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Hunting in Otago

242 DOC permit areas, 114 roar blocks, 78 huts, 8,863 unformed legal roads — and what each of them means before you go.

What has been recorded here

Most of these are logged by the public rather than by hunters, so a cluster is a real sign the animal is about and out where it can be seen — it is not a record of where people hunt. But records follow tracks, roads and campsites, so empty country usually means nobody has walked it with a phone rather than that there is nothing there. Presence, not density.

Occurrence data from GBIF.org.

Where you can hunt

DOC files 242 hunting permit areas in Otago, 114 of them roar blocks. Public conservation land needs a permit, and each area carries its own conditions and closures — which are DOC’s to set and worth reading for the block you pick.

8,863 unformed legal roads run through the region — public roads that were surveyed and never built. Many cross private farmland, and you may pass along one without asking anybody, though the paddocks either side stay private.

Open the map Make a hunt plan Fishing access in Otago

Balloted and restricted blocks here

How to get on every restricted block

1080 in Otago right now

2 DOC operations are in their caution period in Otago. Baits and carcasses can still kill a dog, and the caution period is the recorded minimum rather than an all-clear.

  • Cluden OSPRI Aerial sodium fluoroacetate caution to 2027-02-28
  • Makarora NPCP 2025 caution to 2026-11-02

Every recorded operation, and what it means for dogs

Shows operations recorded by DOC from March 2022 onward. This is not a statement that 1080 is or is not present now. Always follow on-site warning signs and check DOC for the authoritative position.

Huts

78 across 19 parks and conservation areas. 63 you can simply turn up at, and 38 of those have a fire.

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Hut locations and facilities: Department of Conservation (CC BY 4.0), via the DOC open data hub.

Hāwea Conservation Park12 huts

Mount Aspiring National Park12 huts

Oteake Conservation Park9 huts

Greenstone and Caples Conservation Areas7 huts

Skippers area7 huts

Kopuwai Conservation Area4 huts

Wānaka area4 huts

Whakaari Conservation Area4 huts

Makarora area3 huts

Matukituki Valley area3 huts

Catlins coastal area2 huts

Pisa Conservation Area2 huts

Remarkables Conservation Area2 huts

Silverpeaks Scenic Reserve2 huts

Albert Burn Conservation Area1 hut

Kingston area1 hut

Lauder Basin Conservation Area1 hut

Moeraki area1 hut

Rock and Pillar Conservation Area1 hut

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Before you walk in

This is a snapshot of DOC’s hut dataset, not a live feed — DOC last refreshed it in April 2026 and has flagged it for replacement. Huts close, burn down, get booked out and get alerts put on them. Before you commit to sleeping in one, open its DOC page and check.

“Turn up” means first come, first served — carry a Backcountry Hut Pass or tickets, and expect company. The rules about firearms and carcasses near huts are the same everywhere and worth reading once.

Asking for private land

Most of Otago is somebody’s farm, and that is where the animals a landowner wants fewer of usually are. Find the block on the map and we work out the postal address without ever showing you who owns it; you print one page, they scan the code and answer.

Build a profile a landowner can trust