Multiday hikes off the beaten track

Tinytol, if George Sound looks interesting enough, feel free to contact me via email (can be easily guessed from My Profile data). Regards, Andrey P.S. Probably Tramping partners forum is more correct for the thread

I've become a big fan of the Routeburn area over the past couple of years. Have a look on the map at Scott Creek, Kay Creek, Death Valley, the Caples, Steele Creek, the Greenstone, Fraser Creek, Lake Wilson, North Routeburn, Lake Nerine, and the Rockburn. Lots of beautiful trips can be done by stringing these valleys together but you'll need a tent. http://www.topomap.co.nz/NZTopoMap?v=2&ll=-44.84395,168.222193&z=13 http://www.topomap.co.nz/NZTopoMap?v=2&ll=-44.682577,168.215326&z=13

Walks that should be on the great walk circuit but arent:yet! Rees-Dart route Caples-Greenstone Hollyford track (my personal favourite) Rakuira Circuit Track Jumbo-Holdsworth or anything in the Tararua's Any of these would be excellent as an introduction to tramping in New Zealand. You should note that they will all be busy though, local trampers and budget tourist both like them because they dont cost as much as the Great Walks. Also worth consideration is the Humpridge Track, this is a private/public track, i walked it in the off season this year and it is awsome.

@bradley1: " Walks that should be on the great walk circuit but arent:yet! [--snip--] Jumbo-Holdsworth or anything in the Tararua's " noooooooooooohhhh!! :) Didn't DOC commit some time ago to not having any more Great Walks?

It makes sense to me for DOC not to have any more "Great Walks" than the 9 it has. Once you have say 20 "Great Walks" the message of what made the "original 9" walks "great" gets diluted and allows the users to make comparison between similar walks, who then decide which walks are the "greatest" rather than allowing DOC to promote which walks are "great". The current walks do provide a good broad snapshot of NZ front/back country scenery and landscapes, with each walk different in nature to the other. I'm hard pressed to think of a different type of scenery/landscape that should be added to the great walks. I think that the "Great Walks" should be confined to National Parks as (help me out with the legal definition Izogi) they are the protected lands with the highest conservation value with open public access. Other conservation land/parks such as the Tararuas should be "Great Walk" free as they do not meet the same standard as a national park (although these areas may have many other reasons for being considered "great"). I've walked most of the great walks and thought they were fantastic (once you get over the 40+ people you're walking with each day) I plan to walk them again after a 25 year gap and I'll be taking my kids along to walk them as well (since they're free at the huts, thanks FMC). May I suggest a few trips around the Holdsworth-Jumbo loop, while staying at Powell hut to help with the people acclimatization. I think one thing DOC may do in the future (if it isn't already) to help provide additional revenue and in an effort to move some demand from the existing great walks is promote essentially "second tier" tramps more. These second tier walks would be relatively safe and easy for more novice trampers like the great walks, but don't quite measure up in scenery etc. or are too similar to existing great walks, such as the one's Bradley was suggesting. All those greats sure do grate...

best way to ruin a track is turn it into a great walk. watch it get booked solid through the warmer months of the year and the hut fees go through the roof. anyone for a fiordland great walk at $55 a night? then the idiots turn up with little to no real tramping experience. walking around in jeans, sleeping bags outside their packs... sheer lack of clothes... all attracted by maniacured footpaths. want to see people panic, stick them on the tops in bad weather. last time i was on the kepler track there was a trail of abandoned packs left along the ridge as people panicked en masse when someone collapsed with hypothermia and dumped their packs to get to the hut as fast as possible.. then the alpine shelters get installed and freeloaders camp in those leaving a mess for other people to clean up...

8 great walks, the Lake Waikaremoana(?) track is no longer officially a great walk. I think! I dont want ANY of these tracks to be great walks, but they have the kind of spectacular appeal that a great walk should have. Talking about the shelters, last time i was at the Hawdon shelter in Arthurs Pass there were about 10 tourists camping inside it. I gently poinedt out that they should be outside, they had no idea and were genuinely sorry. Most of them were American and thats what they use in the US, open ended shelters.

@bradley1: "8 great walks, the Lake Waikaremoana(?) track is no longer officially a great walk. I think!" Good question. It still is according to DOC's website, but then Te Urewera is apparently still a National Park. http://www.doc.govt.nz/parks-and-recreation/national-parks/

Thanks for the routes listed everyone, I'll check them out. I'm fully self-sufficient (incl tent) and like the idea of being away from "maniacured footpaths". I just need to ensure I can resupply food every 7 days or so. Cheers, Tol