Wild about the West Coast

With the Tasman Sea crashing against its edge, the West Coast runs from Karamea down to Glacier Country, with stunning landscapes, history and adventure by the bucket load.

INDULGE

The Story Behind a Gin

A small distillery in Reefton has created a botanical rich dry gin in honour of Bridget ‘Little Biddy’ Goodwin, a pipesmoking, gin-toting, 4-foot tall gold miner who prospected the West Coast in the 1860s. The distillery, Reefton Distilling Co, uses local business and ingredients as much as possible in the production of its spirit range.

South Westland Salmon

Freshly smoked salmon and other treats at Lake Paringa

Matheson Café

Good coffee to go with great views of the Southern Alps.

© Westland Salmon Farm

MUSEUMS

History House Photograph Museum

A photographic collection of more than 20,000 photographs and artefacts at this Greymouth institution tell a compelling story of the area’s history. Stoke your imagination with tales of shipwrecks and gold rushes.

Granity Museum

Showcasing the region’s rich mining history, including a massive Marion shovel.

Pop-up History House in Greymouth

This is an extension of the History House on Gresson St, housing more photographs covering the Grey District’s past. Find it on McKay St.

Blacks Point Museum

Chock full of artefacts and old everyday items used by the local people, the museum is located in an old church for Methodist miners on the Lewis Pass Rd just before reaching Reefton. It’s open October to April, Wednesdays to Fridays and Sundays.

Hector Country Music Museum

A jaw-dropping collection of country music memorabilia.

NATURAL WONDERS

Walking to Oparara Arches © West Coast Tourism

KARST

This area, from Greymouth to the top of the South Island, is the southern hemisphere’s second largest cave area.

HECTOR’S DOLPHINS

100m from the mouth of the Grey River is the home of many Hector’s dolphins.

STONE BEACHES

Amazing gemstones and treasures can be found when combing the rugged shores of Greymouth.

SEA GEYSERS AND PANCAKE ROCKS

See the thousands of tonnes of water heaved from the ocean floor and forced out in a roar of white spray across pancake-like rocks at Punakāiki.

LAKE BRUNNER

Glacial lake with a stunning mountain backdrop and great fishing.

ALPINE FAULTLINE TREASURES

Created by a shifting of the Earth’s tectonic plates, the mountains of the central Southern Alps have rich veins of gold and pounamu (greenstone jade). The river gorges of the Grey and Taramakau are good places to see these treasures and in many places there are solid rock walls that have been twisted by the forces of the alpine fault line.

BLUE POOLS

A short walk from the car park on State Highway 6 near Makarora just north of Muddy Creek, you cross a swing bridge that leads through a silver beech forest that overlooks pools of pure glacial water that are crystal clear and bright blue. Look for the large brown and rainbow trout that live in the river.

GATES OF HAAST AND THUNDER CREEK FALLS

Reached by a five minute walk from the Gates of Haast Bridge where you can see the tumbling rapids of the Gates of Haast, there is a viewing platform from where you can see Thunder Creek falls. The water drops 28m to a pool alongside the rapidly flowing Haast River.

Cape Foulwind © Adobe Stock

BEST BEACHES

Kahurangi Point

Wild, windswept and isolated with a large expanse of beach overlooked by a lighthouse.

Scott’s Beach

A spectacular sandy cove surrounded by steep cliffs covered in dense rainforest on the Heaphy Track.

Gentle Annie

At the mouth of the Mokihinui River, this is popular with surfcasters.

Little Wanganui

A golden sand beach with a river mouth at its southern end, popular with surfers.

Carters Beach

Just 6kms south of Westport is a sheltered cove with a sandy beach studded with interesting geological features and coastal cliffs.

Motukiekie Beach

Halfway between Greymouth and Punakāiki, this is a premier place to catch a sunset.

Tauranga Bay

At Westport, with a seal colony at the northern end and a café at the other.

Nine Mile Beach

A south-west facing beach just south of Westport, popular with surfers for its beachbreaks.

Rapahoe Beach

Just 12km north of Greymouth, good for swimming.

Gillespies Beach

Twenty-one kilometres north of Fox Glacier village, this is a secluded beach often strewn with driftwood. At the northern end is a lagoon.

Fur seal / kekeno © Staci Offwood

Looking for a place to stay in the West Coast? Book your accommodation on aa.travel.co.nz