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Location & access
DOC track reference point, not a verified trailhead, entrance or the whole route. Check the official route directions before travel.
Official location informationLocation source
DOC track reference point, not a verified trailhead, entrance or the whole route.
Reference point: -44.93887, 169.37188. WGS84 coordinates retained at the official service's returned precision; decimal resolution is not survey accuracy. Source positional accuracy is not specified.
DOC Maps walking and tramping reference point (WGS84), exact official-page GUID / Department of Conservation. Checked 2026-10-12.
Key facts
- Distance
- 4.5 km loop
- Walking time
- 1.5 hr loop
- Track grade
- Easy
- Location
- Bendigo area
- Dog access
- No dogs. Other pets on conservation land rules.
Checked against official sources on 8 October 2026. Rules and conditions are set by Department of Conservation — confirm with them before you go.
Route overview
A short loop through kānuka shrubland, featuring the remains of old stone huts.
This DOC directory entry covers Aurora Track in Otago, within Bendigo area. Where DOC groups several walks, times and grades refer to the listed options rather than a single continuous itinerary.
Distance, time and grade
- Distance: 4.5 km loop
- Walking time: 1.5 hr loop
- DOC grade: Easy
Access and alerts
Source checked 2026-10-08. This page is a dated snapshot, not a live track-status report. Check current DOC route information immediately before travelling. An absence of listed alerts does not establish that a route is open.
Dog access
No dogs. Other pets on conservation land rules.
Description
From the Welshtown car park, the Aurora Track winds down through kānuka shrubland and across Aurora Creek to Logantown. There are remains of old stone huts along the way.
Return via the Ridge Dray Track or up the road.
Getting there
The track starts on Blue Mines Road.
Starting in Cromwell:
Head north on SH8.
After around 14 km turn right onto Bendigo Loop Road – this turns into a gravel road.
Turn right onto Blue Mines Road after around 600 metres.
Continue for around 2.4 km until the start of the track.
On Blue Mines Road you'll pass the schoolhouse ruins at Schoolhouse Flat, the main historic site of Logantown, Welshtown, and mining remnants.
Know before you go
There are old and very deep mining shafts throughout this area. Watch out for these and keep children closely supervised.
History and culture
Gold was found here in 1862 and brought an immediate influx of miners and prospectors clambering over the hills. The accessible alluvial gold petered out in 1865, but gold-bearing quartz reefs were discovered and underground mines sprang up.
By 1875, the Bendigo reef was said to be the richest and best defined in Otago. Mining continued until 1943 when the government mining subsidy was withdrawn. Renewed interest since then has triggered activity in the 1980s and again early in the 2000s. The historic reserve preserves the gold-mining relics of the area’s hard-rock quartz mining history.
There are mine shafts, tunnels, stone huts, stamper batteries, heavy machinery, water races, dams and pipelines.
Sources and reuse
Route descriptions and practical information reproduced from the Department of Conservation, Crown copyright, under CC BY 4.0, subject to DOC's copyright policy. Formatting has been adapted, including flattening page sections; follow the original DOC page for maps, section-specific layout, current notices and linked documents. Outdoor Next is independent and is not endorsed by DOC.
The accompanying photograph is a licensed general hiking illustration, not a photograph of this route.
