Distance: 4.0 km (2.5 DOC hours) - Unmarked route, clear - Easy-moderate terrain
Altitude: 14m to 98m. Gain: 111m. Loss: 28m . Gradient: 2 deg (Flat)
Skills: - Occasional rivers (3/6)

Unmarked route, clear (7/9)
Unmarked route, follows obvious geography (river, spur, trail, etc)

Primary, mapped (1/5)
Formal route, on maps, principal access to hut or along range / catchment

Flat (difficulty: 1/5)
Flat

Easy-moderate (difficulty: 2/5)
Tussock / river-gravel / open bush / cut track

None (difficulty: 1/7)
No alpine skills required

Occasional rivers (difficulty: 3/6)
Occasional rivers - impassible after heavy rain

None (difficulty: 1/7)
No alpine skills required

The walk starts at the carpark on the south side of Mangatoetoe bridge, 2km west of Cape Palliser. From the carpark, a gate leads onto the southern bank of the river. The track drops to the creek after a few meters, and crosses the creek, picking up a 4WD track on the far northern side of the valley. A good track leads about 2km upriver, eventually dropping to the riverbed. Multiple river crossings are needed: the river was low when I visited – rarely over knee deep. However, debris across the entire valley floor shows how much water it can carry after a storm.

The valley slowly tightens and becomes scrubbier. By the time you reach the hut you are in tall manuka scrub / bush. The hut itself is in a small clearing 30m from the river on the east side, reached by an unmarked track. The hut is not visible from the river and easy to miss – check the map as you go to see where to start looking out for the track. A small cairn mark the point, but it is not obvious.

Note: Described in the reverse direction to your journey

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