Mount Stokes Track

Mount Stokes Track

Kenepuru Road

13 Rankers Reviews

9 Face-to-Face

Your Nature Guide

Marios Gavalas's avatar

Marios Gavalas

Author And Researcher

Nau mai, haere mai

Nau mai, haere mai

I'm Marios, delivering the best of Aotearoa's nature walks to your device.

I've personally walked hundreds of New Zealand's tracks and spent months in libraries uncovering interesting information on New Zealand/Aotearoa. And you'll find a slice of that research on this page - enjoy!

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Photos

Summit view - its worth the effort

Information

Mount Stokes Track

7 km return | 4 hours return

This is the viewpoint of the Marlborough Sounds. You can see it all. Even on a map it takes a long time to decipher the intricate labyrinth of waterways and islands. From the summit it is the same. The indented coastline is woven without straight lines. It’s easy to imagine Kupe’s octopus.

Walking Track

Timing

This is a fair weather walk.

Access

From Picton follow Queen Charlotte Drive 21 km to Linkwater and turn right into Keneperu Road. Portage is 28.5 km. After 42 km head right along Titirangi Road. Keneperu Saddle and the turnoff to Punga Cove is 5 km further. 10.3 km from the junction with Titirangi Road, at the saddle, the road branches. Left goes to Anakoha, right to Titirangi. The track starts opposite this fork.

Track

The first 30 minutes is not bad going. The track is relatively even and well-formed. When the real ascent starts things get tougher. Although there are orange triangles, they are sporadic. The track is steep, rough and indistinct.

Mount Stokes cops the full brunt of Cook Strait winds and periodic storms ravage the forest. The place can look like a bomb site. As you gain altitude the silver beech becomes more stunted and draped with moss.

All of a sudden the forest ends and with a short steep climb you pop out onto the herbfields of the summit. It’s around 2 ¼ hours from the road.

Continue 10 minutes across the tussock to the weather station at the summit (1203 metres).

Flora

Mount Stokes is to all intents and purposes an island. Above the final throws of forest, a mix of silver beech and leatherwood, are two hectares of alpine herbfield and snow tussock. This is the only home for alpine plants in the sounds and displays a curious garden. 14 species of uniquely South Island alpine plants, 6 species of South Island alpine plants whose only representatives in the North Island are in the Tararua Ranges, and 7 further species that occur north and south of the Tararuas, but not in them, live here. This tiny enclave also has its own species. Celmisia macmahonii and a subspecies of Anisotome haastii are thought to live here and nowhere else.

Surprisingly this botanical treasure house was allowed to be ravaged by goats, deer, pigs and stock until the area was fenced in the late 1980s. Other alpine representatives include eyebrights, mountain daisies, gentians and speargrasses.

Details

Feature Value Info

Organisation

DOC Marlborough

Central government organisation

Location

South IslandMarlboroughPicton / Marlborough Sounds

Categories

  • Activity__walking_and_trekkingWalking
  • Free

Directions

To Coordinates

Coordinates

-41.0869533445445

174.138028526306

Latitude
-41.0869533445445
Longitude
174.138028526306

Nearby

Reviews

    • Very good track which had to be done.
    • Amazing view.
    • Around 3 hours UP.
    • Was a very nice hike!
    • A must do in the Sounds!
    Rating Count Percentage
    10/10 5
    38%
    9/10 3
    23%
    8/10 1
    8%
    7/10 4
    31%
    6/10 0
    0%
    5/10 0
    0%
    4/10 0
    0%
    3/10 0
    0%
    2/10 0
    0%
    1/10 0
    0%
  • 3.5/5

    We were lucky with the weather - cool, sunny and calm.

    A steep continuous climb on a casual track is how I would describe the walk. We enjoyed views of the Sounds along the way. Once at the top the views were awesome! It took us 1hr 45 mins up and less back down. I would recommend this walk.

    Reviewed over 5 years ago

    Jan's avatar

    Jan

  • 3.5/5

    We did the track on a cloudy day, so I can't say anything about the view, but the way up was wonderful.

    I myself wouldn't rate this track as "hard", but it's fairly steep, so more inexperienced hikers might have some problems.

    It took us about 1 3/4 hrs to get to the top and a bit more than a hour to get back down.

    Reviewed almost 6 years ago

  • 3.5/5

    Hard but a good walk.

    When we did it it was cloudy and we could not see the view.

