Access

Lake Mahinapua is reached 10 km south of Hokitika on SH6. Shanghai Road is the entrance road and is signposted opposite the Mahinapua Hotel.

After 700 m there is a large camping area with toilets and picnic tables. The lakeside site has views of the Southern Alps.

All walks start from here, including the Bellbird Walk. The start of the track is signposted from the southern end of the camping ground (right looking at the lake).

Track

The well-formed track performs a circuit of the pond.

Geology

Lake Mahinapua was formed when the Hokitika Glacier met the Tasman Sea. The retreating glacier dumped a moraine wall and dunes were built up by the sea. The Hokitika River flowed into the lake, creating an estuary sandwiched between the dunes and moraines. When the river changed course, the lake was left in the hollow.

Flora

Kahikatea, rimu and rata form emergents in the lake shore forests.

Fauna

The bellbird or korimako (Anthornis melanura), has an olive green plumage, sleek figure and gently arcing beak. The bellbirds are as visually attractive as their heavenly song. The bell-like notes are learned from neighbouring adults and two birds may be heard in tandem, singing and counter-singing to determine territorial spacing. Members of the honeyeater family, bellbirds consume nectar from many native trees and in autumn, by feeding on berries, they act as important seed-dispersing agents in the ecology of the forest.

European History

The smaller lake the walk circumnavigates was an old gold-dredge pond.

Lake Mahinapua found favour as an easily navigable water course along the densely forested and swampy coast. From 1865, as miners flocked in search of gold, steamers plied the rivers and lakes. With the advent of the railway in 1905, commercial and tourist traffic on the lake ceased.