The Hollyford Track guided wilderness experience has a long and interesting history and it started life back in the 1930's when farmer and local legend / icon Davey Gunn began guiding guests through the valley as part of his cattle musters. The product then was more about joining Davey on a cattle muster up the valley rather than a true guided walk and the walk aspect was developed more by one of Davey Gunn's assistants, Ed Cotter.

In 1959 Hollyford Valley was incorporated into Fiordland National Park meaning previous attempts to farm the area were no long permissible so Ed put even more focus into developing this rather raw walking product into a more focused guided walk. In the mid sixties he introduced boating into the walk itinerary to bypass the notorious Demon Trail and shorten the trip.

Ed struggled to make a living from the walk and in 1968 Jules Tapper and Viv Allot took up the ailing business, registered Hollyford Tourism Company and conducted their first year of operation in the summer of 1969 / 1970.

Jules and Viv purchased a 21 foot diesel powered launch ‘Davey Gunn’ and put her on Lake McKerrow in 1969, followed by two 18 foot alloy jet boats shortly thereafter. These jet boats were the first alloy V nosed fine stemmed commercial jet boats in New Zealand. Jules and Viv also made extensive additions and improvements to the buildings that were originally in the area as prior to this there was no electricity, running water, bathrooms or toilets in either of the lodge sites. In addition they developed their own airstrips to make the operation viable and self sufficient as there wasn’t, and still isn’t, any road access.

In the late 1990’s, the company was sold to Peter Archibald, Stephen Fisher, Matthew Rose, and Mo and Louise Gardiner who set about making extensive improvements, including refurbishment and extension of the Martins Bay Lodge accommodation block and bathroom unit, the building of a new Pyke River Lodge, the purchase of a new twin engine jet boat and 20 seat shuttle. A strong customer focus was also introduced with time and effort being placed on getting the product right for the customer. The result being a 100% recommend rate of the Hollyford Track to friends and family from the 1500 of their customers that were surveyed.

In June 2003 Ngāi Tahu Tourism recognised the potential of the Hollyford Track and purchased the business to complement its other high quality, iconic tourism companies including Shotover Jet, Dart River Jet Safaris, Franz Josef Glacier Guides, Abel Tasman Aqua Taxis, Kaiteriteri Kayaks, Rainbow Springs and Hukafalls Jet.

Ngāi Tahu Tourism have invested heavily in Hollyford Track bringing it to the highest of standards that it is today with a refurbished lodge at Pyke River and a new lodge at Martins Bay, plus significant investment in upgrading or replacing much of the previous the plant and facilities. Today the Hollyford Track guided wilderness experience is renowned as one of New Zealand's greatest walks with a diversity of experiences and premiere delivery which are unequalled by any other walk in the country.

Ngāi Tahu Tourism will continue to invest in Hollyford Track, not only as one of New Zealand’s premiere wilderness experiences but also as Hollyford Valley plays a significant role in the history and heritage of the Ngāi Tahu people.

Evidence of Ngāi Tahu’s connections to the Hollyford Valley can be seen in the many place names of the areas. Each geographic feature was named, acting as oral memory aids preserving the histories of several layers of settlement spanning centuries including the people of Waitaha, Rapuwai, Ngāti Wairangi and finally Ngāi Tahu. These oral survey pegs of the past follow the ancient pounamu (greenstone) trails beginning in Te Awawhakatipu (Dart River) and cross Kā Mauka Whakatipu (Ailsa Mountains) before descending to Whakatipu Katuku (Hollyford River) through to Whakatipu Waitai (Martins Bay).

With Ngāi Tahu’s migration into Te Tai o Poutini (Westland), the lands were subdivided among the leading chiefs of the conquering hapū (tribe). Tūtoko’s (a local chief) Ngāi Kaipo (sub tribe) were given charge of Whakatipu Waitai which was well known as part of the pounamu trails leading from Te Tai o Poutini to Murihiku (Southland), but also as an important mahinga kai (food gathering site) and waka (canoe) building centre around Lake Alabaster or Wawahi Waka (to split trees for canoes).

Ngāi Tahu Tourism’s association with the area enables the iwi to add an additional layer to their presence and their voice as a key stakeholder in the area and recognition of their kaitiakitanga (guardianship) over a landscape that bears their histories.

On Hollyford Track you virtually step back in time and experience a ancient spectacular landscape with a unique and intriguing ecology, geology, and geography and a fascinating history of human endeavour that dates back to the very first people to settle in this land New Zealand.

The first people to arrive in the area were Māori exploring for food and resources. A coastal village at Martins Bay evolves becoming an important settlement between 1650 and 1800 with the tribe gathering abundant seafood, and gaining access to food resources in the nearby forests and lakes, building canoes from the giant trees of the forests and controlling access into and out of the highly prized pounamu sources in the region. Ancient Māori middens have been found on the sea side of the estuary on Martins Bay Spit.

