When I hiked to Big River Hut a while ago I noticed there was a 4WD track leading there as well. I really wanted to drive this track but at some point it just got too muddy and I didn’t want to get stuck again

So this is as far as I dared to go, maybe in a convoy it would have been different, then you can help each other

Just south of Mawheraiti

Us on the dry riverbed

We continued towards Reefton where we walk the Alborns Coal Mine Walk

An easy walk

Ideal for trail runners I’d think

And of course in this nanny state a lot of the area is closed because of ‘safety’

An old 1916 Leyland truck

They used to transport coal in these

Danger lurks everywhere

A cute little Robin kept us company for a while

I don’t know much about mushrooms, could this be an oyster mushroom?

We saw this cute goat and felt sorry for it, being tied up and all, the water tank has a hole cut in it and is its home

It was happy to be petted

Reefton

West Coast, along the Nikau Road

At the Karamea Bluff Lookout Point

The Radiant Range

Idem

At Kōhaihai Campsite

This too

Map of today, from Waiuta, via Reefton, Westport and Karamea to Kōhaihai

There the track continues

There’s a little pond here

And lots of walking in this kind of scenery

A hole that needs to be inspected

I guess I could crawl through it but why would I?

House in the little village of Ahaura

Waiuta, I had been here before but Rachel hadn’t

This used to be a gold mining town

Looks like a gigantic sewing machine to me

Missed opportunity: had I changed the angle at which I took this photo a bit it would have looked like the chimney was still working!

Ye olde Barbershop, Southern Alps in the distance

One of the walks here (the Snowy Battery Track) you are no longer allowed (what I read as ‘advised’) to do because: dangerous! Needless to say we checked it out regardless. More old mining stuff

Arsenic, Mercury & Cyanide. That’s 100% PURE NZ for ya!

Some people just refuse to follow the rules…

At the site of the Prohibition Shaft

They never cleaned up after they stopped mining here

We decided to camp at Waiuta, lovely sunset!

Map of today, from Nelson Creek to Waiuta

Like this, the Miners’ Bathhouse, with still some machinery in there

And this used to be the foundation of something, I read it all on the signs but can’t remember now what it was exactly

I think this used to be the pub

Anyway, time to walk the track to Big River Hut, the first part of the track is just following the road for a bit, it should however be a proper 4WD road, which this road is not. I wonder if I’m on the right track?

Ah, I was wrong! This is where the track actually starts, a little further from the previous photo and indeed with a proper 4WD track, which I might drive the next time I’m here

The track itself is mostly under canopy cover, so all in shade and pretty wet since most of the track faces south

The track is well maintained and easy to follow

There’s some interesting stuff to see occasionally

But mostly it’s just following the orange markers

Which takes you through some cool places like this

And over bridges

Past waterfalls

More mining remnants and a Battery Site, I have no idea what that is supposed to be so I take the 5 minute detour to find out

This leads me to this little clearing, is thie the Battery Site?

I continue the track

I must be getting near the top of the track

Indeed, and finally I get to see some sky again, it’s not much further to the hut now

Me at the hut, glad I made it, I even booked this one as the DOC website said I should but there were only 2 others in the hut that sleeps 20 people so I won’t be booking again unless it looks like it’s going to be busy

View from the hut down to where the 4WD track ends, some hunters are camping there and having a BBQ and undoubtedly a beer or two

The Big River Hut catching the last sunrays of the day, a good day with lots of sun and a nice hike

A map of today’s hike, starting low at the bottom left and going to top right, the track was 13.5 km and took me 3 hours and 45 minutes including a short break