Parking
Use the small O’Malleys Track road-end parking area on the short gravel access off SH73, immediately south of Bealey Bridge.
Overview
About O’Malleys Track to Anti Crow Hut
Why go
- Open valley views toward Mt Rolleston and Crow Glacier
- Modest climbing for a full-day hut walk
Heads up
- Jordan Stream can be unsafe to cross after rain
- A long rough gravel section has only intermittent markers
O’Malleys Track to Anti Crow Hut is a 15.3 km (9.5 mi) out-and-back from SH73 just south of Bealey Bridge. The mapped line measures about 7.65 km each way; the agency lists 7 km from the road end. Allow about six hours walking for the return, plus time at the hut. Climbing is modest at roughly 200 m, but the distance, rough gravel and exposed flats make this a full-day tramp. Come for the remote hut and upper Waimakariri scenery, with enough time to turn back if the crossing is unsafe.
Parkwolf’s verdictIs the hut hike for you?Map & elevation
The route
Loading the Arthur's Pass map
Full mapElevation628–729 m
Plan your hike
Before you go
Parking
Safety
2 active Arthur's Pass alerts
- CautionFlood damage and rockfall risk on Harper Pass RouteFlood damage and an active slip affect the Harper Pass Route below Kiwi Hut and near Locke Stream Hut.Official details
- CautionFlood damage on route to Sudden Valley BivvySignificant flood damage makes the route to Sudden Valley Bivvy passable only when rivers are low.Official details
The highest, rockiest slopes around here are a summer buffet for grizzly bears.
Arthur's Pass Tour Guide
Your drive to O’Malleys Track to Anti Crow Hut, narrated.
Parkwolf is a GPS audio tour guide for Arthur's Pass National Park. As you drive, it chimes in with what’s ahead: hidden gems, upcoming stops, history, geology, and wildlife, right through your car’s speakers.
Recorded for this trailhead
O'Malleys Track to Turkey Flat0:00 / 0:25
“Up ahead is the start of O'Malleys Track, a walk into the wide Waimakariri valley. Allow about ninety minutes for the four-kilometre return to Turkey Flat, through beech forest to open gravel and scrub.”
Plays as you drive up to this trailhead in the Parkwolf Arthur's Pass Tour Guide.
More stories near here in the app
- The Bealey Hotel
- Klondyke Corner Campsite
- The Knowledge Behind Arthur’s Pass
- Bealey Spur Track and Hut
- 42 audio storiesacross Arthur's Pass’s roads, triggered by GPS as you drive
- Wildlife heatmapsfor Kea, New Zealand Falcon, Blue Duck, and 13 more
- Works offlinemaps, 49 trails, 59 places, and audio download before you lose signal
- CarPlay readysimple controls built for the drive
“Fantastic app with many points of information… It’s great to just turn on while you’re driving and it gives you an audio tour of the national Park. We love it!!!!”
Trail guide
Hiking O’Malleys Track to Anti Crow Hut
Where the track changesThe small road-end parking area is reached by a short gravel access immediately south of Bealey…
The small road-end parking area is reached by a short gravel access immediately south of Bealey Bridge. A well-marked path follows the true-right side of the Waimakariri above bluffs through beech and kānuka forest. At Turkey Flat the sheltered track opens onto a broad grassy fan. The next roughly kilometre is rough gravel around Jordan Stream, only partly marked; follow the intermittent poles and stay high of the thorny matagouri. Beyond the flats, continue along the grass and bush edge to the hut.
Treat Jordan Stream as a go-or-turn-back decisionJordan Stream is unbridged.
Jordan Stream is unbridged. Do not attempt the crossing when flows are high or rain is forecast, and turn back if you cannot identify safe entry and exit points. The valley floor is open to cold wind and the poles can be hard to pick out across the fan. When the Waimakariri is in flood, a 400 m track section near the hut provides a high-water approach.
A valley shaped by waterThe upper Waimakariri is a broad glacial valley, and Turkey Flat is an alluvial fan built by…
The upper Waimakariri is a broad glacial valley, and Turkey Flat is an alluvial fan built by Jordan Stream. Deep gravel lets water disappear below the surface and reappear in shifting channels, so this open ground feels more like a river landscape than a conventional path. From the flats, look toward Mt Harper and Camp Spur; near the hut, the riverbed opens north toward Mt Rolleston and Crow Glacier. Keep some gravel and grass in the foreground when you frame the mountains.
Staying at Anti Crow HutThe hut was built in the 1960s and takes its name from the Anti Crow River opposite the Crow…
The hut was built in the 1960s and takes its name from the Anti Crow River opposite the Crow River across the Waimakariri. It is a standard hut with eight bunks. Anyone staying overnight needs a booking year-round; no bunks are held for walk-ins. Pets are not allowed in Arthur’s Pass National Park.
Wildlife
Wildlife in Arthur's Pass
982 sightingsKeaMost seen around noonSighting map
39 sightingsNew Zealand FalconMost seen around 5 PMSighting map
190 sightingsBlue DuckMost seen around 5 PMSighting map
20 sightingsKākāMost seen around 8 AMSighting map
15 sightingsWekaMost seen around 7 AMSighting map
15 sightingsParadise ShelduckMost seen around 6 PMSighting mapSighting maps show where each species has been reported across Arthur's Pass. Wildlife moves, so no sighting is guaranteed.
