Wakamarina River Gold Fossicking Area: Fossicking in Marlborough District, Marlborough
- Mineral reported
- 1
Wakamarina River Gold Fossicking Area is a mapped fossicking spot in Marlborough District, Marlborough, New Zealand. Reported finds include gold. Below: coordinates, access notes, and nearby spots.
About Wakamarina River Gold Fossicking Area
The Wakamarina River drains the Richmond Range and meets the Pelorus at Canvastown, a settlement named for the tent city that sprang up when gold was found in 1864 and about 6,000 miners rushed the valley. The boom faded within a year as diggers left for the West Coast, but panning still turns up gold specks in the river. Wakamarina Road runs up the valley to Butchers Flat, a grassy DOC campsite on an old gold mining flat in Mount Richmond Forest Park, with swimming holes and old workings up Doom Creek. The river's listing on the official schedule of permit-free fossicking areas has changed over time, so confirm its current status on the NZP&M list before planning to pan.
Plan your visit
Generally open to casual fossicking
- Area
- Marlborough District
- Region
- Marlborough
- Nearest road
- Wakamarina Road
- Coordinates
- -41.37630, 173.59430
Coordinates are approximate. Confirm the exact ground and access before you head out.
Land & fossicking status
Generally open to casual fossicking
Public-tagged New Zealand spots are usually designated public gold fossicking areas under the Crown Minerals Act or beaches where casual collecting of loose stones is accepted. Hand tools only, and check local conditions before you dig.
Stay inside public fossicking areas for gold panning, use hand tools only, and treat DOC reserves and national parks as closed to collecting. Pounamu (greenstone) in the South Island is owned by Ngai Tahu, and collecting it is prohibited apart from a limited beach find you can carry out by hand in one trip.
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Nearby fossicking spots
Other fossicking spots in New Zealand within driving distance of Wakamarina River Gold Fossicking Area.
- Louis Creek Gold Fossicking AreaTasman District, Tasman · 89 km awayGold
- New Creek Gold Fossicking AreaTasman District, Tasman · 90 km awayGold
- Aorere River Gold Fossicking AreaTasman District, Tasman · 107 km awayGold
- Lyell Creek Gold Fossicking AreaBuller District, West Coast · 137 km awayGold
- Stony and Britannia Streams Gold Fossicking AreaBuller District, West Coast · 153 km awayGold
- Slab Hut Creek Gold Fossicking AreaBuller District, West Coast · 173 km awayGold
Wakamarina River Gold Fossicking Area FAQ
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