Entries for the 'Easy' Category

Starting approximately 15 minutes from Kinloch on the Routeburn-Glenorchy road, the Diamond Creek walk is a gentle stroll.  Diamon Creek is a very popular stream with trout fisherman and avid birders.  This sometimes boggy track to Lake Reid gives excellent opportunities for viewing waterfowl and views up to Paradise and the Dart Valley.

Time: 1hr
Difficulty: Easy

View track description on Department of Conservation website >>

Follow the Greenstone/Caples Track from the car park. After 2-3 minutes walk a stock bridge gives access to the Lake Rere Track (do not cross here but keep to the true left bank looking downstream). The track continues past the confluence of the Caples and Greenstone Rivers. Another swing bridge provides access to the Greenstone Track. Going further up the Greenstone track will lead to several deep holes ideal for swimming on a summer's day.  Follow the track back the way you came to get back to the car park.

Time: 1 hour return
Difficulty: Easy

View descriptions of the Greenstone and Caples tracks on the Department of Conservation website >>

Walk along the shores of Lake Wakatipu from Kinloch wharf to the cottage on the foreshore and then return or via the road through the beech forest.  This short walk offers is a great introduction to the birdlife in the area.  The three note call of the Korimako (Bell Bird) can be heard repeating over and over again.  Curious Piwakawakas (Fantails) often follow walkers on their journey around the lake.  If you stand still and slowly scratch at the ground with the toe of your boot, a South Island Robin just might jump on top of it!

Time:  1 hour return
Difficulty: Easy

Lake Rere is a fantastic and varied circular route starting from the Greenstone car park (12km from Kinloch).  Walk through bush, open farm land, beech forest and join the Greenstone track for the last leg.  The Lake Rere track offers ample opportunity for photography and bird watching. 

Taking the loop clockwise, cross the bridge and follow the marked route across Greenstone Station's open paddocks for an hour to the crystal clear waters at Elfin Bay.  A gentle climb through red beech forest eases before reaching picturesque Lake Rere (running water), a popular tourist destination in the late 19th century.  Take a picnic and lunch on the shores of the lake, take pictures of the mirror reflections or simply sit and listen to the calls of the Korimakos (Bell Birds), Piwakawakas (Fantails) and South Island Robins. Pockets of mountain beech and grassland lead you to a second bridge and a brief climb to join the Greenstone Track.

Time: 5 hours (loop)
Difficulty: Easy to Moderate

View track description on Department of Conservation website >>

A flat walk to Lake Sylvan starting at the Lake Sylvan DOC campsite.  This easy day walk feels like a stroll through an enchanted forest.  As you get deeper into the forest of tall red beech trees, let your imagination run wild - seems the perfect place for Orks, Hobbits and Centaurs to be running about!  The track winds up to pretty Lake Sylvan, home to brown trout and small native fish. You can come back the way you came, or return via the 1920s tramline loop.  The loop track takes you through regenerating beech forest and is an Operation Ark site where Department of Conservation staff are working to protect the endangered yellowhead/mōhua.  This track is also the entry point for longer overnight trips to Sugarloaf Pass and Rockburn and Beasburn huts.

Time: 2 - 2.5 hours
Difficulty: Easy

View track description on Department of Conservation website >>