Murchison 'Tree walks'

Name	Murchison 'Tree Walks'
Location	Murchison
Co-ordinates	1543460  5371622 (Willows Walk)
Alternative co-ordinates	1545163  5372798 (Kahikatea Walk)
Configuration	Loop
Distance	2.0 km
Status	Off-leash
Grade	Easy
Access	For the Willows Walk, turn south off SH6 onto Fairfax Street, then right onto Hotham Street; walk starts at end of road. For the Kahikatea Walk, start in the domain beside the Riverview Holiday Park.
Description	Murchison isn't a great centre for dog-walking but does offer two local walks, each named after the trees that line them. The Willows walk starts at the end of Hotham Road and meanders through an area of willows, that has been interplanted with natives, and given added poignancy with a simple memorial garden. The Kaihikatea Walk starts in the public domain opposite the cemetery, on the north-east side of town. Don't be put off by the bristling camp signs demanding that you register and that the facilities are only for paying residents: it really is public, and dog-friendly. As well as circling the domain, it dips down into an area of native bush beside the Buller River, with sections of boardwalk, and takes you beside some interesting water-worn boulders. Shady, quiet, it's a good place to chill-out before tackling the windy roads that await, whichever way you're travelling.
Connecting tracks
Further information

Murchison is one of those small, rather nondescript places that everyone pauses at for a coffee or a break in their journey, but where almost no-one ever stops. That's how it seems to me, anyway. But in reality, it's the centre of an interesting area of countryside, providing access to some exciting hill walks. Unfortunately, the vast majority of these are off limits for dogs.

So if you are in Murchison, with a dog, you're likely just to be pausing on your way through. If you are, there is one nice but short loop walk, hidden around the back of the town, where it's worth stretching the legs. Developed by the community, this starts by the remains of the old bridge (swept away by floods in the 1970s) and follows the Matakitaki River south for a few hundred metres to a bench, before returning by another path 20 or 30 metres back from the river. It's a favourite, it seems, with local dog-walkers, so although it's short there's plenty of interest for the dogs, and side-paths give opportunities to extend the walk for a minute or two. There's also a small information box by the remains of the bridge which tells you the history of the area. 

There's also a second, longer and more interesting track that starts opposite the cemetery on the north-east side of town. If you ignore although the signs that seem to zsuggest you have to be a paying camper to use it, you can follow the track around the public domain (yes - it is public) and take the path down into the bush beside the rivver, where there are short boardwalks and a small additional loop, before following trhe river bank back to the entrance to the domain, calling in to explore some large water-wrorn rocks, and perhaps have a paddle in the Buller River, on the way. 

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