Nov 30, 2025 Overland Trek
Moving day! We’re driving from the west coast to the east coast of the North Island, a four and a half hour drive. But of course it took us almost 7 hours! We stopped in the little town of Pātea to see the memorial to one of the Great Waka (canoe) of the Māori migration.
This is a memorial to the waka ‘Aotea’ one of the 50 waka from the oral traditions of the Maori; “These accounts give several different uses for the waka: many carried Polynesian migrants and explorers from Hawaiki to New Zealand; others brought supplies or made return journeys to Hawaiki…” (Wiki)
Then of course we had to stop for lunch!
You can’t pass by “GodsOwn Brewery”! We had beer and pizza in the garden with the hop field in the background.
Nov 29, 2025 Wilkies Pools
Another beautiful day in Ohawe, our last full day. We decided to head up to Taranaki Maunga (mountain) for another short hike.
The peak is cloud free this morning!
We reached the Dawson Falls visitor center and started the easy uphill walk on a wide graveled path alongside Kapuni stream. We soon reached Wilkies Pools, named after brothers that farmed in the area until 1881 when a 6 mile radius around the summit was first protected as a forest reserve, becoming NZ’s 2nd National Park in 1900.
The crystal clear, cold water cascading down from the summit has carved a series of plunge pools down the volcanic rock for 20,000 years!
Looking up from the rocks gives a grand view of the summit above treeline. There were a pair of brave young men ‘taking the plunge’ today! Not hot out enough for me though!
We continued our walk back to the Visitors Center on the other side of the stream through the ‘goblin forest’ on a lesser used track. For great video of several slo-mo shots of the falls, click HERE.
Nov 28, 2025 Bonus Round!
There is a beautiful “Marine Frame” at Ohawe Beach parking area, with pictures of the undersea world off the coast here.
If you zoom in, as I did below, you can use the QR reader on your smart phone to bring up the link where you can see videos of all the pictures on the Frame! If you don’t have a smart phone you can go to
https://www;youtube.com/channel/UCcBaQxppUYG3bxc1_FUHtVw
Nov 28, 2025 Waihi Beach to Ohawe Beach
Today we decided to try the hike again, driving to Waihi Beach and walking south to north, and we completed the 6 miles!
The beach seems more rocky from this end!
The cliffs are layered with sediment from the sea and volcanic ash from the past eruptions of Mt. Taranaki, cut and eroded by streams and copious rainfall.
Layers can be seen in the large boulders that fall from the cliffs. In this chunk it looks like a charcoal layer, from burning forest during a volcanic eruption, or purposeful burning of the forest by the Maori or Europeans?
And last night’s rain storm, complete with lightning and thunder and buckets of rain, leached clay out of the cliffs and sent it flowing to the sea.
Nov 27, 2025 Ohawe Beach
We are staying in a ‘tiny house’ just a few blocks from the beach. For 2 days we have tried to walk the beach from Ohawe Beach to Waihi Beach, 3 miles one way.
The pink line along the beach is the route, but it is only accessible at low tide!
Ohawe Beach starts at the mouth of the Waingongoro River where it flows into the Tasman Sea. The same Waingongoro River that we crossed on a narrow swing bridge near the Waingongoro Tramping Hut up on Mt. Taranaki 6 days ago!
The black sand beach stretches away in the distance, we have to reach the last bluff before turning around to come back!
Some of the interesting things we encountered on our attempts. A fisherman, an older catch that someone apparently filleted, a fossil shell and a mummified baby shark?
