New Zealand’s tracks less-travelled

The best time of the year to go tramping is in late spring and summer – that way you’ll avoid the worst of the rain and mud (some parts of the Hollyford can get bogged down in winter) and you’ll be able to swim the beaches along the Abel Tasman (the West Coast beaches along the Hollyford, however, are pretty wild and woolly even in summer!).

Hollyford Track practicalities
This dramatic track starts in the midst of lowland forest, crossing mountain streams and passing pretty waterfalls as it follows the broad Hollyford River valley all the way to the sea at Martins Bay. The Tasman coast makes a satisfying end point, with dolphins, seals and penguins often greeting hikers on their arrival. However, it does mean backtracking another four days back to your start point unless you take one of the sneaky shortcut options.

The 56km track is graded as a moderate hike, but involves some creek crossings and suffers frequent flash floods that can leave trekkers waiting it out en-route for several days until the trail becomes passable. The trickiest part of the route is the ominously named Demon Trail (10km) alongside Lake McKerrow. It’s imperative that you check with DOC in Te Anau for the latest track and weather conditions and for detailed maps.

Getting there and back
TrackNet has shuttles between the Hollyford Rd turn-off and Te Anau ($47, one hour) and Queenstown ($87, 3¾ hours). Options for reducing the length of the there-and-back journey include hitching a jetboat ride south with Hollyford Track Guided Walks for the length of Lake McKerrow; book in advance. A more-luxurious, three-day guided walk ($1655) includes fancy accommodation, jetboat trips in both directions along Lake McKerrow and a flight back to Milford Sound from the coastal finish line at Martins Bay.