2x60m minimum (80m ropes helpful)

2hr/3.5hr/ 0.5hr 6-7hrs round trip.

Open access across private farm land to Mt Aspiring/Tititea Conservation Area.

A steep, adventure canyon with a big (120+m) multi-tiered drop and sparse anchors.

First Descents: Homestead Creek was explored first by Alain Rohr and ‘Jerry’ in 2001 from the 550m contour.

Dan Clearwater, Ben Robson and Sebastien Grewe added a few more pitches, descending from the 650m contour in April 2026.

Photos and information – Dan Clearwater April 2026

Approach

From Camerons Flat, a DOC sign shows the way accross farm paddocks to a carpark. If the Matukiki is flowing less than about 50 cumecs, its easy enough to find a way to cross here on foot.

Follow DOC orange triangles along Camerons Flat Rd to the Tititea Lodge (Run by a Charitable Trust, for high school Outdoor Education). There is legal public access on the true right bank of the creek on a marginal strip – but you may have to hop a fence to follow that strip.

Continue into the beech forest, staying close to the stream until the terrain steepens. Expect a combo of game trails through forest, then steep bracken bashing. At the 660m contour, sidle towards the canyon. You’re aiming reach a TR gully that arrives where a marked tributary comes in from the TL. The terrain near the canyon is steep: you can find a scrubby route in without needing to absiel.

Descent

There is very little walking between drops, which dip in and out of shallow canyon walls. Anchors are mostly natural, apart from the big drop which has an intermediate (single) bolt anchor on a very small ledge on the true left.

This is an adventure canyon – don’t expect to see anchors in place. You’ll have to choose your own pitch sites, make/repair anchors and place bolts, and judge pitch length/commitment and anchors to get down safely.

Bring plenty of sling & maillions. A drill is a wise choice – if it was bolted up well, it’d be a pleasant abseiling canyon.

There’s only a couple of pools more than waist deep. There are often (but not always) escapes between pitches.

The big drop starts from the R38m and cascades down over multiple terraces until the stream turns 90 degrees left. Altogether, its about 120m.

After R38m, you can scramble up on the TL to the forest (and escape if you need to). A short 8m pitch gets you to a nice tree that overhangs the drop, making for a spicy & exposed start to that next pitch. From there, after about 32m the waterfall goes over a horizon line – cross the flow to the TL and start hunting for a very small ledge (clipped in with just enough room for 2 people) that has a single bolt.

The remaining drop is about 30m, but we ran it out to about 55m to get all teh way down without re-anchoring.

Other groups could chunk this pitch in other ways – with more bolts to break up the pitches, you’d still have to remain on rope until you’re connected to the next anchor.

The canyon turns 90 to the left – from here its 5-10 mins walk back to the farmland.