Tantragee Saddle
Tantragee Saddle is between Brook Valley and Maitai Valley, and is an access point for Codgers MTB Park, Fringed Hill, and Coppermine Trail. The 4WD road over the saddle can be combined with Maitai River Walkway to form an 11.5 km mainly off-road loop within close range of the city centre. The name ‘Tantragee’ is thought to be a corruption of ‘Tanderagee’, which was the name of early settler John Kidson’s Brook Valley property. Tanderagee is the name of a small town in Ireland.
| Details | |
| Length | 1.8 km car park to saddle; 2.4 km to saddle via Codgers Track; 3.4 km Brook Valley to Maitai River upstream footbridge; 11.5 km Sharland Hill circuit via Maitai Valley Walkway and Brook St |
| Time Required | 45 min Brook Valley to Maitai Valley |
| Trail Type | Gravel road |
| Physical Difficulty | Moderate |
| Uses | Walking, trail running and MTB |
| Direction | Either |
| Max Elevation | 180 m |
Codgers MTB Park
Trail running and MTB
Coppermine Trail
Walking, trail running and MTB
Fringed Hill
Walking, trail running and MTB
Maitai River Walkway
Walking, trail running and MTB
5 min from central Nelson
The Brook Valley end of Tantragee Road begins at the car park on the left immediately after Brook Street crosses The Brook.
On the Maitai Valley side there is a car park on the right hand side of Maitai Valley Rd, immediately down-valley of Maitai Valley Motor Camp (signposted from the road as Coppermine Trail start). There is also a small car park on the right immediately after the motor camp, with a bridge across to the end of Maitai Valley Walkway.
The land between Brook St and the ponds on the eastern side of the saddle are within Tantragee Reserve, which is managed by Nelson City Council. The land between the ponds and the Maitai River is owned by Te Pātaka a Ngāti Kōata Trust.
From Brook St, the gravel road heads up a gully towards the Nelson City Council water treatment plant. Codgers Track (Coppermine Trail) connects on the left just after the treatment plant. The road cuts back above the plant, and Coppermine Trail continues on the right. At the saddle (180 m elevation) there is an intersection between Tantragee Rd, Fireball Rd (access to upper Codgers tracks) and Fringed Hill Rd. Te Ara Kōpiko also starts at the saddle, which you can take as an alternative to the road; note that you can do this track in either direction if on foot, but only ride it in the uphill direction (i.e. from the Maitai Valley side) if you’re on your bike.
The road descends into Groom Creek gully, passing water treatment ponds and then forks. Here you can either head right and pass through the arboretum to reach the end of Maitai River Walkway, where there is a pedestrian bridge across Maitai River. Heading straight will connect you to Maitai River Walkway immediately down-valley of Maitai Valley Motor Camp, where there is a road bridge across Maitai River to Maitai Valley Rd.
A circuit down Maitai River Walkway and up Brook St back to where you started is approximately 11.5 km. There are numerous other tracks that can be taken to shorten or lengthen your route (refer to map).