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Rakiura Track

Stewart Island / Rakiura Community, Italy

Rakiura Track

The Rakiura Track is a 32-kilometre (20 mi) circular tramping track in Rakiura National Park on Stewart Island in New Zealand. It is one of the New Zealand Great Walks. Hikers often take three days to walk it, but it can be done in one or two days. One end is at Lee Bay, five km (3.1 mi) north of Ob

an (Stewart Island's only settlement), and the other end is at Fern Gully, two km (1.2 mi) west of Oban. It can be walked either way, but is most often walked anticlockwise, starting at Lee Bay. Hikers can arrange transport from Oban over the roads to and from the ends of the track, or can walk along the roads. The track generally follows the coastline for a large part of its length, passing small inlets, large bays and mudflats, and crosses steep hills covered in bush (dense forest) in its middle section. Large sections of the track have been gravelled. Without this, much of the track would degrade into mud, due to the peaty soil, and the rain that falls frequently throughout the year. In general, the track is well-maintained, and of easy to medium difficulty. Walking the track offers the unusual opportunity to see kiwi in the wild. The species on Stewart Island is the southern brown kiwi...

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