Thurs, 19th Mar, 2026 (part1) Pleasant Flat Campground, Mount Aspiring National Park to Powerline gravel pit by Waikukupa River, NZ (South West Coast rivers & beaches)

12 degrees. No view of Mt Hooker this morning as we continued on our travels.

Following the Haast River towards the west coast. Wider rocky (braided they call it) river area now. Clouds low on the mountains.

Lots of dead possums on the road.

Pulled off to check out Roaring Billy Falls. Very chilly this morning. Through a turnstile gate - only info is about the Mistletoe. Lovely walk and fantastic waterfall and it was definitely roaring.

The main part of Haast River is on the other side.

Continued on a further 5km in the camper to Depot Creek Falls. Short bush walk to a lovely 3 tier waterfalls. We are getting the best of the waterfalls with the recent rain.

The clouds are lifting off the mountains.

Continued on and saw a fence on the riverside then through the clearing some black cattle walking along the river bed. Further on we found a sign - cattle grazing. The farms butt up to the national park.

Lots of pull off areas along here that we could have stayed in overnight as there are no signs saying that we can’t.

Across more little creeks with one-lane bridges and passing more cyclists. Good to see so many energetic people.

Stopped at a look and enjoyed the fabulous view. Found a plaque - another glacier scoured valley. Note that in the flood times the river runs from bank to bank - half a mile wide.

Down to the flats now and more farms appear. Heavy fog still as we near Haast township. Saw a bit of a rainbow as the misty rain starts.

Into Haast township - has a few van parks etc. We continued on then turned off onto Jackson Bay Road for a cuppa on at Haast Beach - lots of tree debris. The West coast and the Tasman Sea.

Plenty of small pebbles and shells.

Small island off shore.

A spider’s web?

Back out - view back up the gorge to the mountains, clouds lifting.

Onto the main road and across the Haast River - very wide river bed as it nears the sea though the water is in channels. The main river flow is on the north side. A Haast River Safari Boat is getting ready to take tourists for a spin.

Onto the ‘Glacier Highway’ - 314km to Greymouth to the north. Heading along the coast edge with windswept trees in green pastures and big trees and hills on the other side.

Passed the Curly Tree White Bait Co - haven’t tried white bait yet. Across the one-lane bridge over the Waitatoto River.

Spotted a dune lake through the trees between the sand dunes. Further on we turned off to check out Ship Creek Walk. First info board.

Continued to the shelter and lookout tower. This area is the north edge of the Haast Glacier Tongue. Interesting reading.

I climbed up the tower - only room for a couple at a time. Quick photos as the sandflies are out in force. Ship Creek then the Tasman Sea and the boardwalks.

Met Steve on the boardwalk - sandflies are about but not as bad as up in the tower. More info boards.

Onto the beach and wandered to the creek mouth. Interesting rock formations and pebbles. We keep looking for a nice piece of Jade. Lots of different colours and a few clear ones too.

Decided to skip the two walks. Continued on after crossing Ship Creek. Low cloud still hanging on the tops of the tall trees on the mountain side. Passing more cyclists as the road winds alongside the mountain up higher from the beach now. Coastal range road - up and down to cross a creek and trees blocking the view most of the way.

New Zealand has a lot of land slips apparently.

Pulled off into the Knights Point Lookout carpark. At one end is a monument. 2.5miles south of here at Breccia Creek is the meeting point of the roadwork crews when they built this road in June 1965 - one group coming from the south and the other from the north.

At the other end is the lookout - fantastic views.

Those cyclists we passed have just arrived at the lookout as we headed out. Continued along the coastal road then we turned inland to go around a valley where the Whakapohai River flows. Then across the one-lane bridge over the river.

Continued inland but heading north now. Across Moeraki River. Bit of reflection through the windscreen of upstream. Better out my window.

Passed a Wilderness Lodge then turned off onto Munroe Beach Track which goes alongside Lake Moeraki - one of the ‘Mirror Lakes’. A little bird visited and I tested the water - cool and clear.

Across Boulder Creek - aptly named.

Up and down hills. Passed the parking area for the Haast-Paringa Cattle Walk Track - long one! Descended to the valley floor and along to Lake Paringa Recreational Area for lunch. All the bays are marked as camping spots - no actual day use parking. We chose one near the grass area and made lunch.

Found some info about the big U-shaped lake around Fish Hill. The top of the photos is the Tasman Sea. White-baiting has been very popular and profitable over the years. Interesting info about all the glaciers along here.

Walked down to the water for a photo. A boat was coming in and a guy was shouting - ‘get that dog out of here’. A couple had taken their dog down for a paddle - apparently it is a ‘no dog’ area like a national park. They packed up and headed out.

We headed out too. Continued northwards through a few homes and pastures in the wide valley. More cyclists heading south this time.

Pulled off just before the Paringa River bridge to check out the plaque for Thomas Brunner, explorer of this area in 1846-48.

Blackberry bushes in the gutter by the road.

Another one-lane bridge over the Paringa River - they saved lots of money only putting one-lane bridges everywhere.

Along way from the sea from here. Salmon Farm and Cafe is being renovated - had a free camp spot there. Continued on through the forest again for a while then back to farm land as we turn back towards the coast. Another one-lane bridge over Mahitahi River that people had to wait for us to traverse - haven’t met anyone at the bridges before. Crystal clear glacier water flowing to the Tasman Sea south side of Bruce Bay.

Down to Bruce Bay Beach - lots of tree debris and grey sand.

The beach road has been protected by big rocks from the roaring waves. Steve was tempted to stop for an ice cream but we continued along.

Stopped at the north end. Zoomed in on the coastline. Lovely tall trees are coping with the wind and salty air.

Continued on heading back inland through the forests then grazing land around Jacobs River - another wide river.

Back to the forest for a while then some pastures and another one-lane bridge over a clear, shallow Manakaiaua River.

Back into the forest. Into the next big valley of farming land as we near Karangarua River. Across the long one-lane suspension bridge. Upstream then downstream.