It links the coastal town of Motueka with SH 6, the main route to the South Island's West Coast.

SH 61 provided (and still provides, without its former status) a short-cut route for vehicles travelling between the Golden Bay and western Tasman Bay / Te Tai-o-Aorere areas and the town of Westport, New Zealand and other parts of the West Coast and Buller.

After about three kilometres, the highway reaches the Motueka River, and turns upstream, to the southwest.

It passes through the small settlements of Ngātīmoti and Woodstock, winding through a steep-sided valley before briefly leaving the river's edge.

It rejoins the river after a further 5 km after passing through the small settlement of Stanley Brook.