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DOC update
Visitors flock back to Mautohe Cathedral Cove
Hundreds of people a day are visiting Mautohe Cathedral Cove’s famous beach following the reinstatement of walking access to the Coromandel beach.
DOC has a new process to manage weather and landslide-related risk at the Cove. Watch for any track warnings or closures on DOC’s website. ckw.nz/mautohe
New management for Puponga Farm Park
Two parties have been chosen to manage Pūponga Farm Park, adjacent to Golden Bay’s Onetahua/Farewell Spit.
HealthPost Nature Trust will carry out restoration work in the Triangle Flat area of the farm park. They will build a predator fence across the base of the spit to provide a line of defence against reinvading predators. They will work closely with Pest Free Onetahua, a large-scale conservation project removing pests on Onetahua/Farewell Spit and the surrounding areas. The farm and crossing road area will remain open to the public. ckw.nz/puponga
Image:Cape Farewell, Pūponga Farm Park | ©2025 M Richardson
$35-rate IVL tourist dollars supports the conservation estate
$30 million from the the previous $35-rate International Visitor Conservation and Tourism Levy will be used to fund more than a dozen projects to boost biodiversity and the tourist economy.
$11 million for tourist access and safety, including upgrades to huts, suspension bridges, car parks, facilities. $19 million for reducing the spread of predators and invasive plant species to protect biodiversity. The funding covers work across the next three years. ckw.nz/govt-funding-IVL
Image: Aoraki/Mt Cook from Sealy Tarns. Michael Hamilton | Creative Commons
Favourite West Coast huts
On the West Coast you’ll find a huge range of tramping opportunities. A few West Coast staff share their favourite huts and adventures. ckw.nz/wc-huts
Image: Remotest hut: Gorge River Hut. © DOC
The Great Walks
DOC has announced that bookings for the 2025/26 season for New Zealand’s Great Walks and other huts and campsites will open in May. ckw.nz/great-walks-25
Mythbusting: There’s been a bit of misinformation going around about booking our Great Walks. We’ve written this blog to tackle the most common misconceptions. ckw.nz/gw-myths
Image: Whariwharangi Campsite.: Sharon Hart | CC BY 2.0
There and back again — an albatross’ tale
If you’re after epic adventures, you can’t look past the story of Carlos Zavalaga, who followed Northern Buller’s albatross all the way from Peru to the tiny island of Motuhara in the Chathams and back again! ckw.nz/albatross
Image: Northern Buller’s albatross in Peru.© Javier Quiñones
The ten-buck-duck: Whio
Take a duck-dive into the shallows for a quick wade around the ducks of Aotearoa. Includes advice on being decent to ducks.
Image: Whio live year-round on fast flowing rivers and streams | ©DOC
11 Autumn 2025
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