Rakiura Track

The winding nature of the track through the bush

The hills of the middle track section on a misty morning

The Rakiura Track is a 29-kilometre (18 mi) tramping track on Stewart Island/Rakiura, New Zealand, and one of the New Zealand Great Walks.

It lies within the Rakiura National Park and can be walked over a one- to three-day period. It generally follows the coastline for a large parts of its length, passing small inlets, large bays and mudflats, before crossing steep hills covered in bush (dense forest) during its middle section. There are two huts on the track, at Port William and the North Arm of Paterson Inlet, and many people overnight at each. There are also camping sites available at Maori Beach, Port William and North Arm.

Large sections of the track have been gravelled, without this, the track often degrades into mud. This is due to two factors, the peaty nature of the soil, and the large amounts of rain that Stewart Island receives during the year. In general, the track is well-maintained, and of easy to medium difficulty. The given track length does not include several additional kilometres of paved road at the start and end of the walk from Half Moon Bay.

The track is equipped with huts for the use of trampers, though these must be booked in advance. The huts are equipped with firewood, flown in by helicopter^[1] as no roads connect to any of the huts and trampers are not allowed to cut their own wood. There are no cooking facilities in the huts, therefore trampers are advised to carry their own stoves and cooking equipment. There is a store in Oban where gas canisters can be purchased as well as other necessary supplies.

Walking the Rakiura Track also offers the unusual opportunity to see kiwi in their natural environment.

Visitors can reach Stewart Island either by commercial ferry or by flying from Invercargill Airport on a service operated by Stewart Island Flights.

References

External links

Wikivoyage has a travel guide for Rakiura Track.

• Rakiura Track (from the Department of Conservation website)

New Zealand Great Walks Abel Tasman Coast Track Heaphy Track Kepler Track Lake Waikaremoana Great Walk Milford Track Rakiura Track Routeburn Track Tongariro Northern Circuit Whanganui Journey

Coordinates: 46°51′46″S 168°07′24″E / 46.862891°S 168.123436°E / -46.862891; 168.123436