The highway immediately crosses the North Island Main Trunk at level, before heading eastwards on Kimberley Road for two kilometres.

SH 57 then turns sharply left onto Arapaepae Road and heads northwards, bypassing and forming the eastern boundary of Levin.

West of the military camp, SH 57 intersects with Tennant Drive, which takes traffic off the highway for the city of Palmerston North.

Leaving Summerhill, the road meets up with the Manawatu River and follows it general route for the remainder of the highways length.

From Aokautere, the highway proceeds straight on the southern banks of the Manawatu River to the western end of the Manawatū Gorge.

SH 57 itself used to follow Tennant Drive around the northern side of the Massey University campus, then cross over the Manawatu River on the Fitzherbert Bridge into Palmerston North.