A large beautiful valley with a plethora of huts and lots of tramping, climbing and hunting opportunities.

The river is a classic ‘east of the divide’ large braided river. In normal flows, the difficulties are wave trains and places where the river might hit a bluff on one side. Wave trains can feel intimidating for beginners, but provided you stay in the deep water and keep paddling, things generally work out ok. When the river smashes into bluffs, the key is follow the flow, set a bow angle away from the bluff and paddle strongly at the right time.. If unsure, its easy to walk around!

Choosing the right braid is also sometimes a challenge – even in normal flows, some choices lead to shallow water where you might have to get up and walk for a while to find deeper water. Some folks who paddle big braided rivers bring a 2m bit of light cord to tow your boat through the shallows, also known as ‘walking the dog.’ When you get back in the boat, stash your rope away so it isn’t a tangle hazard if you were to flip out. For the same reason, never attach yourself to your boat on a river.

These valleys can be quite wide, so always follow the leader, even if they head into shallows. If you choose different braids, they can quickly lead you more than a kilometre apart. The river banks are often higher than a packrafter, so you’ll loose sight of your companions quickly. One in all in – stick together in braids!!

Thank you to Sam Newton and Dan Clearwater for the information. Photos credit Dan Clearwater

Access up valley to Dodger Hut

2WD vehicles can get as far as Ram Hill, but 4WD can usually get a further 9km up to Monument Hut. Beyond Monument, its serious 4WD terrain, but people do head up there.

It’s a decent day’s walk into Dodger Hut. The walking is pretty straightforward, though crossing the river on foot to access some huts might be problematic in spring snow-melt flows. Good thing you’ve got a packraft ey?

Some of the side valleys are bridged, which helps when the flows are up a little bit.

Take a look at the DOC webpage on the Hopkins Valley to learn more about access rules, huts and track descriptions.

 The Hopkins River (I-II) from Dodger Hut to Ram Hill 2WD carpark

Sam Newton reports:

“In early November, we paddled out to Ram Hill carpark in 3.5 hours from Dodger Hut.

For the first couple of kms, there were a few bony patches and it was pretty shallow. As we passed where the Elcho Stream comes in, there was a bit more flow. At drier times of the year, you would be best to start at the confluence of the Elcho and Hopkins.

Picking channels was crucial though and was the difference between walking/dragging or good progress downriver.

Mainly class I, with a few class II rapids.

The river buts up against a bluff on the true left 2kms south of Red Hut. That was the only tricky spot – we both got tipped out. Not a problem for any half-competent paddler.”

Gauge

Visual.

Like most major braided rivers on the east coast, they get can get very low by the end of summer. The best time of year would be spring through early summer, or after a bit of rain.

If you do head up when river levels are moderate to low, keep an eye on the river as you travel. Be prepared to cut your trip short if there isn’t enough water. Luckily, there’s several huts and loads of camping space if you don’t make it all the way to Dodger

Also remember these big rivers have huge catchments, so when it rains, they can rise significantly. In flood conditions, wave trains become large and unstable. Swimming in a flooded river is very hazardous – it might mean you have to walk out rather than have a risky paddle.