Big Rimu Walk

Big Rimu Walk
View towards canopy
Length1.1 km (0.68 mi)
LocationKahurangi National Park, New Zealand
TrailheadsUmere Road
UseNature walk
Highest point80 m (260 ft)
DifficultyEasy
SeasonYear round
Sightslarge rimu tree, native bush
Maintained byDepartment of Conservation

The Big Rimu Walk is a nature trail near Karamea, located in Kahurangi National Park on the West Coast of the South Island of New Zealand. A short walk of 1.1 kilometres (0.68 mi)[1] through regenerating bush leads to a large rimu tree (Dacrydium cupressinum) that is 36 metres (118 ft) tall with a trunk over two metres (6 ft 7 in) in diameter and estimated to be over 1,000 years old. Other smaller rimu in the area were logged during the 1940s but this large tree was left.[2]

The regenerating forest is dominated by kāmahi and nīkau, but there are also small rimu trees emerging. The large rimu itself has a northern rātā vine on the trunk, with extensive rātā foliage in the canopy. The tree hosts a large collection of epiphytes. One notable feature of the track to the large rimu is the presence of Dawsonia—a giant moss—growing alongside the track.[2]

  1. ^ "Big Rimu Walk". NZ Tramper. Retrieved 3 October 2022.
  2. ^ a b Kerry-Jayne Wilson (2017). West Coast Walking: A naturalist's guide (2nd ed.). Christchurch: Canterbury University Press. ISBN 978-1-927145-42-5. OL 29806566M. Wikidata Q98762244.