One of a series of ‘teaser’ trip pages for those heading to the 2017 NZ Packrafting Meetup. Thanks to Hugh Canard for the information. I’m hopeful that the Meetup will result in a little more info plus a few photos so we can expand these pages.
St James Walkway to Cannibal Gorge
There is a large sign and parking area at the start of the St James Walkway.
About 1.5km of walking on a pretty good track to the put in at the swing bridge.
Maruia River (III) Cannibal Gorge
The river is small, and only barely navigable by packraft. A little rain will bring out the best in this run. More than a few logs in this section.
According to a recent descent by a group of competent Kayakers “Below the bridge it’s a ditch, with no eddies. Scary. Above the bridge – for anyone coming over from the Waiau catchment, it’s fairly littered with trees from avalanche debris.” Take from that what you will…. Still haven’t got enough good information to give reliable indication of the trip’s difficulty.
Maruia River (II) from Cannibal Gorge to Maruia Springs
The river exits the gorge to class II floating all the way to Maruia Springs. These commercial hot pools aren’t cheap, but they are a nice way to end a trip!
Gauge
Visual at take out.