgh and enjoy a picnic or a swim, and as the track continues to meander south, there are new scenes around every bend.

The landscape between Millers Flat to Beaumont (24.7km) changes again, as you ride through the remote and stunning Beaumont Gorge, before discovering some interesting history.

The famous ‘Lonely Graves’ at Horseshoe Bend, 17km south of Millers Flat is worth a visit, and you can make a short detour at the historic suspension bridge carpark.

Beaumont to Lawrence is the last part of the trail (19km), where it climbs gently along the old railway line to the highest part of the trail – Big Hill Tunnel.

After a 440m pedal through the dark, the trail sets off on its final sweep down to Otago’s first gold mining town of Lawrence.

This once thriving area includes a historic Chinese mining camp from the 1860s that you will bike past, and when you reach the township, there is another 6km venture into Gabriel’s Gully reserve to check out if you have time.