Sandymount / Lovers Leap / Chasm Loop Track

Sandymount’s loop track highlights the Otago Peninsula’s best views. From the carpark the track ascends 100m to the Sandymount Trig then loops around (counterclockwise) to visit the cliff-side viewpoints of Lovers Leap and the Chasm before returning.

This is a nice track, but a bit overgrown with Gorse, so wearing long pants may be a good idea. The views of Otago Peninsula’s hills, bays and beaches makes this the peninsula’s must-do walking track. At the Trig you’ll find a monument with a landscape-identifier plaque which points out what’s what on the 360° skyline. From the Trig the track then contours over to the seaside cliffs where both Lovers Leap and the Chasm view-platforms offer precipitous cliff-hanging views. Lovers Leap looks down onto a sort-of sea-arch, whereas the Chasm viewpoint perches above a yawning abyss.

WALK: The loop is marked by DOC arrows. Begin by walking uphill 10 minutes up to Trig. Descend from the Trig and begin the loop—10 minutes to Lovers, 10 more to Chasm, and then 10 more back to the carpark.

Excerpt from "NZ Frenzy Guidebook" by Scott Cook