BLOG COMING SOON
07 NOVEMEBER 2023
Standing at the entrance to the cave
Highway To Paradise
New Zealand has some of the most scenic drives in the world and some of the drives are world renown, like Arthurs Pass and the road out to Mt Cook, which also happen to be our favourite drives. Most of the roads along the coast are pretty spectacular and we love the stretch of highway between Greymouth and Punakaiki because you get a close view of the ocean one minute, then you're high above the next and before you know if you're surrounded by high cliffs and millions of nikau palms, wondering how on earth you made it to Hawaii! It's a seriously stunning place to visit, but often gets missed by a lot of travellers as they head through Arthurs Pass to get to Christchurch or Hokitika, so it gets missed out on the itinerary a lot. We always try to drive through it if we're heading from the West Coast to Marlborough as it only adds on another half an hour.
The Cave Creek Memorial Track is located in the Paparoa National Park which is an incredibly beautiful park full of towering limestone cliffs, rainforests and brown bodies of water which give the most amazing mirror like reflections.
We drove from Greymouth to the Paparoa National Park and it took us just under an hour. I kept getting confused with the name of the track we were doing, as in the same week, we had also done the Coal Creek Track and Woods Creek Track, plus we had been gold panning at Nelson Creek after a hike in the area and now we were doing the Cave Creek Track! So can you see why I was getting the tracks mixed up?
The Cave Creek Memorial Track is located in the Paparoa National Park which is an incredibly beautiful park full of towering limestone cliffs, rainforests and brown bodies of water which give the most amazing mirror like reflections.
We drove from Greymouth to the Paparoa National Park and it took us just under an hour. I kept getting confused with the name of the track we were doing, as in the same week, we had also done the Coal Creek Track and Woods Creek Track, plus we had been gold panning at Nelson Creek after a hike in the area and now we were doing the Cave Creek Track! So can you see why I was getting the tracks mixed up?
The stretch of road between Greymouth and Punakaiki is absolutely stunning!
We made a few stops along the way, as the scenery was too beautiful just to pass by!
Most of the bodies of water on the West Coast are super reflective
A Wee Bit Chilly
As you can tell by the photos, it was one hell of a cold winter's day! Bullock Creek Road is very narrow and winds through the forest until it starts opening out at the carpark and this is where we got the first glimpse of the white frost, delicately placed along the side of the road. Bella FREAKED OUT because she thought it was snow and even when we told her it wasn't, she was still suuuper excited.
When we pulled up at the carpark, we all ran straight out to the frost as it was so cool (literally) and there was so much of it! We found some leaves that had fluffy, thick frost on them and a whole bunch of sand under the bridge that was frozen solid. I loved looking back on the track to see the sun warming up some of the track, showing a cloud of steam rising in the rays of the sun.
This part of the track absolutely was the highlight for us and the sun hadn't even reached here by the time we returned a couple of hours later, so we got a chance to play in the frost again and crunch, crunch, crunch it all the way back to our car.
When we pulled up at the carpark, we all ran straight out to the frost as it was so cool (literally) and there was so much of it! We found some leaves that had fluffy, thick frost on them and a whole bunch of sand under the bridge that was frozen solid. I loved looking back on the track to see the sun warming up some of the track, showing a cloud of steam rising in the rays of the sun.
This part of the track absolutely was the highlight for us and the sun hadn't even reached here by the time we returned a couple of hours later, so we got a chance to play in the frost again and crunch, crunch, crunch it all the way back to our car.
Tragedy At Cave Creek
There is a sad story surrounding this beautiful track. On April 28 1995, a group of outdoor rec students from the Tai Poutini Polytechnic were visiting the area for a geology lesson and the viewing platform that they were on collapsed and 13 students and 1 DOC worker horrifically lost their lives that day, with only 4 students surviving the 30 metre fall. The design was not followed, nor were bolts used to hold the platform in place, which had been finished less than a week before the students visited.
The fault at the end of the day was with DOC (the Department of Conservation), although no charges were ever laid due to paperwork going missing (how convenient for the ones at fault) and also partly because the Building Act and the Health and Safety in Employment Act exempted government departments from prosecution... I'm not even going to get started on this one!!
If you had to find anything good to come out of the tragedy, it would be that there was a huge overhaul of safety and management with DOC going forward and this may have saved countless other lives on viewing platforms, huts and bridges.
There is a stone memorial on the Cave Creek Memorial Track which was renamed in 2020 as part of the 25th anniversary to the tragedy.
The fault at the end of the day was with DOC (the Department of Conservation), although no charges were ever laid due to paperwork going missing (how convenient for the ones at fault) and also partly because the Building Act and the Health and Safety in Employment Act exempted government departments from prosecution... I'm not even going to get started on this one!!
If you had to find anything good to come out of the tragedy, it would be that there was a huge overhaul of safety and management with DOC going forward and this may have saved countless other lives on viewing platforms, huts and bridges.
There is a stone memorial on the Cave Creek Memorial Track which was renamed in 2020 as part of the 25th anniversary to the tragedy.
Nature's Oddities
The first part of the track is out in the open and flat. It follows empty riverbeds and you are surrounded by trees and limestone cliffs towering high above. The next part of the track took us through the rainforest where we could see all sorts of cracks and hollowed out areas either side of the track, making me wonder how many chasms and caves are unexplored in the area below. There are signs telling you to stay on the track, for this particular reason.
We found lots of weird and wonderful things along the way, including some oddly formed ice in the ground which Bella was really interested in, a cheeky weka and lots of fungi.