    Reviewed almost 8 years ago and experienced in April 2016

  • 5.0/5

    Was a very nice hike!

    You have got to have a good level of fitness for it, but the view at the top is amazing. Above the clouds!

    Reviewed over 8 years ago and experienced in March 2016

  • 3.5/5

    Nice hard walk with great ending 360 degree view.

    We were lucky because we walked through the clouds this day and much higher which allowed us to enjoy a beautiful sea of clouds on one side and a beautiful shining view on the other side.

    Reviewed over 8 years ago and experienced in March 2016

  • 4.5/5

    A 3 to 5 hour walk with return through a beautiful forest.

    From the top you have a great view over the Marlborough Sounds. Not many other people.

    Reviewed over 8 years ago and experienced in January 2016

  • 4.5/5

    A must do in the Sounds!

    Amazing 360 degree views at the top. To do!

    Reviewed over 8 years ago

  • 5.0/5

    It is a very good track, but hard and can be very wet.

    However, it is worth it! The view is amazing. We slept the night before the track at the Ohauparuparu Bay, to have a break.

    Reviewed about 9 years ago

  • 4.5/5

    Amazing view.

    Reviewed over 9 years ago and experienced in December 2014

  • 5.0/5

    Interesting 4 hour return walk through forest, nice view, if there are no clouds.

    Reviewed over 10 years ago and experienced in February 2014

  • 3.5/5

    We were lucky with the weather - cool, sunny and calm.

    A steep continuous climb on a casual track is how I would describe the walk. We enjoyed views of the Sounds along the way. Once at the top the views were awesome! It took us 1hr 45 mins up and less back down. I would recommend this walk.

    Reviewed over 5 years ago

    Jan's avatar

    Jan

  • 3.5/5

    We did the track on a cloudy day, so I can't say anything about the view, but the way up was wonderful.

    I myself wouldn't rate this track as "hard", but it's fairly steep, so more inexperienced hikers might have some problems.

    It took us about 1 3/4 hrs to get to the top and a bit more than a hour to get back down.

    Reviewed almost 6 years ago

  • 3.5/5

    Hard but a good walk.

    When we did it it was cloudy and we could not see the view.

    Reviewed almost 8 years ago and experienced in April 2016

  • 5.0/5

    Was a very nice hike!

    You have got to have a good level of fitness for it, but the view at the top is amazing. Above the clouds!

    Reviewed over 8 years ago and experienced in March 2016

  • 3.5/5

    Nice hard walk with great ending 360 degree view.

    We were lucky because we walked through the clouds this day and much higher which allowed us to enjoy a beautiful sea of clouds on one side and a beautiful shining view on the other side.

    Reviewed over 8 years ago and experienced in March 2016

  • 4.5/5

    A 3 to 5 hour walk with return through a beautiful forest.

    From the top you have a great view over the Marlborough Sounds. Not many other people.

    Reviewed over 8 years ago and experienced in January 2016

  • 4.5/5

    A must do in the Sounds!

    Amazing 360 degree views at the top. To do!

    Reviewed over 8 years ago

  • 5.0/5

    It is a very good track, but hard and can be very wet.

    However, it is worth it! The view is amazing. We slept the night before the track at the Ohauparuparu Bay, to have a break.

    Reviewed about 9 years ago

  • 4.5/5

    Amazing view.

    Reviewed over 9 years ago and experienced in December 2014

  • 5.0/5

    Interesting 4 hour return walk through forest, nice view, if there are no clouds.

    Reviewed over 10 years ago and experienced in February 2014

  • 4.0/5

    About 4 hours to walk, maybe a nice view, but when we were at the summit it was cloudy.

    Reviewed over 10 years ago and experienced in February 2014

  • 5.0/5

    Very good track which had to be done.

    Reviewed about 11 years ago and experienced in February 2013

  • 5.0/5

    Around 3 hours UP.

    Not very easy, and all the time through the bush. Well formed track, but some knee-work with all the rocks and tree-roots ;).

    Not the most exciting track, but not bad neither...

    UNTILL you are at the top...

    I've been in NZ for a year and seen A LOT. And this is one of the most amazing views in the country!

    View over the whole sounds, untill the North Island, untill the mountains more south,... Just breathtaking!

    I just didn't understand there wasn't anybody else.

    Easier 2 hours down.

    Walk this track! You won't regret! Promised :).

    Cheers

    Reviewed over 11 years ago and experienced in January 2013