Red Hills Hut from SH63
Mount Richmond Forest Park · Nelson-Tasman
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, Red Hills Route page, Mount Richmond Forest Park, read 21 September 2026.) Sort the permit before you drive out, not at the car park”. 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. Apply to the managing DOC office ahead of time; do not turn up with the dog first.
About Red Hills Hut from SH63
This long walk follows 6.6 km, near Mount Richmond Forest Park in Nelson-Tasman.
The short way into Red Hills Hut, from the Six Mile car park on State Highway 63 up into the ultramafic country of Mount Richmond Forest Park. DOC puts it at 7 km and 3 hours one way. From the highway, signs say 'Access to Red Hills Route'; follow the orange triangle markers north east for about 1.5 km across the grassy flats, then pick up the 4wd road for the long 5.5 km climb to the hut. Dre, who sent this one in with Hazel, read the DOC sign at the highway the same way: 3 hours, permit needed. One thing DOC is firm about on the flats: do not go over the locked gate, because that is private land, and stay on the markers. Red Hills Hut has six bunks, mattresses and a toilet, and the tap water is untreated so boil it. The hut sits on Te Araroa, so you may share it with through walkers, and the ground up here is open, stony and exposed, so carry layers even when the valley is warm.
It sits at the hard end and gains roughly 422 m, and takes about 2 hr 1 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.