Lake Stream Route
Reefton · Canterbury
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, Lake Stream Route page; the page says to arrange the dog permit with the Māwhera / Greymouth office.)”. 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 Lake Stream Route
This long walk follows 6.8 km, near Reefton in Canterbury.
A half day tramp up a West Coast valley to a quaint two bunk hut. The route starts from a carpark on SH7, 3 km upstream from Tobins Bridge near the Rahu Saddle, and follows Lake Stream the whole way, crossing it several times, before reaching a clearing with two small tarns, plenty of camping space and the little Lake Stream Hut. DOC calls it 7.2 km and 3 hr 30 min one way, which matches the 3.5 hours Dre and Hazel take, and grades it an expert route. Dre's caution deserves top billing: the crossings are unbridged, so do not attempt this one after lots of rain. Everything on this side of the divide comes up fast, and a stream you hopped across in the morning can be uncrossable by afternoon. For those with more in the legs, an unmarked track continues from the hut, 45 minutes to the bushline and another 45 to a saddle with views into the Maruia valley. The dog rule is DOC's permit rule for Victoria Forest Park: dogs with a DOC permit only, arranged with the Māwhera / Greymouth office before you go. From the roadside to the hut clearing the whole route is conservation land.
Expect expert going, with around 484 m of climb, and takes about 2 hr 9 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 Dre & Hazel suggested it, and we checked it against the source above.