Heaphy River : Notes Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

Heaphy River

River in Kahurangi National Park, New Zealand

41°01′51″S 172°14′26″E / 41.0308°S 172.2406°E / -41.0308; 172.2406 Mouth

• location

Karamea Bight

• coordinates

40°59′12″S 172°06′18″E / 40.986783°S 172.104975°E / -40.986783; 172.104975Length26 kilometres (16 mi)Basin featuresProgressionHeaphy River → Karamea Bight → Tasman SeaTributaries • leftCampsaddle Creek, Gunner River, Murray Creek, Pitt Creek • rightGouland Creek, Landing Creek, Bluffy Creek, Deception Creek, Lewis River, Blackwater Creek,

The Heaphy River is a river of the northwestern South Island of New Zealand. It flows through Kahurangi National Park, rising on the northern slopes of Amohia Peak and initially flowing northwest before turning southwest to reach the Tasman Sea 30 kilometres north of Karamea.^[1] Stages of the Heaphy Track follow the lower course of this river, with the track reaching the coast at the river's mouth. The Heaphy River is located in the Buller District.

The river is named for Charles Heaphy, a soldier who explored the area in the 1840s.^[2]

Tributaries to the Heaphy River that are named "river" are (source to sea) the Lewis River and the Gunner River.^[3]^[4]

A 147 m (482 ft) long suspension bridge was built across the Heaphy River in 2013 as part of the route of the Heaphy Track. At the time, the bridge was the longest of its type in the country. The bridge deck was 6.5 m (21 ft) above the normal level of the river. During a severe flood in early February 2022, the bridge was damaged beyond repair, cutting access along the Heaphy Track.^[5] The track re-opened in October 2023, after the replacement of several bridges and restoration of tracks damaged in the 2022 floods.^[6]

Notes

^ "Place name detail: Heaphy River". New Zealand Gazetteer. New Zealand Geographic Board. Retrieved 12 July 2009.
^ Reed 1952, p. 44.
^ "Untitled". NZ Topo Map. Retrieved 1 April 2020.
^ "Untitled". NZ Topo Map. Retrieved 1 April 2020.
^ Bohny, Skara (9 February 2022). "Heaphy Track remains closed after bridges wiped out by flooded rivers". Stuff. Retrieved 21 January 2024.
^ "Heaphy Track reopens, thousands already booked in". RNZ. 19 October 2023. Retrieved 18 October 2023.

References

Reed, A. W. (1952). The Story of New Zealand Place Names. Wellington: A.H. & A.W. Reed. OCLC 59066325.

Kahurangi National Park

Mountains

Mount Arthur
Mount Burnett
Mount Owen

Mountain ranges

Glasgow Range
Wharepapa / Arthur Range

Mountain passes

Granity Pass

Caves

Coastal features

Lakes and reservoirs

Boulder Lake
Lake Sparrow

Walking tracks

Rivers

Tasman District	Anatoki River Aorere River Baton River Big River Boulder River Brown River Clark River Clarke River Cobb River Dart River Devil River Ellis River Fyfe River Hope River Kaituna River Little Boulder River Little Devil River Little Ōnahau River Little Pokororo River Little Slate River Little Waingaro River Matiri River Ōnahau River Onekaka River Ōtere River Owen River Parapara River Pariwhakaoho River Paturau River Pearse River Pokororo River Puremāhaia River Riuwaka River Rocky River Rolling River Saxon River Sherry River Skeet River Slate River Snow River Spey River Stanley River Tadmor River Tākaka River Te Waikoropupū River Turimawiwi River Waingaro River Wangapeka River
Buller District	Allen River Beautiful River Crow River Gunner River Heaphy River Hemphill River Huia River Johnson River Kahurangi River Kākāpō River Karamea River Kōhaihai River Leslie River Lewis River Little Crow River Little Wanganui River Mōkihinui River Ōpārara River Basin Postal River Roaring Lion River Taipō River Ugly River
both districts	Buller River