Paringa Cattle Track to Blowfly Hut
Lake Paringa · 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. Contact closest DOC office to get a permit. Other pets on conservation land rules. (DOC, Historic Haast to Paringa Cattle Track page; the whole Haast, Paringa and Moeraki rivers area is permit country, DOC codes the permit here as the hunting-dog kind, and the permits come through the Awarua / Haast Visitor Centre.)”. 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 Paringa Cattle Track to Blowfly Hut
Near Lake Paringa in West Coast, Paringa Cattle Track to Blowfly Hut runs 3.7 km as a point-to-point.
The gentlest way onto the Historic Haast to Paringa Cattle Track: the first leg from the northern car park on SH6, south of Lake Paringa, to Blowfly Hut on the Moeraki River. DOC calls this section 1 hour 30 minutes, which is exactly the time Dre, who sent this one in with Hazel, gives it. The track starts with a detour around the lowland swampy country at Windbag Creek, picks up the original 1875 droving line, then runs flat and well benched beside the Moeraki, also known as the Blue River, to a junction about an hour in. The hut is fifteen minutes past the junction, across the swing bridge on your left, a standard eight bunk with an honesty box for hut tickets if you stay. The dog rule is DOC's permit rule for the whole Haast, Paringa and Moeraki rivers area: dogs with a DOC permit only, and DOC codes the permit here as the hunting-dog kind, so arrange it with the Awarua / Haast Visitor Centre before you drive out rather than assuming a pet is welcome in this country. DOC grades the full cattle track an advanced three day tramp and warns of active slips and steep banked stream crossings in the area, so treat times and conditions with respect even on this benched leg, and check the forecast, the Moeraki comes up fast in West Coast rain. Past the hut the track climbs away toward Māori Saddle, and the Moeraki Valley Track carries on up the river, both serious undertakings and both under the same permit rule.
Expect moderate going, with around 105 m of climb, and takes about 54 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.
