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Otago, 1 Day, 2 Day, Roadside.
Fickle flows and lots of willows The Lindis River is hidden in plain sight close to SH8, and drains the desert-like high country around the Lindis Pass. Too low to paddle most of the time, just after rain, the Lindis provides a delightful car-to-car day trip or an overnight paddle. The river snakes through farmland,…
Otago, 1 Day, 2 Day, Roadside, Through trip.
1-3 day options, scenic gorges and mostly easy paddling.
Otago, 1 Day, Roadside, Through trip.
An couple of hours car to car, through the canyons and gentle rapids of the Shotover. From Arthurs Point, near Queenstown
Otago, 2 Day, 3 Day, Through trip.
Steep creeking in the Shotover River headwaters. 2-3 days, Otago.
Otago, 2 Day, Out and back.
Overnight out and return trip for advanced paddlers. In Otago, near Lake Wakatipu. Permission required
Otago, 1 Day, Out and back.
A great day trip for strong packrafters, in Mt Aspiring National Park.
Otago, 4 Day, Through trip.
2 days hike, 1-2 days paddle.
Remote and scenic headwaters, in a seldom visited valley | Otago.
Otago, 1 Day, 2 Day, Out and back, Roadside.
Roadside grade III in Otago Highcountry, with two day’s worth of paddling, hiking and biking on offer.
Needs rain to be runnable.
Otago, 3 Day, 4 Day, 5 Day, Loop trip.
Aspiring NP, Otago
3-5 day options
Otago, 1 Day, 2 Day, 4 Day, 5 Day, Out and back, Roadside, Through trip.
A classic Otago run, with options for road, foot and heli access, and trips from 1 to 5 days in length.
Otago, 2 Day, Through trip.
2 day through trip with a crux gorge in the middle.
Long car shuttle, and tricky to get the right flow.
Otago, 1 Day, 2 Day, Out and back.
Epic scenery, challenging whitewater and huge potential for creative approaches: a long day trip, an overnighter or as part of a larger mission.
Otago, 1 Day, Car to car, Out and back.
A short, sweet run with some technical paddling. Easy portages
Otago, 1 Day, 2 Day, Out and back.
A stunning paddle with magnificent views of the Humboldt and Ailsa Mountain ranges along with beautiful sections of exquisite South Island crystal clear pools in majestic gorges with beech lined forest. There’s plenty of straightforward paddling, plus a few very serious and completely committing gorges. The gorges are either impassable (due to log jams)…
Otago, 1 Day, Roadside.
A great little roadside run in a beautiful beech lined valley. There’s a few pool drop Class III rapids at the beginning, followed by a fun and bouncy trip on pretty continuous class II. The initial rapids can be easily portaged. Thanks to Huw Miles for the information. Photo credits to Huw Miles www.packraftingqueenstown.com: Julian…
Otago, 2 Day, Out and back.
An out and back overnight (or long day) trip to a beautiful valley. This trip benefits from a 4WD and bit of rain, in normal flows you’d probably be scraping or walking rather than floating. Beautiful backdrop to an interesting paddle. Thanks to Dan Clearwater for the information and photos. View Larger Topographic Map Walk…
Otago, 1 Day, Out and back.
A relaxed float down one of NZ’s largest rivers, with impressive rocky cliffs and heritage sites on the return journey. We began our day trip from Alexandra, and returned by hiking up the Roxborough Gorge Trail, though there are other ways to incorporate a packraft into a trip in this area. You could hike or…
Otago, 1 Day, Out and back, Roadside.
The upper section needs a bit of rain to be worth a trip, but it’s a beautiful valley and a very mellow paddle. Depending on your enthusiasm, time and objectives, you could visit the Ahuriri for a day trip, a short shuttle run, or a long float all the way to Omarama. View Larger Topographic…
Otago, 1 Day, Loop trip.
UPSTREAM STRAINER HAZARD As of 20 Dec 2021, there are at least 4 river wide strainers upstream of this section.. Downstream there are more than a few strainer hazards: In high flows, it would be difficult to avoid some of these, so be warned and avoid this unless you’ve been down recently at normal flow….
Otago, 1 Day, Out and back.
A simple, short day trip in a beautiful valley. The Middle flats run is a great trip for beginning packrafters, even after rain. But, there are still hazards to be avoided, and the river still needs to be treated with respect: we’re observing more folks in the valley who don’t seem to have enough basic…
Otago, 1 Day, 2 Day, Be aware of Jetboats, Out and back.
A classic day trip, with straightforward access, amazing views and just enough rapids to keep intermediate packrafters entertained but not terrified. Can be run even at summer flows, but a bit of rain brings out the best in it. Thanks to Dan Clearwater for the images and words. View Larger Topographic Map Planning Jetboats: Be…
Otago, 2 Day, Out and back.
A large beautiful valley with a plethora of huts. Lots of tramping, climbing and hunting opportunities. The packrafting is generally very easy in normal flows, down a wide braided river. Very easy access, you can even get a 4wd up the valley! Good beginners trip. This trip page is intended for inspiration only, and is…
Otago, 1 Day, Roadside.
Most of the Makarora is a wide braided river, which gets quite bony in the upper reaches in normal flows. The main road runs close by for much of its length, so you could start higher (Davis Flat) or even do the short hike to the swingbridge by the Makarora Gorge for a slightly more…
Otago, 2 Day, Out and back.
A mellow out and back trip to a neat hut, with options for side trips or as a starting point for bigger adventures. There’s some good fishing up around the Hut. There’s a little bit of class II further up the Wilkin Valley, but it quickly gets very steep with huge boulder gardens (class IV-V)….
Otago, 1 Day, Out and back, Park and play, Roadside.
The Hawea is a marvellous backyard run near Wānaka that you can enjoy in many different ways. With road access at three main points, a hiking/biking track along its length, a park&play wave plus a slalom course, you’re spoilt for choice! Although the river is ‘only grade II’, the banks are lined with strainers. This…
Otago, 1 Day, 2 Day, Be aware of Jetboats, Out and back.
Out and back trip with a chill middle section and challenging upper/lower sections for the keen ones.
Otago, 2 Day, Be aware of Jetboats, Out and back.
A great overnight trip, to explore a newly formed lake. Some fun, easy paddling in a gorgeous valley. View Larger Topographic Map Jetboats Be aware that Dart River Safaris commercial Jetboats can travel as far as Slip Stream. Read the Jetboat courtesy code, and give them a call before you head out! The Dart Track Currently…