Anakiwa to Davies Bay
Anakiwa · Marlborough · Point to Point
This walk was suggested by the community and checked against the authority quoted above before it was published. The route line comes from official track data. DOC’s own wording: “This is the one section of the Queen Charlotte Track where a dog is allowed, and it takes a permit. DOC’s words: "You can walk your dog between Anakiwa and Davies Bay only. A permit is required. Contact Nelson Visitor Centre on 03 5469339." and "Dogs must be on a leash at all times." Read the boundary strictly, because DOC does: "Dogs are not permitted elsewhere on the Queen Charlotte Track or on any of the walking and tramping tracks off it." That includes every side track off this stretch, so no detours with the dog. You will also see a plain "No dogs." badge at the top of the same DOC page. That badge covers the whole 73.5 km track; the paragraph naming Anakiwa and Davies Bay is the specific rule for this section, and it is the one to go by, with the permit in hand. Then there is the sting at the far end: Davies Bay Campsite itself says "No dogs.", with no permit path, so the walk is open to you but the campsite you arrive at is not. Turn around at the bay rather than wandering into the camping area. Read 3 September 2026”. Evidence: the rule-setter’s own published wording. How we check dog rules.
Good to know
A DOC dog permit is required before any dog walks here. Apply to the managing DOC office ahead of time; do not turn up with the dog first.
About Anakiwa to Davies Bay
Near Anakiwa in Marlborough, Anakiwa to Davies Bay runs 2.4 km as a point-to-point.
The Queen Charlotte Track runs 73.5 km and bans dogs for almost all of it. This is the exception: the 2.4 km from the Anakiwa road end out to Davies Bay, on a permit and on a lead. It is easy, mostly level walking through coastal bush with the sound appearing through the trees, and DOC allows about 2 hours return for it. For a track this well known it is a surprisingly quiet stretch, because most people walking the Queen Charlotte are heading the other way, from Meretoto/Ship Cove. The permit is the whole thing. It comes from the Nelson Visitor Centre on 03 5469339, and it wants sorting before you drive out, not at the trailhead. Keep the dog on the lead the entire way, and stay on the main track: every side track off this section is closed to dogs, so the pleasant looking spur is not an option. Davies Bay is the turnaround, and it comes with a catch worth knowing before you set off. The bay has a DOC campsite, and that campsite says no dogs, flatly, with no permit that changes it. So you can walk to the bay with your dog but you cannot take them into the camping area. We have drawn the route to stop short of the campsite boundary for that reason. There is a Queen Charlotte Track Land Cooperative pass covering private land between Kenepuru Saddle and Davies Bay; this section sits on the Anakiwa side of that boundary and the cooperative lists it as a day walk without a pass, but it is worth a look at their site if you plan to carry on past the bay. Melissa and Indiana suggested this one, and mentioned you can hire a kayak at the turnoff and paddle to the bay instead. That is true and it is a nice way to do it, though the dog rules on the water and at the bay are the same ones, and the campsite is still off limits.
Graded moderate, it climbs about 152 m overall, and takes about 43 min to walk.
A DOC dog permit is required before any dog walks here. Arrange it with the managing DOC office ahead of your trip. This walk is on the map because Melissa & Indiana suggested it, and we checked it against the source above.