Explorer James Cook visited the area and was overawed by this land of mountains and wild coastline. Captain Alabaster, a whaler, was one of the first Europeans to explore the valley. In 1863 he met Ngāi Tahu chief Tūtoko at Martins Bay and named the chief’s daughters Sara and May. Dr. James Hector, the first provincial geologist of Otago, visited later the same year and named the hills either side of Martins Bay after the girls.

Dr. Hector travelled up the Hollyford Valley and across the Southern Alps to Queenstown, and reported favourably on timber, indications of gold, iron, copper and zinc in the area. He also suggested a road through the area could be built, the idea still being a controversial issue to this day.

Sealers, whalers, gold hunters and fortune seekers soon arrive to settle the area; they start to build a small town, known as Jamestown, and attempt to clear the lowland forests for farming. But it is a harsh and unforgiving land and despite the best endeavours of these people they just couldn’t tame the land and Jamestown plus the settlement at Martins Bay were doomed by the conditions and isolation.

Today all that remains of Jamestown is the site marked by ancient rose bushes and apple trees. At Jerusalem Creek there are Sycamore trees that were planted by the early settlers and a few straggly rose bushes also survive further up the coast at Big Bay.

A few hardy settlers stayed on and among them were Hugh and Malcolm McKenzie, who moved to the bottom end of Martins Bay Spit. They raised cattle and drove them to sale-yards at Mossburn over 250km’s away from Jamestown. In 1926 the McKenzie brothers sell their cattle run to Davey Gunn who continued the cattle trade and started guiding tourists through the Hollyford Valley until his death by drowning in the Hollyford River in 1955.

In 1959 Hollyford Valley is incorporated into Fiordland National Park and the park receives international recognition as a place of outstanding natural values being accorded ‘World Heritage’ status in 1990 and the establishment of the larger Te Wāhipounamu - Southwest New Zealand World Heritage Area.

Does this sound like a brief overview on the concise history of New Zealand? It is, and it all occurred in the Hollyford Valley, so deep is the natural and human history of this valley.

Conservation Management Statement:

“The operators of the Hollyford Track are committed to the prudent management and sustained preservation of the conservation estate in which it exists.

The company appreciates and honours the opportunity it has to operate within Fiordland National Park and Te Wāhi pounamu, a unique environment that deserves respect and care.

Despite this protected area being increasingly sought for its wilderness quality, The Hollyford Track management demands of itself and all its guests the preservation of its beauty for all future generations.”

Initiatives:

DoC support - we have a very strong relationship with DoC providing support for their track maintenance, predator & weed control and various monitoring projects wherever possible.

Stoat Trapping - we have independently laid down stoat trapping lines in the Long Reef, Hollyford Valley area for the protection of the rare, Fiordland Crested Penguin

Energy Efficiency - we have repowered our jet boats to 43% more fuel efficient diesel engines, and have installed battery banks and energy efficient appliances, in both of our lodges, to cut down on generator time.

Recyling - we have a composting and recycling programme in place and fly all our recyclables out of the valley.

Wildlife:

As part of our commitment to conservation in the Hollyford and preservation of the unique wildlife of this area, this past 2009-2010 season saw us introduce our own predator trapping programme targeting stoats and other introduced pests that have a significant detrimental impact on the local wildlife. 25 stoat box traps were purchased and our staff laid 19 of these around the Long Reef area where the rare Fiordland Crested Penguins nest, four along Martins Bay Spit where native and endangered coastal and sea birds nest in the sand (our guides have already noticed a positive result on Martins Bay Spit with baby Dotterels and Pied Stilts in good numbers) and two around Martins Bay Lodge.

Throughout the season our staff set, bait and monitor the traps and to date 25 stoats and 5 rats have been trapped. We are due to do a winter check of the traps in the next week and will continue our trapping programme throughout the winter to help towards what will hopefully be a successful and safe breeding season, in particular for the Fiordland crested Penguin.

We would like to pass on a big thank you to the Te Anau locals who have sponsored 16 of our 25 traps.

Developments:

Hollyford Track has embarked on a joint venture with the Department of Conservation, as part of our philosophy of shared guardianship in the area, to significantly upgrade the track that accesses Long Reef. Our groups use this track on day 2 when we explore Long Reef and visit the New Zealand Fur Seal colony that resides there and the rare Fiordland Crested Penguins who are seasonal visitors. This development has significantly improved the quality of what has historically been a difficult section of track, transforming it into a pleasant walk that allows more time to focus on the many wildlife viewing opportunities.

We would like to pass on a big thank you to the Te Anau locals who have sponsored 16 of our 25 traps.