Paparoa Track - New Zealand's newest Great Walk

It’s very good news for adventurous hikers and mountain bikers, because the 55km Paparoa Track, New Zealand’s newest Great Walk, is now fully open after a slip triggered by heavy rain caused its partial closure.

Modestly understating the tremendous work undertaken by his team to open the track again, Department of Conservation Greymouth operations manager Shane Hall said fixing the track had been “problematic” due to adverse weather and unstable ground conditions.

But now it’s all go, and the result is truly spectacular.

Billed as a two day bike ride or three-day hike the Paparoa Track takes visitors through some of Aotearoa New Zealand’s most breathtaking scenery. It winds its way through thriving rainforests, dramatic kaarst limestone landforms, and over soaring rocky alpine tops.

Favorite sections of the Track include a “goblin forest” of wind-shaped silver beech, stunning vistas along the sandstone escarpment, and a magical waterfall on the descent to the Pororari River.

For hikers it’s graded as an Intermediate Great Walk/Easier tramping track, and for mountain bikers it levels up and earns an Advanced/Grade 4 rating.

The Pike 29 Memorial Track, which will branch off the Paparoa Track between Moonlight Tops Hut and Pororari Hut and head to the former mine site, will open once the Pike River Recovery Agency completes its work to re-enter the mine, and DOC finishes its memorial and interpretation centre.

Image and video courtesy of DOC