Gunn's Camp.

What to do in Gunn's Camp Southland New Zealand

Life at Gunn's Camp revolves around the weather, the river, and the generator switch. Days are spent on muddy tracks beneath the Darran Mountains, inspecting the old museum's axe heads, or drying wet woollen socks by a wood stove. It suits self-sufficient trampers, fly anglers, and travellers who prefer kerosene lamps and woodsmoke to hotel lobbies.

24 hours in Gunn's Camp Southland New Zealand

Start with an early walk to Christie Falls before driving ten minutes to the Routeburn trackhead at the Divide. Pack cheese and tinned fish for lunch at Key Summit. Return to the Hollyford by dusk, fry sausages on a camp burner, and hunt for glowworms along the riverbank. Select 1 Day above to see it.

2 days in Gunn's Camp Southland New Zealand

Drive forty minutes to Milford Sound for the morning boat past Mitre Peak, dodging the spray at Stirling Falls. Stop on the return leg for a meat pie in Te Anau, then spend the afternoon fly-fishing for brown trout where the Hollyford River cuts across the gravel flats. Choose 2 Days to expand the plan.

3 days in Gunn's Camp Southland New Zealand

Tackle a full day on the lower Hollyford Track toward Lake Alabaster, passing ancient podocarp trees without another soul in sight. Finish your trip with a quiet evening brewing tea over an open fire while kea call across the beech canopy.

Gunn's Camp Southland New Zealand itineraries by interest

• Pioneer History in Gunn's Camp Southland New Zealand

  Explore Davey Gunn's bush museum, preserving 1930s road-building gear, pack saddles, hand saws, and relics from the early Hollyford settlers.

• Rainforest Hiking in Gunn's Camp Southland New Zealand

  Follow the track to Marian Cascades or walk the lower Hollyford trail beneath towering silver beech, dripping moss, and massive native ferns.

• River Fishing in Gunn's Camp Southland New Zealand

  Cast for wild brown trout and rainbow trout in the Hollyford River, where clear glacial gravel bars require heavy nymphs and quiet wading.

• Camp Cooking in Gunn's Camp Southland New Zealand

  Cook over cast-iron stoves and camp gas, boiling billy tea and frying up provisions hauled in from Te Anau before power shuts off at dusk.

• Wildlife Watching in Gunn's Camp Southland New Zealand

  Spot curious South Island robins hopping by boots, listen to screeching kea overhead, and look for long-finned eels in clear side creeks.

• Scenic Drives in Gunn's Camp Southland New Zealand

  Navigate the gravel Hollyford Road and the sheer rock walls of the Milford Highway, passing through the carved granite Homer Tunnel.

• Waterfalls in Gunn's Camp Southland New Zealand

  Walk twenty minutes along the nature trail to Christie Falls, where icy glacial runoff tumbles over black rock into the Hollyford River.

• Glowworm Caves in Gunn's Camp Southland New Zealand

  Switch off torches along dark, damp mossy overhangs near the camp loop track after sunset to watch thousands of native glowworms light up.

• Backcountry Huts in Gunn's Camp Southland New Zealand

  Sleep in historic corrugated-iron public works huts warmed by potbelly woodburners, surrounded by towering Fiordland mountain peaks.

• Fjord Excursions in Gunn's Camp Southland New Zealand

  Drive forty minutes north past the Divide to cruise Milford Sound under Mitre Peak, dodging sandflies and catching salt spray off Stirling Falls.

• Alpine Passes in Gunn's Camp Southland New Zealand

  Trek up from the Divide shelter to Key Summit for panoramic views of the Darran Mountains and alpine tarns along the Routeburn Track.

• Kayaking in Gunn's Camp Southland New Zealand

  Paddle the gentle upper stretches of Lake Gunn or navigate backcountry eddies along the Hollyford River with appropriate white-water gear.