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Hunting on the West Coast

148 DOC permit areas, 106 roar blocks, 144 huts, 3,999 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 148 hunting permit areas on the West Coast, 106 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.

3,999 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 on the West Coast

Balloted and restricted blocks here

How to get on every restricted block

1080 on the West Coast right now

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

  • North Okarito-BursterPrice-Waiau caution to 2028-08-31
  • Paparoa Coast Ground 2026 caution to 2028-01-16
  • Buller North ground 2026 caution to 2028-01-03
  • Heaphy Lowland NPCP 2027 caution to 2027-11-30
  • Taramakau Ground Control 26 caution to 2027-11-19
  • Inchbonnie Ground control 26 caution to 2027-07-19
  • AR 2026 Callery 1 caution to 2027-06-30
  • Arnold - Bell Hill 2025 caution to 2027-05-30

And 12 more.

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

144 across 21 parks and conservation areas. 127 you can simply turn up at, and 83 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.

Kokatahi River - Whitcombe River area29 huts

Kelly Range – Styx River area19 huts

Ahaura River and Lake Brunner catchments area12 huts

Victoria Forest Park10 huts

Westland Tai Poutini National Park10 huts

Haast, Paringa and Moeraki rivers area9 huts

Arthur's Pass National Park8 huts

Mikonui River - Kakapotahi River area7 huts

Waitaha River area6 huts

Whataroa area6 huts

Lewis Pass Scenic Reserve4 huts

Mōkihinui River area4 huts

Paparoa National Park4 huts

Jackson Bay - Gorge River area3 huts

Kahurangi National Park3 huts

Lyell area3 huts

Franz Josef Glacier/Kā Roimata o Hine Hukatere2 huts

Harihari area2 huts

Lake Kaniere Scenic Reserve1 hut

Landsborough River area1 hut

Makarora area1 hut

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 the West Coast 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