Kea Basin Track

Kea Basin Track is a remote out-and-back into the sub-alpine tussock basin below Mt Earnslaw/Pikirakatahi. From Muddy Creek car park, allow about 24 km (15 miles) return, around 600 m of climbing and 8–10 hours. The time is the official estimate; the distance is approximate because no complete GPS track is published. The approach follows the Rees-Dart valley before a Rees River ford and a steep climb to Earnslaw Hut and the basin. DOC classifies the track as Advanced. The payoff is a quiet high basin of streams and waterfalls beneath hanging glaciers, with a long view back down the Rees Valley. The river-flat link is only approximately mapped; use DOC directions and marker poles for the ford and terrace approach rather than treating the route line as a surveyed crossing.

Rees Valley Road reaches Muddy Creek car park after about 30 minutes from Glenorchy, over gravel and several fords. From the car park, follow the Rees-Dart Track up-valley. Its gentle rises and dips can be boggy. After the swing bridge over Twenty Five Mile Creek, leave the main route and ford the Rees River toward the terraces above Lennox Falls. The open flats lead diagonally to the low terrace and the bush edge, where the Kea Basin climb begins at a DOC sign. The paddock can be boggy, and the exact line between river and terrace is not published as a GPS track. Do not attempt the ford in high or fast water.

The signed track zigzags steeply through bush, with a cut but rough tread. A slip and overgrown bracken make an early bend awkward; higher up, expect treefall and a mix of shaded forest, open ground and a boggy bench. Earnslaw Hut sits about halfway up, a short spur from the track. It is a basic four-bunk hut with a fireplace and a non-flush toilet. Water comes from a nearby stream and needs treatment; there are no food shops on the route.

Above the hut, the path climbs past a rock bivvy just above the bushline and opens into sub-alpine tussock. Streams and waterfalls cut through the basin below hanging glaciers on Earnslaw/Pikirakatahi. The named walking track becomes faint and eventually peters out in the upper basin. Turn around there; the less distinct routes toward upper bivvies and Earnslaw’s summit involve mountaineering terrain and glacier travel, and are not part of this walk.

The Rees River and its tributaries can become dangerously swift, and a crossing needs real river-crossing experience. Avalanche terrain affects the track, usually from May through November, and avalanches can happen in any season when snow and steep slopes coincide. The upper valley is exposed to cold, snow, wind and heavy rain at any time of year. Dogs and other pets are not permitted on this conservation land without written permission. The access road crosses private Rees Valley Station: stay on the formed track and do not camp, hunt or disturb stock.

Kea Basin adjoins the Mt Earnslaw/Pikirakatahi Tōpuni, which recognizes the mountain’s historic and cultural importance to Kāi Tahu. At the basin, include the tussock and a stream in the foreground to show the scale of the hanging glaciers above.