Coast to Coast

Hello KatieP I'd commend "madpoms" Hokitika to Otira then Goat Pass route or the three Pass variation given coming out near Arthurs Pass then kayaking down the Waimakariri. I've done all the walking bits but only kayaked part of the way down to the East Coast. The Hollyford etc is also nice but the former is probably going to be logistically easier, is less likely to be crowded & the DOC huts are generally cheaper or free to stay in though less flash. Bernieq you and madpom are talking about the same track but calling it different names when talking about "Kaniere River track" & "Kennedy Creek track to the lake" This track is of walkway standard & is called the "Kaniere Water Race Walk" It used to have a hut on it at Wards Road that is still marked on some maps & referred to in recent books but that hut has been removed. The Lawyers Delight hut at the SW corner of Lake Kaniere which is also still marked on some maps has also been removed.

Thanks glennj, I should read more carefully rather than a quick scan - I thought 9km was a bit short for Hokitika to the Lake.

Easily done bernieq especially when the same thing is called by different names. I suppose for a true Coast to Coast madpoms suggested routes should start at the coast. From Hokitika beach it is a 12km walk along public roads to the start of the Kaniere Water Race Walk. You can actually stay off public roads most of the way to the Kaniere WR walk start by taking a mixture of walking tracks, old forestry roads & short sections of public road. This would be be via a walking track starting near Hokitika airport & the Blue Spur Range roads/tracks.