Suggestions for day/overnight hikes in New Zealand?

[griffin]

Just found out we may be taking a 2-week trip to New Zealand in February. I'd love to do some hiking while I'm there - we don't have enough time to book (or enough $ to pay for) guided tours, but can anyone suggest some good trails? Or hiking areas in general - like a Kiwi-Gorham, where we could book a place to stay and do a couple of hikes?

 

[poison ivy]

Are you going to the North Island or South Island? I've only been to the South Island so stop reading here if you're North Island bound. It's hard to go wrong hiking in NZ, because the scenery is incredibly stunning. We used Lonely Planet's "Tramping in New Zealand" guidebook to plan our trip, which features all of the popular multi-day trails. All of the hikes were did were well-marked adn easy to follow... you definitely won't need a guide.

If you're South Island bound... there are tons and tons of great things to do. We did two four-day backpacking trips, but you could easily make them into a single night trip by hiking out and back.

My husband's favorite backpacking trip was the Abel Tasman track, which winds into the woods and down to several beaches throughout the day. It is really, really easy hiking and has self-service huts around the way that are super cheap to stay in. If I remember correctly, the huts were less than $20 per person... you need to bring your own sleeping bag and food. Pictures from Abel Tasman can be found here if you're interested

My favorite hike was the Routeburn track, which was up over a gorgeous mountain pass and is one of my all-time favorite hikes. The scenery is absolutely spectacular. It's normally done as a three-day hike and also has huts along the way. We took an extra day by hiking out from the last hut before dawn so we could be picked up at the end of the trip by Fiordland Wilderness Experience for a kayaking trip in Milford Sound, which I'd also highly recommend. Pictures from the Routeburn are here

Enjoy NZ... it is such a beautiful country, I'd love to go back one day. If I ever make it back to South Island, the Milford and Keppler tracks are on my list for places to hike.

Hope that was at least a little bit helpful,
Ivy

 

[David Metsky]

NZ is full of great places to hike. With only 2 weeks you'll need to pick a location or two and explore around.

The closest thing to a Gorham equivalent is Queenstown or Wanaka, on the South Island. Queenstown is more touristy, with easy access to bungy jumping, jet boating, and other "adventure" activities. Wanaka is smaller, with fewer amenities, IIRC. Both are close by to Fiordland, Mt Aspiring and Mt Cook National Parks which offer many day and multi-day hiking opportunities. There are a bunch of spectacular national parks further north (on the South Island) and Nelson might be a good centralized spot for those. We only passed through there early one morning so I don't really remember the town.

The Milford Track, while a bit crowded and over regulated, is probably the single most spectacular hike we did in NZ. It's usually booked in advance but if you happen to luck into a free spot like we did, it's worth it. We also hiked in Nelson Lakes National Park and had a fantastic time there with far fewer people then the more popular parks. Mt Aspiring and Mt Cook parks have spectacular terrain, highly recommended as well.

If you are on the North Island, the area around Tongariro National Park was great although we only spent a short time there. That's all volcanic, very different looking from the South Island.

You can't really go wrong, it's all good. Feb is a great time to be there.

 

[TomD]

Griffin, I lived in NZ for a while back in the late 80's. I've been bike touring, hiking, backpacking and car camping in various parts of the country. I've done the Milford, Routeburn, Copland (original route which is now closed), hiked in Arthur's Pass and been camping in the Marlborough Sounds and Mt. Cook NP on the S.I. plus some bike touring to various places. I also rented a campervan for a few days on one trip up North and spent some time camping around the Bay of Islands and Keri Keri on the North Island. The most popular tracks have huts and even small towns have campgrounds with on-site campers or mini-cabins. I didn't really use my tent when hiking-stayed in huts, but it came in handy when I was bike touring.

The advice you've gotten so far is spot on. The Milford will be booked. For an overnight, I'd do the Routeburn or Abel Tasman on the S.I. You can day hike almost anywhere. What are you doing for transpo? A lot of what I would suggest will depend on where you want to go. You can string a couple of overnights together or if you have a car, just drive down the West Coast and day hike along the way. The bus and train are also good alternatives. I also did a bit of hitchhiking, but it can be hit and miss on the Coast. You can take the train from Christchurch to Arthur's Pass, stay a few days, then head to the West Coast.

FYI-Don't go anywhere without good raingear, even for the day. Ignore anyone who says otherwise-they don't know what they are talking about. I've seen the weather go from sunny and warm to a howling rainstorm in a matter of hours. The weather in Feb. should be pretty good, but you never know. I spent a fair amount of time pedaling or hiking in the rain.

 

[griffin]

Thanks for the input! It is very helpful. The problem is less trying to find things, than trying to narrow down our options.

We're flying in and out of the North island, and will be spending at least some time in Rotarua (also in the North) visiting my partner's family, but we're willing to travel (train, ferry, rental car...).

 

[TomD]

Griffin, if you're going to be in Rotorua anyway, you may as well do some hiking there and head over to Tongariro and maybe Ruapehu as well. Haven't been there myself, but I know there are a lot of tracks worth walking. For the South Island, get to Wellington, take the ferry over to Picton, pick up a rental car and head for the Marlborough Sounds area and the Abel Tasman. I think you could do it all by bus, but a car would be more convenient. I think you can get a car in Picton, but I'd check in advance. I'm pretty sure there is shuttle service from one end of the track to the other. If I remember right, you can hire kayaks and cruise around the islands. I did a quick car camping trip up that way and it's great. From there, I'd head down the West Coast, stop at Fox Glacier, do a walk there (not sure what shape the glacier is in now, though); then head south towards Te Anau, Queenstown and Mt. Cook. If you have time, you could go all the way down to Fiordland, but you'll find plenty to see, even if you don't get there. One thing to do is drive out to Milford, even if you don't do the track and take a boat ride through the Sound. I did that after my trek and it was well worth it.

FYI-if you belong to the AAA, you can get maps and such from the AA of NZ; otherwise, hit the local tourist bureau office. They are pretty helpful.

 

[pudgy_groundhog]

I second the Lonely Planet tramping guide, it was really helpful in helping us to decide where to go and planning our trip. I'm short for time right now, but all our pictures and trip notes are here.

For tramping on the the South Island we backpacked in Matukituki valley (including Roby Roy glacier) and the Routeburn track and dayhiked Mt. Alfred (from Glenorchy) and Ben Lomond (Queenstown). If it works out for you, I would also recommend a visit to Fiordland. You can arrange to have them pick you up at the end of the Routeburn track and can kayak for a day in Milford Sound (we also did a three day trip in Doubtful Sound, which was wonderful, but I don't think you'll have time for that). We did a mountaineering course in Mt Cook, so didn't really do any dayhiking there, but there are a few dayhikes there that would be nice. It's a beautiful area. Since you will be on the North Island (at least at the beginning/end of your trip), I would recommend a visit to Tongariro. We did the crossing in a day and also hiked up Ngaruahoe (Mt Doom ).

It's a beautiful country and you can't go wrong!

 

[--M.]

Can't believe nobody's mentioned this yet:

Ski in to the Hut! I hear it's a classic!

Just kidding, have a nice trip.

 

[TomD]

Pudgy-who'd you do your course with at Cook? I did a basic mountaineering course there in the mid 80's with Alpine Guides. I think they are the only concessionaires there, but I may be wrong.

 

[pudgy_groundhog]

We did go with Alpine Guides. We had a terrific class. I think you're right about them being the only ones, but I can't remember for sure.