The New Zealand Great Walks are a set of popular trampingtracks developed and maintained by the Department of Conservation. They are New Zealand's premier tracks, through areas of some of the best scenery in the country, ranging from coastlines with beaches to dense rain forests and alpine terrain. The tracks are maintained to a high standard, making it easier for visitors to explore some of the most scenic parts of New Zealand's backcountry. The walks range from length to in length and take between 3 and 6 days to complete, with the Whanganui Journey on river being long over 5 days. Only the Tongariro Northern Circuit, the Rakiura track and the Kepler Track are loop walks, all other Great Walks require transport to return to the starting point.
History
The Great Walks network was established by the Department of Conservation in 1993. The network was established both as a way to advertise hiking in New Zealand, but also as a means of managing and conserving the most popular tracks which were increasingly being damaged by unrestricted tourism. Seven of the nine walks are covered by Google Street View from November 2015.
Facilities
The backcountry huts are conveniently located, comfortable, well-equipped, and high capacity. Both the huts and tracks on the Great Walks are of a higher standard than other tramping tracks in the country. These tracks are very popular with overseas visitors, partly due to their heavy promotion by the Department of Conservation and tourism operators. All of the Great Walks have booking systems to manage visitor pressure. Guided walks are available through private operators along many of the walks. There is no charge required for walking access to the Great Walks, however, charges apply for overnight accommodation at the huts or campsites. To conserve the tracks, it is illegal to camp within of a Great Walk track or of the Milford Track except at designated campsites. It is not possible to access the Milford Track without having booked the track accommodation, as both ends of the track require boat transport to get there and the boats can only be boarded with hut tickets. Sections of the Abel Tasman Coastal Track are particularly popular for day walks without overnight accommodation, as even the middle sections are serviced by water taxis.
Tongariro Northern Circuit - the second day of the circuit follows the Tongariro Alpine Crossing over volcanic terrain.
Whanganui Journey — this is actually not a walk but a kayak voyage on New Zealand's longest navigable river. It is however managed under the Great Walks system.
Heaphy Track - at 82 kilometres the longest of the walking tracks, delivering the biggest contrast from palm-fringed beaches to sub-alpine tussock grasslands.
Routeburn Track - at 32 kilometres the shortest of the walking tracks.
Milford Track - the most famous of the Great Walks.
A tenth Great Walk, the Paparoa Track, was opened on 1 December 2019. This was be the first addition since the existing Great Walks network was established in 1993. Another walking track, the Pike29 Memorial Track, is currently under construction until at least December 2020. This will be a spur track from the Paparoa route. This track is a memorial to the 29 miners killed in the Pike River Mine disaster. In 2018, the Department of Conservation investigated the addition of an eleventh Great Walk with the finalists being:
In July 2019, it was decided that the 61-km Hump Ridge Track, will become the 11th Great Walk. There will be an upgrade to track and hut facilities, costing approx NZ$5m. The goal is to have this track join the Great Walks network in 2022.
