We set out for a walk in the Aniseed Valley on a beautiful Christmas Day morning. To be honest, with all of the pine forest in the area I wasn't expecting too much from the walk.
How delightfully surprised I was.
This walks is one of the truly hidden gems. One of the most unexpected and utterly delightful walks we've been on.
The Hacket Track follows Hacket Creek. A couple of very nice swing bridges and at least one, possibly two, washed out parts of the track (the washouts can look intimidating but were not too difficult). After about 2.5km the track to Whispering Falls forks to the left. There were remnants of an old bridge (long gone) however the river was easy to wade across.
A gentle path for another km or so, another bridge over the river and we found the bottom of the falls. Here, water was seeping out of the ground and our initial reaction was these falls don't look like your typical waterfalls. We continued up the path and found more falls, a little larger, followed by a beautiful covered bush walk alongside a stunningly beautiful stream. Then we encountered the most beautiful sight. The morning sun was up, hitting the waterfall, creating a spectacular scene. So hard to put into words. It was stunning.
After some time taking it all in, we headed further up the hill (quite steep) to the stream that fed the falls (and a very nice grassy area). TBH, once you've seen the fall, I wouldn't go any further.
Our return trip was easy, passing a few other walkers (and thoroughly recommending they check out the falls).
This is a walk we will definitely do again.
10/10
Dog Permit Required
A permit is required for Mt Richmond Forest Park -
see Nelson DOC office.
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