Travel Reference
In-Depth Information
Between the mountains and the coast are the western lowlands, which are totally different
in character. This is a karst landscape - a limestone region where the soft rock has been
eroded by rivers and underground drainage. What remains are deep canyons and gorges,
with limestone walls that rise up to 200m above the river. There are blind valleys, sinkholes,
cliffs, overhangs, numerous caves and streams that disappear underground.
The nikau palms that line the coast and highway also extend inland. They combine with a
profusion of black mamaku tree ferns, smaller ferns and supplejack vines to form a jungle-
like canopy. Still further inland, the lowland forest becomes a mixture of podocarp, beech
and broad-leaved trees, with rimu and red beech often the most dominant species.
The size of the forest, and the fact that it's been left relatively untouched by humans, has
led to the park's profusion of bird life. Commonly spotted along the tracks are bellbirds,
tomtits, fantails, grey warblers, kereru (NZ pigeons)
,
tui and the tiny rifleman. One of the
favourites encountered is the western weka, a brown flightless bird often spotted in the
Fossil Creek area along the Inland Pack Track, as well as in many other areas of the park.
There are also many great spotted kiwi, but you'll hear them at night more often than you'll
see them.
8
Planning
Paparoa National Park Visitor Information Centre and i-SITE (
Click here
)
, opposite the en-
trance to the Pancake Rocks, is a helpful centre providing a booking service for transport,
accommodation and local activities, and selling maps, hut tickets and Great Walk passes. As
many of the walks in the area involve river crossings, be sure to check in here for the latest
weather and track conditions.
TOP OF CHAPTER
Inland Pack Track
Duration
2 days
Distance
27km (18 miles)
Track Standard
Tramping track & route
Difficulty
Moderate
Start
Punakaiki
End
Fox River bridge
