Lake Waikaremoana Track

The ground beneath your feet is the homeland of the Tūhoe people and very sacred. Keep watch for Patupaiarehe. Māori traditionstates these fairy-like people live in misty forest and mountaintops.

Where is it?

Located within Te Urewera National Park, 80km from Gisborne and 163km south of Rotorua.

Terrain

The track initially follows the lake edge and is uneven in places. Some steady climbs follow.

Track Overview

Nestled within Te Urewera National Park, the Lake Waikaremoana hike isa Great Walk and multi-day excursion that takes in valleys, peaks and lakes. It can be completed year-round but excels in summer when swimming in the lake proves irresistible.

This unique Great Walk is managed by local iwi (Maori community), the Tūhoe and the land is critical to their turangawaewae (sense of identity). The mountainous Te Urewera region was the first natural feature in New Zealand law to be recognised as a legal entity in its own right.

Although you’ll predominately skirt the lake’s shoreline for four days, be aware that the route is not a complete circuit.

The changing landscape combines streams, steep ridge climbs, tunnellike forest trails and rolling valleys of beech, podocarp and kāmahi shrub. All along the route you’ll likely witness a community of fantail, tomtit and kererū, and hear an orchestra of bellbird and tūī. Come nightfall, calls of the North Island brown kiwi trill from the darkness.

Need to Know

No dogs, this is a kiwi area

TIME & DISTANCE: 3 – 4 days; 46km one way

FITNESS: Moderate to high fitness required

FITNESS: Undulating terrain

Lake Waikaremoana Track

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