The Heaphy Track, one of New Zealand's nine Great Walks, starts near Karamea at the northern end of the Buller region and crosses the Kahurangi National Park to Golden Bay. The full walk is 82 kilometres and takes four to six days, passing through mountain tussock country, nikau palm forests (the southernmost palm forests in the world), and remote stretches of West Coast beach that are accessible no other way.
The Heaphy requires advance booking for hut accommodation during peak season (October to April). Independent trampers camp at designated sites. The track can also be cycled during winter months — it is one of the few Great Walks open to mountain bikes. The Karamea end of the track is the most dramatic, descending through the nikau forests to a beach that feels genuinely at the edge of the world.