We came to the memorial stone which lists the names of the 13 people who tragically died in 1995 and from there we took a left to head down to the Cave Creek resurgence. A resurgence is a place where underground water comes back to the surface. It usually happens in areas with rocks like limestone that have holes in them. The opposite of a resurgence is called a sinkhole or swallow hole where it disappears into underground cavities.
Just before we went down the stairs to the chasm, we could see where the viewing platform in 1995 used to be and it was pretty sad to walk by it, seeing how high up the platform was, above the chasm.
We found lots of weird and wonderful things along the way, including some oddly formed ice in the ground which Bella was really interested in, a cheeky weka and lots of fungi.
We came to the memorial stone which lists the names of the 13 people who tragically died in 1995 and from there we took a left to head down to the Cave Creek resurgence. A resurgence is a place where underground water comes back to the surface. It usually happens in areas with rocks like limestone that have holes in them. The opposite of a resurgence is called a sinkhole or swallow hole where it disappears into underground cavities.
Just before we went down the stairs to the chasm, we could see where the viewing platform in 1995 used to be and it was pretty sad to walk by it, seeing how high up the platform was, above the chasm.
We saw a couple of curious weka on the track
The stairs heading down to the Cave Creek resurgence
Ghost Of The Past?
As we headed down the stairs into the chasm, we were wowed at how beautiful it was down there. There were huge limestone boulder stacked up on top of each other, covered in moss as well as clear streams with beautiful granite stones. The water was honestly so clear that it didn't even look like it was there!
The girls didn't really want to stay in the chasm as they found it a bit creepy. It was a big open space so we couldn't understand what the issue was.
To the right was a large cave entrance which was as black as a moonless night. I asked Lath to go and stand near the cave entrance so I could get a photo of him over there, so he went over but didn't stay long. When he came back, I asked him why he wouldn't let me take more pics and he said he didn't like the feeling there. I wasn't sure what he was on about so I said ok well I'll go over then and you be the photographer today. As soon as I got within a few metres to the cave, the air got extremely thick and my chest got heavy... it wasn't a nice feeling and I could see exactly what Lath meant... I felt weird and I had to get away! As soon as I stepped away the feeling instantly went away. I'm pretty sure there are some bad jujus down in the chasm and someone is angry! Don't let this put you off visiting... plenty of others have visited and had no issues and we only had the feeling near the cave!
As we didn't get the feeling anywhere else except for near the cave, we were fine to explore the rest of the chasm. I was in awe of the moss-covered boulders as it looked so enchanting and otherworldly. I was fascinated by the boulders, especially near the base where the water has delicately handcrafted them into swirls and other shapes over thousands of years. The boulders looked similar to the Wairere Boulders in Northland, but more enchanting and smoother.
The girls didn't really want to stay in the chasm as they found it a bit creepy. It was a big open space so we couldn't understand what the issue was.
To the right was a large cave entrance which was as black as a moonless night. I asked Lath to go and stand near the cave entrance so I could get a photo of him over there, so he went over but didn't stay long. When he came back, I asked him why he wouldn't let me take more pics and he said he didn't like the feeling there. I wasn't sure what he was on about so I said ok well I'll go over then and you be the photographer today. As soon as I got within a few metres to the cave, the air got extremely thick and my chest got heavy... it wasn't a nice feeling and I could see exactly what Lath meant... I felt weird and I had to get away! As soon as I stepped away the feeling instantly went away. I'm pretty sure there are some bad jujus down in the chasm and someone is angry! Don't let this put you off visiting... plenty of others have visited and had no issues and we only had the feeling near the cave!
As we didn't get the feeling anywhere else except for near the cave, we were fine to explore the rest of the chasm. I was in awe of the moss-covered boulders as it looked so enchanting and otherworldly. I was fascinated by the boulders, especially near the base where the water has delicately handcrafted them into swirls and other shapes over thousands of years. The boulders looked similar to the Wairere Boulders in Northland, but more enchanting and smoother.
The water was so clear, it didn't even look like there was any!
Know Before You Go
- There is no cellphone reception at the carpark or on the track
- The Bullock Creek Road is prone to flooding, so it's recommended you check the Paparoa National Park weather forecast before heading in (you don't want to get stuck out there with no reception!) and you can always check with the Visitors Centre
- Campervans and oversized vehicles are not recommended on Bullock creek road due to it being so narrow in some places
- There are no toilets or water stations here
- DOC states that the track is 4km and takes 1 hour 10 return, but I don't think this is from the actual carpark as we definitely walked for a lot longer!
- No dogs are allowed in the Paparoa National Parl
How To Get To The Cave Creek Track In Punakaiki
The track is in the Paparoa National Park, 4 minutes (2.1kms) north of the Punakaiki Pancake Rocks. Head onto Bullock Creek Road and drive 6kms to the carpark. The road is gravel and very narrow in some places, so take care around the corners.
From the carpark, follow the track markers to the T-intersection. Turn right at the track sign and continue for 300 m until you reach the stone memorial. Turn left here and you're on the track.
From the carpark, follow the track markers to the T-intersection. Turn right at the track sign and continue for 300 m until you reach the stone memorial. Turn left here and you're on the track.
Conclusion
We had a great time on the Cave Creek Memorial Track in the Paparoa National Park. We love how untouched the area was and it didn't always feel like we were in New Zealand, as it was such a unique landscape. There is all sorts of weird and wonderful things to find, even in the middle of winter. The chasm is an incredibly beautiful and charming area to photograph and explore and the track itself isn't too difficult.
Gallery of the Cave Creek Track
Check out the rest of the awesomeness that didn't make it to the main blog but deserves to be shown.
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