Backcountry Escape | Whitcombe Valley | Hiking Rapid Creek to Frew Hut

A Wild Weekend in the Whitcombe Valley

The West Coast has a way of making you feel small — in the best possible way. Towering peaks, glacial rivers, and thick native bush all combine into a kind of raw, untamed beauty that keeps calling me back. This time, the call came in the form of a big weekend adventure into the Whitcombe Valley, a place that’s as wild as it sounds.

Day 1 – Into Rapid Creek Hut

Friday started with a drive to Hokitika, where I met up with a friend for our weekend mission. From there, it was into the Whitcombe Valley — a place where the track is more suggestion than certainty, and the river crossings keep you on your toes.

At the road end, the track follows farm 4WD as it leads through lush farmland before dropping you into the rocky Hokitika River. Heading upriver, there are no cairns or markers to follow until the river narrows and a large orange triangle marker is reached, directing you into the West Coast bush. From here, the trail follows the old benched track as it sidles within earshot of the river.

The highlight of the day came early: my first ever cableway crossing. Dangling high above the river, Renee was cranking me, and then it was my turn to crank her in the metal basket. I felt like a mix between a tram operator and an oversized sack of potatoes — but in the most exhilarating way.

Beyond the cableway, it is a short 10 minutes, on a wide, benched track, to reach Rapid Creek Hut, which sits in a clearing not far from the Hokitika River.

We reached Rapid Creek Hut by late afternoon, only to discover it wouldn’t be the peaceful night we’d hoped for. An older man was already in residence, and let’s just say… he had his own ideas about hut etiquette. The lowlight of the trip came in the middle of the night when he decided the hut’s bowl made a convenient urinal. Enough said. Sleep was patchy at best.

Rapid Creek Hut

• 4 bunks

• 2 cooking benches

• Long drop

• Wood burner

• Woodshed

• Water from a stream right behind the hut or 20 metres away from the Hokitika River

Day 2 – Escaping to Frew Hut

By Saturday morning, we were more than ready to leave Rapid Creek behind. We made quick time up the valley, enjoying the rugged scenery as the track wound between river flats, forest, and slips.

We followed the trail from Rapid Creek Hut and dropped back into the Hokitika River. We traversed the rocks until we reached Rapid Creek. We had scouted a suitable crossing the night before, so we were able to make quick progress across and continue until we reached the confluence with the Whitcombe River.

The trail headed away from the river and climbed into the lush, mossy bush. The benched track made for good progress underfoot until we returned to the river. We had our first taste of house-sized boulders that we needed to climb over and around. This was the beginning of Collier Gorge. The boulders led us back into the bush, and we continued until we were above the Collier Gorge swing bridge. There was a large moss and ice-covered boulder for us to get over before we could get onto the swing bridge. Fortunately, there was a metal chain (a handrail) that enabled a safe traverse.

Collier Gorge swing bridge rises high above the rapid, churning Whitcombe River below. We traversed safely over and reached the far side, to be greeted by a galvanised ladder bolted into the mossy rock face. A tentative step off the swing bridge and onto the ladder, then climbing down to the safety of the boulders below. These, again, were the size of houses, and were covered in wet slippery moss that slowed our progress. As we exited the largest of the boulders, we were closer to the river, and the boulders reduced in size, as it was a winter hike, these were covered in ice. This section took us the longest to navigate; a summer trip would not be so treacherous.

We eventually reached the sun and paused to enjoy the sights and warmth. We rounded the corner into Tom Creek, crossed the shallow stream, and reached the junction sign - left to Frew Saddle and right to Frew Hut, only 10 minutes away. We noted an old section of track and followed the re-routed section climbing above a washout, before dropping back down to the benched track and emerging into the grassy clearing that held Frew Hut. It had taken us 4 hours from Rapid Creek Hut to Frew Hut.

Arriving at Frew Hut by midday felt like a reward in itself. The hut sat bathed in sunlight, the surrounding peaks standing guard. After lunch, we decided to explore further with light packs, heading up to the Cropp Footbridge. The river roared beneath us, glacier-fed and impossibly blue, before we wandered back to the hut for a far more peaceful night.

Frew Hut

• 10 bunks

• Large cooking bench

• Long drop

• Wood burner

• Woodshed

• Water from a tank at the hut or Frew Stream about 20 metres below the hut

Day 3 – Down the Valley and One Last Hut

Sunday was a retrace of our steps — back through the slips, along the flats, and across that cableway again. By the time we reached the road end, my legs felt satisfyingly worked, my boots caked in West Coast mud.

I stayed the night in Hokitika, enjoying a hot shower and proper bed before one final mission on the way home: bagging one more hut to add to my tally.

Trip at a Glance

• Location: Whitcombe Valley, West Coast, NZ

• Route: Road end → Rapid Creek Hut → Frew Hut → Cropp Footbridge → return

• Highlights: First ever cableway ride, lunch in the sun at Frew Hut, wild West Coast scenery

• Lowlights: Questionable hut etiquette at Rapid Creek

• Hut Bagging Tally: +2 for the weekend

The Whitcombe Valley demands respect — the rivers rise fast, the weather changes without warning, and the tracks are anything but tame. But if you’re willing to embrace the wildness, it’ll give you memories (and stories) you’ll be telling for years.

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