Crooked River is a river

River

A river is a natural watercourse, usually freshwater, flowing towards an ocean, a lake, a sea, or another river. In a few cases, a river simply flows into the ground or dries up completely before reaching another body of water. Small rivers may also be called by several other names, including...

 that flows from headwaters in the Southern Alps

Southern Alps

The Southern Alps is a mountain range extending along much of the length of New Zealand's South Island, reaching its greatest elevations near the island's western side...

 to Lake Brunner

Lake Brunner

Lake Brunner is the largest lake in the northwestern South Island of New Zealand, covering an area of 40 km². The lake's outflow is the Arnold River, a tributary of the Grey River. The lake lies 31 kilometres to the southeast of Greymouth...

 in the West Coast

West Coast, New Zealand

The West Coast is one of the administrative regions of New Zealand, located on the west coast of the South Island, and is one of the more remote and most sparsely populated areas of the country. It is made up of three districts: Buller, Grey and Westland...

 region of New Zealand

New Zealand

New Zealand is an island country in the south-western Pacific Ocean comprising two main landmasses and numerous smaller islands. The country is situated some east of Australia across the Tasman Sea, and roughly south of the Pacific island nations of New Caledonia, Fiji, and Tonga...

's South Island

South Island

The South Island is the larger of the two major islands of New Zealand, the other being the more populous North Island. It is bordered to the north by Cook Strait, to the west by the Tasman Sea, to the south and east by the Pacific Ocean...

. It is named for the erratic path it takes. Near Lake Brunner, it passes through reasonably flat farmland, but closer to its source, it rushes through gorges and rapids. One tributary is the Poerua River

Poerua River

Poerua River is the name of two rivers in the West Coast region of New Zealand's South Island.The northern Poerua River flows from Lake Poerua into the Crooked River, which leads to Lake Brunner....

 from Lake Poerua

Lake Poerua

Lake Poerua is a shallow lake located in the West Coast region of New Zealand's South Island roughly 13 km southeast from Lake Brunner. A number of small streams flow into the lake, and the Poerua River flows from the lake into the Crooked River, which leads to Lake Brunner.The lake is just to the...

.

Fishers visit Crooked River to catch trout

Trout

Trout is the name for a number of species of freshwater and saltwater fish belonging to the Salmoninae subfamily of the family Salmonidae. Salmon belong to the same family as trout. Most salmon species spend almost all their lives in salt water...

. The river is also used by canoeists. Recently, there has been a minor silt build-up in the river's middle reaches.

There are two backcountry hut

Backcountry hut

Backcountry huts are huts that serve overnight hiking and trekking needs and can be found in many places in the world.-New Zealand:New Zealand has a network of approximately 950 backcountry huts...

s available for trampers

Tramping in New Zealand

Tramping, known elsewhere as hiking or bushwalking, is a popular activity in New Zealand.Tramping is defined as a recreational activity involving walking over rough country carrying all the required food and equipment...

along the Crooked River.