3 Tyler Road, Hector, Buller

Charming Creek Walkway Westport

Buller Walks

Charming Creek Walkway - 2.45 hours one way; 10.5km This is one of our top five, day walks in the South Island. It combines stunning scenery with a fascinating insight into early timber and coalmining history. The track incorporates remnants of man-made structures in one of the most rugged gorges you can tramp along. And yet it’s a really easy walk, with a swing bridge and some short tunnels thrown in for excitement and a sense of mystery. Well worth the pleasant drive from Westport. It isn’t a loop track.
Start at either end: at Ngakawau, 31 km north of Westport on SH67 (signposted just before the Ngakawau bridge), or at Charming Creek Road (take SH67 to the Seddonville turn-off, just before the Mokihinui bridge; the start of the track is 10 km from Seddonville).

If you can arrange transport, we recommend starting at the Seddonville end of the track and finishing at Ngakawau - the track descends gradually and the scenery just gets more and more dramatic. Because of transport difficulties, most people start and finish at the Ngakawau end, so we’ll describe the walk from there.

If you have limited time, a walk as far as Watsons’ Mill (2.5 hours return) from the southern (Ngakawau) end takes in the best scenery and introduces the history of the area. Ngakawau is a coaltown. It’s the terminus of the Westport railway line and of the aerial cableway bringing coal down from the Stockton mine. There’s a good view of this modern operation from the car park. Remnants of the pioneering operation are evident from the beginning of the track. You walk along an old railway line beside the Ngakawau River - mostly over railway sleepers, sometimes on shingle and occasionally over patches of coal dust. Keep a look-out for the protected, native snail; it has a large, reddish-brown shell with intricate spiral markings (taking even the empty shell is illegal).

Before long, beautiful birdsong is drowned by the sound of rushing water which becomes a roar as the gorge narrows. Soft, dappled light filtering through the forest canopy contrasts with the harshness of rusted rails broken by rock falls above precipitous drops to the thundering gorge. You can only marvel at the courage and ingenuity of the engineers and workmen who built the railway, used to extract timber and coal between 1914 and 1958. Along the track, information panels tell you about historical sites.

The first clearing, The Bins, is where coal was stored and sorted. Further on, there’s a railway siding and coal trucks. As the gorge closes in and becomes steeper, you marvel at the spectacular scenery. The first tunnel and the swing bridge, some 30 metres above the gorge, remind you of the resilience of the men who tamed this landscape. Across the bridge you get a splendid view of the Mangatini Falls, before you enter another tunnel. A 10 minute walk and you reach Watsons’ Mill shelter - a good spot for a picnic - and the confluence of Charming Creek and the Ngakawau River.

Sawmillers, George and Bob Watson, built the railway for access to the Charming Creek Valley, the site of one of the few remaining forests in the Buller region. It was extended later, when they took up a coal lease. From here the landscape changes to an open valley with fern, scrub and regenerating bush. You pass the remains of Mumm’s Mill built in 1935 and piles of coal, before reaching the site of the old Charming Creek Mine, closed in 1986.

Robin Mills comments: The Ngakawau River gorge is spectacular but unfortunately so is the pollution of the Ngakawau River. I walked the track for the first time on Jan 16 2007 and was horrified to see the water thick with coal fines and lumps of white foam which had come from the Stockton Mine. Other rivers in the area were clear so rain could not be blamed. The appearance of the river spoilt the walk. Looking at various websites I see that Solid Energy claimed to have cleaned up their act. This does not appear to be the case.

Kitty Brown says: This walkway is fantastic, I didn't notice any pollution! All I could see was amazing scenery, an enormous waterfall and very interesting natural sulphur outlets. The river is brown like many on the West Coast because of the sheer amount of nutrients and tannins which leach from the surrounding rain forest! Also must mention a wonderful place to stop for lunch or coffee at the start or finish of you walk. The Charming Creek Tavern which has a lovely cafe with an even lovelier proprietor who bakes and cooks up delicious homemade kiwiana cuisine on a daily basis!

Reflections on Charming Creek: Mills and Mines, Tramways and Walkways of a Pioneering West Coast Enclave

Features

  • Waterfall
  • River
  • Tunnel
  • Bridge
  • Rock
  • Bench
  • Box

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