Sabine River (New Zealand)

View the valley of the Sabine River up

The Sabine River is a river in Nelson Lakes National Park on the South Island of New Zealand.

The river has two branches, the East Branch and West Branch Sabine Sabine River. The West Sabine drains Lake Constance and Blue Lake. Between these two lakes, the water seeps underground through rock rubble. The East Sabine springs east of it in a small lake at 2309 m high Mt McKay. Both rivers are separated by the 2339 m high Mt Franklin and the Franklin Ridge, unite north of it at Sabine Forks and flow into Lake Rotoroa. Apart from the tufts of grass ( tussock ) and bushland surrounding the headwaters of the river runs through largely untouched southern beech forest. The West Branch is separated by the Mahanga Range from D' Urville River, the East Branch on the east by the Travers Range.

The river is over most of its length not passable due to rocky rapids.

A footpath, the western branch of the Travers -Sabine- pathway, runs along the river. This route starts at Saint Arnaud at the northern end of Lake Rotoiti and follows the Travers River up to the subalpine, 1787 m high, Travers Saddle. From there, he climbs the valley of the East Sabine and later of the Sabine River to Lake Rotoroa down. Another trail leads to West Sabine up to the Blue Lake and sit continues over the Waiau Pass to the junction with the St James Walkway and Lewis Pass.

In the valley of the river, three cabins are: the Sabine Hut on Lake Rotoroa (near the mouth of the Sabine River), the West Sabine Hut (near Sabine Forks ) and the Blue Lake Hut on the same lake.