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Canterbury, 1 Day, Roadside.
A classic run, great for packrafts at low flows From its catchment in the Lees Valley, the Ashley River / Rakahuri cuts a wandering meander through the Canterbury foothills. Rakahuri means “entangled and turning” in Te Reo Māori – and that’s exactly what it does. For a very long time, The Ashley has been paddled…
Canterbury, 1 Day, Roadside.
Scheduled dam release run: a great class II roadside run when the water is flowing (a couple of times a year)
Canterbury, 1 Day, Roadside.
Just behind Tekapo town, is a fantastic artificial whitewater course. Normally dry, the river flows only at scheduled releases (keep an eye on the official Tekapo WW facebook page for timings) Releases are usually timed for a weekend: come camp under the pine trees by the put in and join in the good times! The…
Canterbury, 3 Day, 4 Day, Through trip.
3-4 Day through trip.
MacKenzie Basin/Canterbury
Canterbury, 2 Day, Through trip.
A great overnight through trip, with continuous wave trains and fun paddling.
Canterbury, 1 Day, Out and back.
An adventure with something for just about everyone The lower Edwards River in Arthur’s Pass National Park is a great option for a short but adventurous trip. This trip has a great mix of ‘something for everyone’ with an optional harder upper section, great variety and scenery, and a wilderness feel to it despite all…
Canterbury, 1 Day, Out and back.
With good access, continuous whitewater, grade III gorges plus an optional grade IV upper section with a chockstone, this is bound to become an East Coast classic day trip for intermediate to advanced packrafters. “The run feels similar to the classic narrows section on the Upper Waiau. The tight gorge where you float beneath a…
Canterbury, 1 Day, Out and back.
With a bit of rain, the Cameron has fast, continuous paddling. There are slightly easier (II+) options from a lower start point.
Canterbury, 1 Day, 2 Day, Out and back.
A great rain or snowmelt run, suitable for mixed groups of intermediate level paddlers
Canterbury, 2 Day, Loop trip.
An ‘almost-loop’ trip through Arthur’s Pass mountains and braided river valleys. There are a few options for paddling the Poulter, including continuing on down the Waimakariri Gorge – check out a video by Haydn Deane of the Poulter-Waimak Gorge option on vimeo . Thanks to Michael Batchelor for the information and photos to make up…
Canterbury, 1 Day, 2 Day, Out and back.
Overnighter or day trip, out and back. Needs spring flows or rain.
Lake Pukaki/MacKenzie/Canterbury
Canterbury, 1 Day, 2 Day, 3 Day, Through trip.
Curious geology is the highlight of this run: that and the caves, gorges and fence hazards. Information on the Porter River (II with mandatory portage) is included at the end of this page as it looks like an enticing ‘no walk’ option. However, there are fences, nasty sieves and a mandatory portage. View Larger Topographic…
Canterbury, 1 Day, Car to car, Roadside.
Hurunui River overview The Hurunui is the most important River in Canterbury for paddlers. It has navigable flows all year round and offers a good variety of whitewater runs. From Lake Sumner down, there are a variety of runs, catering for all types of paddlers. Upper Hurunui (described as one run) Lake to Sisters (I/II)…
Canterbury, 1 Day, Car to car.
Hurunui River overview The Hurunui is the most important River in Canterbury for paddlers. It has navigable flows all year round and offers a good variety of whitewater runs. From Lake Sumner down, there are a variety of runs, catering for all types of paddlers. Upper Hurunui (described as one run) Middle Hurunui Lower Hurunui…
Canterbury, 1 Day, Roadside.
Hurunui River overview The Hurunui is the most important River in Canterbury for paddlers. It has navigable flows all year round and offers a good variety of whitewater runs. From Lake Sumner down, there are a variety of runs, catering for all types of paddlers. Upper Hurunui (described as one run) Lake to Sisters (I/II)…
Canterbury, 5 Day, 6 Day, 7 day.
The Waiau Toa / Clarence is one of the best long river trips in New Zealand, more so because it’s not overly challenging whitewater.
3-7 days of grade II/III paddling, great camping, huts and beautiful scenery
Canterbury, 1 Day, Loop trip.
