The trust behind two popular Fiordland trails is putting its hand up for financial support, questioning the equity of the district council’s decision making.

Over the past eight years, Fiordland Trails Trust has created two trails — the Upukerora Trail which loops around Te Anau and the Lake2Lake Trail which connects Manapouri with Te Anau.

But the task has been completed without regular input from Southland District Council, which trust chair David Boniface pointed out had given large amounts to the 186km Around The Mountain trail running from Kingston to Walter Peak.

“Our trail is just as important to Southland as the Around The Mountain, and we find ourselves as professional fundraisers, essentially, to keep ourselves developing and maintaining,” Boniface told district councillors at a long term plan hearing on Tuesday.

“We would like a little bit more help. We are worried about our financial position long-term.”

Boniface pointed to a 2023 assessment undertaken by market research company Angus and Associates as proof of the impact the trail was having on the area.

The report found the Lake2Lake Trail alone contributed over $3 million to the economy in a 12 month period.

And it was gaining in popularity.

In 2023, there were more than 44,000 passes at the busiest point of the trail, and in the first six months of this year, the trail had already hit 94 percent of last year’s total numbers.

Speaking to Local Democracy Reporting after the hearing, Boniface said the trust had been well supported over the first eight years of trail building.

That included cash injections from Meridian, the community board, Southland District Council and Jobs for Nature.

The trust had also fundraised, including by running an annual half marathon.

But looking ahead, it required ongoing support to make sure its future was secured.

“The issue is, going forward, we need to underpin our maintenance and operations costs, so we can maintain what we’ve got.

“Those costs are in the order of about $1000/km a year.”

The Lake2Lake Trail is the longer of the two trails created by the trust, totaling 28.5km, including a road section.

The Upukerora Trail is 7km in length, having recently been extended with the completion of a new Patience Bay section.

Boniface said the trust had presented several times to the district council without success, but was trying again this year.

“We think we’re a pretty damn good investment.”

LDR is local body journalism co-funded by RNZ and NZ On Air