Buller River

Story

The Buller River is in the South Island of New Zealand. One of the country's longest rivers, it flows for 170km from Lake Rotoiti through the Buller Gorge and into the Tasman Sea near the town of Westport. As Rotoiti itself is fed by the Travers River it can be claimed that the Buller's source is at the headwaters of the Travers, on the northern slopes of Mount Travers in the Saint Arnaud Range. The Paparoa Range separates the Buller River from the Grey River. A number of flora and fauna are found in the Buller watershed, many of these extending onto the slopes of the Paparoa Range.The Maori name for the Buller, Kawatiri, is rarely used.The Buller River upstream from Murchison along with the Mangles River are popular for whitewater kayaking and recreational fishing. State Highway 6 follows the river for much of its length.This river has an annual mean flow of 429m3/s and boasts the highest flood flow of any New Zealand river which is over 14000m3/s.TributariesThe Buller has several major tributaries. These include (in order from Lake Rotoiti) the Gowan River, the Matakitaki River, the Maruia River, and the Inangahua River. Other smaller tributaries include the Hope, Owen, Mangles, Matiri, Blackwater, and Ohikanui Rivers.