An easily accessible and short Canterbury float with reliable flows and a big water feel. Beautiful water and views and a great enjoyment-to-energy expenditure ratio. Best during weekdays to avoid large amounts of jet boat traffic. (please take a look at our general advice about Jetboats and packrafts) View Larger Topographic Map Logistics Park just…
Canterbury, 1 Day, Roadside.
Hurunui River overview The Hurunui is the most important River in Canterbury for paddlers. It has navigable flows all year round and offers a good variety of whitewater runs. From Lake Sumner down, there are a variety of runs, catering for all types of paddlers. Upper Hurunui (described as one run) Lake to Sisters (I/II)…
Canterbury, 1 Day, Out and back.
A half day explore on a glacially fed lake with an incredible view of NZ’s tallest peak. View Larger Topographic Map Hooker Valley Track The Hooker Valley Track is one of the most popular short walks in the Aoraki/Mt Cook National Park, and its not hard to see why. On a very easy, gravelled and…
Canterbury, 2 Day, Car to car, Through trip.
The Waimakariri Gorge is a great Grade 2 overnight trip or long day-trip covering 50 to 60 kms or river, accessible by car at both ends. Being so close to the outdoor recreation focussed population centre of Christchurch, this section of river will probably become one of the most commonly pack-rafted trips in New Zealand….
Canterbury, 2 Day, Loop trip, Out and back.
Another lovely river in the Lewis Pass region. An extended but beautiful and straightforward walk in through beech forest and river flats to the comfortable, quaint St Jacob’s hut. The paddle out down the Hope river is an enjoyable mixture of open river flats with a fun gravel races and some interesting class II+ boulder…
Canterbury, 1 Day, Roadside.
One of a series of ‘teaser’ trip pages inspired by Hugh Canard, prior to the 2017 Boyle Outdoor Centre PRANZ Meetup. Treat the information with healthy scepticism – if you’ve done the run, then please contact us with more info and a few photos to expand this page. View Larger Topographic Map Lewis River (III)…
Canterbury, 1 Day, 2 Day, Out and back.
There are 3 rivers that run parallel on the western side of the Lewis River. The Doubtful River is not the most scenic, or the most exciting, but it does have whio and potential in higher water. Thanks to Colin Kinnison for the information and photos for this trip page. View Larger Topographic Map SH7…
Canterbury, Roadside.
One of a series of ‘teaser’ trip pages inspired by Hugh Canard, prior to the 2017 Boyle Outdoor Centre PRANZ Meetup. Treat the information with healthy scepticism – if you’ve done the run, then please contact us with more info and a few photos to expand this page. View Larger Topographic Map Lower Hope –…
Canterbury, West Coast, 1 Day, Car to car.
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. View Larger Topographic Map Boyle River (II+) from Boyle…
Canterbury, 3 Day, 4 Day, Through trip.
The Upper Waiau has long been regarded by the NZ Paddling community as a classic multi-day intermediate trip. Access was usually by Helicopter or walking in over Mailings pass, an expensive or exhausting option with hardshell kayaks. The below information is from a packraft trip by Chris Coutts and Thomas Land in January 2015. Chris…
Canterbury, 1 Day, 2 Day, Loop trip, Out and back.
A beautiful, continuous alpine rain-run The South Temple is normally a small stream, but when there’s enough water, it provides a fast, technical packrafting trip along most of its length. The out-and-return trip style means you can easily choose your trip length, depending on your motivation, flow and paddling ability. This river requires spring melt…
Canterbury, 1 Day, 2 Day, Out and back.
Classic Canterbury braided river, with some nice huts and options for tramping side trips. Easily done as a day trip, you could spend many days exploring the upper catchment before floating back down to your car. View Larger Topographic Map Waimakariri Valley: Carrington Hut Route The Waimakariri Valley is a major route featuring in a…
Canterbury, 2 Day, Out and back.
A beautiful walk in through a densely forested valley with scattered grassy clearings and high open tussock ridges, backed by rocky summits. To top it off, the river is visually stunning, an easy class I/II with an exciting class III section through a small gorge. This trip page is adapted with permission from a trip…
Canterbury, 2 Day, Out and back.
An off-trail adventure up the seldom visited Murchison Valley, among NZ’s highest peaks and glacial valleys. This trip involves considerable route finding skill, especially amongst the moraine features of the valley. As the Glaciers continue to recede, this trip may become more difficult, or even impossible. This trip is suitable for parties with experience around…