Skip to main content

Story: Walking tracks

Boots on Heaphy Track

Image
Boots on Heaphy Track

The Heaphy Track was used by 19th-century gold miners walking from Golden Bay to the West Coast. By the early 20th century it was overgrown. From the 1970s there was a boom in recreational walking, and many of these older cross-country routes became popular – as this collection of abandoned boots suggests. Eventually the Heaphy became recognised as one of the country’s ‘Great Walks’.

Using this item

Te Ara - The Encyclopedia of New Zealand

by Jock Phillips

This item has been provided for private study purposes (such as school projects, family and local history research) and any published reproduction (print or electronic) may infringe copyright law. It is the responsibility of the user of any material to obtain clearance from the copyright holder.

All images & media in this story

How to cite this page

Jock Phillips, Walking tracks – Tracks since the Second World War, Te Ara – the Encyclopedia of New Zealand, https://teara.govt.nz/en/photograph/12827/boots-on-heaphy-track (accessed 4 June 2026).

Story by Jock Phillips, published 2 March 2009, updated 1 April 2016.