Goldsborough (Shamrock) Track
Hokitika · West Coast
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. Contact closest DOC office to get a permit. Other pets on conservation land rules. (DOC, Goldsborough (Shamrock) Track page; the track starts 24 km north-east of Hokitika, so the closest office is DOC Hokitika, and DOC's track records list the permit here as the hunting-dog kind.) The short Callaghans Walk near the eastern end carries DOC's No Dogs rule and is not part of this track”. 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.
Opens your email app, addressed to [email protected]. You can also call DOC on 0800 275 362.
About Goldsborough (Shamrock) Track
This long walk follows 6.5 km, near Hokitika in West Coast.
A half-day through the heart of West Coast gold country: DOC calls the Goldsborough (Shamrock) Track 8 km and 4 hours one way, which is exactly what Dre, who sent this one in with Hazel, reckons too. The track runs between the old Goldsborough township site and Callaghans Road, past mining tunnels, dams, sluice faces, tailings and the water races that fed them, with the middle section climbing steep ridgelines before easing down into the Shamrock Creek valley for the final 1.5 km at the Goldsborough end. DOC says the track can be walked from either end but is easier going downhill from the old Callaghans township and finishing at Goldsborough. Our line follows DOC's own track alignment, which measures 6.6 km on the map; DOC calls it 8 km on the ground, and the 4 hour grade is honest, this is an advanced tramping track, not a stroll between the interpretation panels. The dog rule is DOC's permit rule: dogs with a DOC permit only, arranged with DOC Hokitika before you go, and DOC's track records list the permit here as the hunting-dog kind. One thing to watch at the Callaghans end: the separate short Callaghans Walk carries DOC's No Dogs rule, so stay on the Shamrock line. The Goldsborough end starts 24 km north-east of Hokitika: 9 km north on SH6, then Stafford Loop Road for 13 km, then Callaghans Road.
Graded hard, it climbs about 298 m overall, and takes about 1 hr 48 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.