Great Walk huts booked out by bikers and hikers on Paparoa track

Paparoa: The West Coast great walk is open to both hikers and bikers, all year round. Photo / West Coast, Supplied

New Zealand's newest great walk the Paparoa Track has seen a surge in popularity, with huts booked out over summer. However local tour operators saying it is bikers, not hikers that are taking the spaces.

The Moonlight Tops hut is full during the peak season from October to April, leaving hikers with the option of a 7-10 hour walk between the Ces Clark and Pororari huts, or taking on the trail by bike.

As one of the few Great Walks open to cyclists, there has been a huge demand for bikes.

Cycle Journeys West Coast told The Greymouth Star that they were expecting 2000 cyclists over summer.

"Two Thirds are coming from the North Island - specifically to stay multiple days, open their wallets and ride the West Coast Trails," manager Dave Ritchie told the Star on Tuesday.

However with the central Moonlight Hut full, the 55km gap was a challenge.

Local guides said they were unhappy with the current online booking process, with walkers competing for bunks with commercial groups.

Some guides say they are limited to running one group of paying guests a week.

Moonlight Tops Hut on the Paparoa Track. Photo / Paparoa Great Walk

Proposed solutions include adding bunks to the scenic Moonlight Tops hut, or restricting cycle use to shoulder seasons.

The Heaphy Track which is the only other Great Walk to allow cyclists is seasonal, with mountain bikes allowed on the track between 1 May and 30 November.

However, cyclists say that opening the track to bikes allows more people to experience it.

Twenty percent of cyclists did not use huts at all, reported the Star, with many biking straight through from Blackball to Punakaiki.

Shane Hall, DoC's operations manager, said the department was "really pleased with the popularity of the stunning Paparoa Track," and that the "high use and strong booking numbers is really positive for both conservation and the West Coast."

The Paparoa Track and Old Ghost Road have added to the areas appeal with mountain bikers.

During last year's truncated summer season DOC saw 2,250 people on the track between 1 December and 28 February.

As DoC's newest great walk, very little historic data is available for planning the season.
After flood damage and covid, this will be the track's first full season as a Great Walk.

However, Hall says Moonlight Tops Hut has "mostly been used by walkers (80 per cent of bookings) not mountain bikers."

The track opening was delayed by months, after a partial opening on 1 December 2019 and again by covid travel restrictions.

Unlike other tracks which are experimenting with seasonal pricing all bunks are a flat rate of $45 bunk, for domestic and international visitors, all year round.