Part Two in our series of Westward Ho sojourn down the West Coast of the South Island. It’s all about Westward Ho – Hokitika this time. However, if you haven’t already done so – click here to read our Westward Ho – Springfield blog.
As mentioned in my previous blog, we are exploring a part of the West Coast that we’ve explored before, but hunting out a few new places that we missed last time.
As you can see on the map above, we started our journey from the Ashburton Holiday Park, through to Springfield, gapped it through Arthurs Pass and made it to Hokitika NZMCA Park.
This time our Westward Ho – Hokitika will cover the things we got to do this time around.
Hokitika
The last time we were here, we endured 5 days of rain so we had some unfinished business here. Click here to read all about our last stay and the places we explored.
The West Coast Wilderness Cycle Trail
The West Coast Wilderness Trail stretches from Greymouth in the north to Ross in the south, some 120kms in total. You can do as little or as much of the trail as you wish, with sections easily managed over a period of time or all at once.
Hokitika to Lake Kaniere
With the weather gods smiling down on us this time, we mounted our trusty steeds and headed off from the NZMCA Park towards Lake Kaniere.
To get to Lake Kaniere, we needed to pass through the small settlement of Kaniere first. We were delighted to come across quite an extensive history board. We always make a point of stopping to read as much about an area we are travelling through.
The Kaniere gold rush came hot on the heels of others around the West Coast. The initial rush occurred in April 1865. Further discoveries soon followed and by the end of 1866, the population of the Kaniere field had reached a peak of 4,200.
What a great ride, some of it was along the road which is a bit boring but the off-road trail made up for it. We especially enjoyed learning about and cycling along the historic Kaniere Water Race which was hand-dug in 1875.
there has been a lot of restoration work done on the wooden water race to ensure we get to enjoy this little slice of history for many years to come
our thermos coffee never tasted so good with a backdrop like this!
okay…..it’s not hard to see why Lake Kaniere is often referred to as the prettiest of all the West Coast lakes!
Lake Kaniere
Just in case you wanted to know, here are some ‘fun facts’ about the beautiful Lake Kaniere:
- Lake Kaniere was created by glaciers in the last ice age some 14,000 years ago
- It is second in size behind Lake Brunner when it comes to West Coast lakes (8km long & 2km wide & 195m deep)
- The lake is often regarded by many as the most beautiful of the West Coast lakes as its surrounded on 3 sides by mountains
- In 1909 a small hydroelectric station was built on the Kaniere River to power the pumping equipment at the Ross Gold Mine
- The water for the Ross Gold Mine travels 9km through a series of tunnels and flumes
Hokitika to Treetop Walk
this part of the Wilderness Trail offers a little bit of everything – Wetlands, forests & history
The Wilderness Trail
We meandered our way along Mahinapua Creek, past the Hokitika Golf Links, until we crossed the state highway. We then joined the historic Mananui Tramline. This was used to haul the logs to the local sawmill.
This took us through wetlands, native forests and old mill sites, namely the Mananui Saw Mill.
Affectionally is known as the Bush Trolley. This photo was taken in 1921 (thanks to http://westcoast.recollect.co.nz/nodes/view/13830)
all that is left of the old timber mill site
The West Coast Tree Tops Walk and Cafe
We cycled our way to the entrance of the Tree Tops Walk. There is a rather impressive-looking cafe and gift shop and the smells coming from the kitchen were enough to make our mouths water.
the welcoming cafe and ticket office is the first thing that greets you on your arrival at Treetops Walk
it’s easy to find your way to the start of the treetop walkway and you just can’t miss that tower!
After sorting out our entry tickets we were off on foot to walk the hill towards the walkway. The access to the walkway itself is easy with no stairs involved.
there is a bit of a hill climb to get to the start but there is a buggy available if you find this a bit of a challenge
The steel structure is approximately 20 metres high and over 450metres long. I knew that Scotty would want to climb the tower and although I don’t like heights, I don’t like missing out even more.
if you are a little scared of heights, concentrate on the tree canopy and beyond – I felt much better when not looking directly down through the gaps in the walkway
The Tower!!!!
The tower is another 47 metres above the platform and offers amazing views across the Southern Alps in one direction and panoramic views across Lake Mahinapua in the other.
I just knew that Scotty was going to make sure that I climbed to the top of the tower!
and I’m so glad I climbed that tower – what a view from the top!
After descending the tower, the next challenge is conquering the Mahinapua Springboard. A huge cantilevered bridge is suspended in mid-air and can get quite the swing on in higher winds. It stretches over the canopy of tree tops and leaves you gently swaying out towards Lake Mahinapua.
the Mahinapua Springboard….luckily it was a still day and it didn’t get much of a swing on!
Here are some ‘fun facts’ about the Tree Tops Walk:
- The Treetop Walk opened in December 2012 and only took 5 months from excavation to opening to complete
- The walkway was made in Australia over one month and then transported here in sections
- There are 13,500 bolts holding it all together (which made me feel better!)
- There is a dedicated parking area if you’re in a campervan/caravan, free for a maximum of 2 nights
an awesome place to park up for a couple of nights. Toilets and rubbish included, all for free
I Had to Push Through My Fear of Heights
Click on the link below to watch a short video of our visit to the Treetops Walk.
West Coast Sunsets
I’ll never get tired of watching the sunset on the West Coast. The sunsets never fail to impress.
it’s not very often I have to tweak colour down during a sunset!
That’s a Wrap
After our stay here a couple of years ago, we didn’t think that we had done the area justice. This in part was thanks to the bad weather. We’re very pleased to be able to include Westward Ho – Hokitika in our series of West Coast journeys.
We’ve covered the West Coast quite extensively from the north to the south. Click on the links below if you would like to read more about the places we visited last time.
Karamea – on the No Exit Highway
Keep an eye out for our next exciting instalment in our series of Westward Ho – Franz Josef & Fox Glacier
Thanks Linda & Scotty
Thanks for all the interesting detail. Glad you had some great weather to enjoy exploring this part of the West Coast. I think the Hokitika area one of the most fascinating parts of NZ. So much historical variety not to mention the glorious scenery.
Thanks Robin, it’s a pretty special place for sure.