Photos from the Kaimai Range

I’ve fallen behind on my posting!

It’s because I’ve tried to form a story around this region (the Kaimai-Mamaku Range) of New Zealand. However, I’ve realized…I don’t have one. And that’s ok!

I visited the Kaimai Range several times while I was staying in Whiritoa, so they were disjointed visits. Hour long drives out and back through small towns and straight roads (shocking, but the Waikato region nearby actually has straight roads!). However, since I visited about three times in the span of three weeks, there is no backbone to create a narrative. It’s simply a pretty and deserving-of-visitors region, so I’m adding my favorite photos and maybe a few comments–mostly for me. Because I’ll look back at this blog in three, five, and ten years, and want to remember my time here. Remember the beautiful little snapshots of the area that I got to experience.

Te Aroha Summit

Te Aroha is the tallest mountain in the Kaimai-Mamaku Range. The climb was relentless, and the last half an hour was scrambling over large rocks and up damp steps surrounded by trees draped in lacy pastel-green moss while tiny ferns sprouted along the ground.

The views from the top (in the direction that wasn’t obscured by clouds) showed the waikato valley and the Bay of Plenty, with a tiny Mount Maunganui in the distance of the first photo below.

McLaren Falls Park

I spent an afternoon walking around McLaren Falls Park, and I basically explored the entire thing! It’s much tinier than I’d anticipated and none of the walks are particularly long, but it has a wide variety. I walked to an unnamed waterfall along a small river, followed the curve of a lake, and hiked up to a viewpoint.

There are glow worms along the waterfall track, but I was there during the day so didn’t see them. Also, if you follow the lake back into the valley, there are glow worms up there, as well. The walking track to that area is closed, so I decided to try a glow worm kayaking tour with Waimarino Kayak Tours, but it was not a good experience. I do NOT recommend! There are so many better ways and places to view glow worms in New Zealand!

The falls for which the park is named, McLaren Falls, are the easiest to find as you drive right past them when entering and leaving the park, but they are are certainly the best feature.

Wairere Falls

This is the tallest waterfall on the North Island at 153 meters. You can actually see the waterfall from the road, falling as though from the edge of the world. Walking back to get a closer view is definitely worth it, and not just for the waterfall.

The river is stunning and the path meanders through moss-draped boulders and trees. Wooden pathways and bridges take you right along the river as the water splashes, crashes, and roars through the rocks. Coincidentally (or not?), the Wairere Falls hike reminded me greatly of Wairere Boulders, which I explored in Northland.

After viewing the spectacular falls, there’s another trail that leads to the top of the falls.

Understandably, it’s quite a climb, but absolutely worth it stand at the edge of the falls, gaze across the plains of the Waikato, and watch all that water plummeting down. The lookout doesn’t stick out far enough to actually see the pool at the bottom of the falls, and for good reason–that’s a long drop!