Distance: 3.0 km (2.0 DOC hours) - Unmarked route, clear - Moderate-hard terrain
Altitude: 172m to 600m. Gain: 460m. Loss: 35m . Gradient: 9 deg (Moderate)
Skills: - Streams (2/6)

Unmarked route, clear (7/9)
Unmarked route, follows obvious geography (river, spur, trail, etc)

minor (5/5)
A viable route, not widely used

Moderate (difficulty: 3/5)
Occasional moderate climbs

Moderate-hard (difficulty: 4/5)
Tall, walkable scrub / large rocks, occasional waterfalls or gorges in rivers

None (difficulty: 1/7)
No alpine skills required

Streams (difficulty: 2/6)
Small streams, danger only in extreme weather

None (difficulty: 1/7)
No alpine skills required

From the track next to the Old Mill site, carry on up the valley. You may cross the river several times and can cut corners on remnants of old railway, before climbing up onto the true left, a large cutting and good remnant of the old railway is found, complete with a set of wheels (about 20 minutes from Old Mill site). Keep following the old trail which occasionally disappears.
After about 40 minutes a stream coming in on the left is crossed. Climb up the far back and up the spur a little to get back onto an old roadway which soon meets the stream. There are still some sleepers and steel cable on this stretch to the stream. At this point, there are some forks where you climb out and just follow your nose up hill onto the spur which eventually comes out near the saddle.

Note: Described in the reverse direction to your journey

From the saddle, head down the Waikaway Stream side, siddling to the left to stay on the spur. Continue down the spur to the confluence of several streams. On the true left, a reasonable cutting can be followed past some sleepers and cable down to another confluence. Cross the creek here and head up slightly to rejoin the old railway. Follow this down stream until it drops away into the stream, then follow the stream, cutting corners where possible until the confluence just above the Old Mill site. Climb out here and head north until the track is met.