Epic Travel → Asia & the South Pacific → New Zealand → Canterbury → Cave Stream

♦ Intrepid Top Pick!

Location: Castle Hill Basin area, Canterbury, New Zealand

Time Required: ~1 hour

Distance:  1km total (0.36 km in the cave) /0.62 miles total (0.22 miles in the cave)

Elevation Gain: 37 metres/120 feet

Red Tape/Notes: Hypothermia is a real risk here – dress appropriately. Headlamp is required – preferably waterproof. Check water depth at the entrance pool – the DoC recommends waste deep or lower on an adult as the safety limit, though others report chest-deep as feasible. Do not enter if heavy rains are expected.

What’s Nearby?: Devil’s Punchbowl Falls, Arthur’s Pass, Castle Hill

Cave Stream is one of the South Island’s best adventures – a trip through a subterranean underworld of thundering rapids in the pitch black (well, it would be without your headlamp). Sure the water is cold…but that’s what wetsuits are for! Do dress appropriately – hypothermia would diminish the fun to say the least. A five minute walk leads to the downstream mouth where you’ll enter, and you should check the water level at the first pool – if it’s waist deep or lower, you should be good to go, although some of the features may still be slightly challenging to get over. It had been raining quite a lot when we went through, and although the water wasn’t deep yet, it was certainly flowing and it made the trip surprisingly tiring (particularly for someone short like I am). It’s easy to lose track of time in here, and the sight of sunlight at the end is welcome (as are the metal rungs in the rock – the final 3 m waterfall would otherwise be problematic). Once you exit, another five minutes brings you back to the parking area and your dry clothes.

Epic Travel → Asia & the South Pacific → New Zealand → Canterbury → Cave Stream