Kokatahi Valley to Boo Boo Hut
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. All conservation land areas are prohibited to dogs except where authorisation has been granted by DOC. People wishing to take a dog into this area should seek authorisation from the DOC office. (DOC, Kokatahi-Toaroha hunting area page, which lists Boo Boo Hut; the permits come from the Hokitika DOC office. The route has no DOC track page of its own, so the block page is the rule 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 Kokatahi Valley to Boo Boo Hut
This long track follows 7.4 km as a point-to-point, near Hokitika in West Coast.
Boo Boo Hut sits in the lower gorge of the Kokatahi River, the valley south of the Styx behind Kowhitirangi. Access is a signposted right-hand turn off the upper Kokatahi road just before the Kokatahi River bridge, then a farm track through an operating farm down to the river. Dre, who sent this one in with Hazel, describes the farm section as signposted, with dogs expected to stay on lead until the signs say the public land begins, and DOC's own access notes ask walkers not to disturb stock, so leash through the paddocks regardless. From the end of the farm track the route follows the river flats upstream for a few kilometres, our line across the flats follows the shape of the river and is indicative rather than surveyed, then climbs into the lower gorge on a rough marked route to the hut, a basic four bunk. Dre makes it 4 to 5 hours; DOC publishes no time, and the going in the gorge is genuinely rough. The dog rule is DOC's permit rule: dogs with a DOC permit only, arranged with the Hokitika DOC office before you go. The conservation land starts where the route leaves the flats and enters the gorge, and DOC treats a pet there without written permission as an offence, so sort the permit first, the farm gate is not the place to find out. Be honest with yourself about this one before you commit the dog: DOC no longer maintains the route, it gets sporadic care from the volunteers at Permolat, and beyond the hut the Twins three-wire bridge toward Crawford Junction Hut has been removed with no alternative crossing, so onward travel means the true left of the river. This is backcountry travel for experienced parties, not a track walk, and the Kokatahi rises fast in West Coast rain.
Expect hard going, with around 667 m of climb, and takes about 2 hr 35 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.
