Diedrichs Creek to Gerhardt Spur Bivvy
Hokitika · West Coast · 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: “Dogs with a DOC permit only. More information below or contact the relevant DOC office. (DOC, Hokitika hunting area block pages covering the Kokatahi River - Whitcombe River area; the permits come from the Hokitika DOC office. The bivvy has no DOC track page, DOC's own hut page says the route is no longer maintained by DOC, so the hunting-area rule is the one that covers it.)”. 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. DOC codes this land for the hunting-dog permit, so it is not a casual dog walk. Ask the DOC office before planning to bring a dog.
About Diedrichs Creek to Gerhardt Spur Bivvy
Diedrichs Creek to Gerhardt Spur Bivvy is a point-to-point of 9.2 km, near Hokitika in West Coast.
Gerhardt Spur climbs from the edge of the Kowhitirangi farmland to the crest of the Diedrichs Range, and the bivvy sits at 1250 m near the top with views over the plains to the Tasman Sea. The day starts at the bridge over Diedrichs Creek on the Hokitika Gorge road, where Dre, who sent this one in with Hazel, describes the way in: over the stile beside the farm gate, do not park in front of the gate, then poled markers through working farmland on the true right of the creek to Muriel Creek, and about a kilometre of creek flats beyond that to a shingle bluff. You cross the creek with wet feet just upstream of the bluff to find the track start, and our line along the farm and creek section follows the shape of the creek and is indicative rather than surveyed. From the crossing the track climbs steeply through the bush with one flatter stretch mid spur, passes tussock benches with tarns at 960 m and 1120 m, and tops out at the bivvy, a basic two bunk just off the crest. Allow 4 to 5 hours up, which is Dre's time and the Remote Huts time both, and in good conditions Jumble Top is another half hour above the biv. The dog rule is DOC's permit rule: dogs with a DOC permit only, arranged with the Hokitika DOC office before you go. The farmland at the bottom is private, so it is on lead and stock respected until the conservation land begins partway up the creek, exactly as Dre does it with Hazel, and from there DOC treats a pet without written permission as an offence. Be clear about what this is: DOC no longer maintains the route. It has been kept open by volunteers, recut by the Permolat group with Back Country Trust funding in 2020, and cut again as recently as May this year, but it remains a steep, rough backcountry route for experienced parties, with a creek crossing that shuts in rain and a long unforgiving descent. Carry a beacon, watch the weather, and leave the spur for a settled day.
It sits at the expert end and gains roughly 1,278 m, and takes about 3 hr 58 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 Dre & Hazel suggested it, and we checked it against the source above.