New Zealand Walk: Hidden treasures in Wai-O Tapu Forest

Holy water is usually found within the walls of religious shrines and churches, but at Waiotapu in the Bay of Plenty, it occurs in the cathedral of the outdoors. Wai-o-tapu means “sacred waters”, and designates an area of some 3000ha of forest south-west of Rotorua. Its inner sanctum is seldom visited, probably because it is managed by Kaingaroa Timberlands and therefore not part of the conservation estate, but for careful navigators significant treasures lie within. Here are five compelling reasons why Waiotapu is worth a visit… The forest itself holds considerable interest, not merely for historians and botanists. Waiotapu is among the earliest sites used for planting exotic trees in New Zealand.

Originally the forest was established as a project for prison labour in 1901. At the intersection of The Avenue and Weirs Road, we found two Douglas fir trees, planted that year by Governor General Lord Ranfurly. Northern hemisphere trees were favoured inistands of Corsican pine and larch, along with radiata pine, ponderosa pine, sugar pine, white pine, western red cedar, Lawson cypress, California redwood, and eucalyptus. Among the trees, you may spot elusive sambar deer. Rainbow Mountain or Maungakakaramea (“mount of coloured earth”) graces the northwest corner of the forest. From the car-park on SH5, we walked just five minutes to the first of two steamy olive-green/ aqua crater lakes surrounded by an array of geothermal vegetation. Bare ridges of brown, orange, white, or yellow clays, and high vertical cliffs red with algae, loomed before us. A further hour on an easy grade took us to the fire lookout tower on the summit (743m). From here we could see Mount Tarawera and Lakes Tarawera, Rotomahana and Rerewhakaaitu to the north; the Paeroa Range to the west; the Urewera Ranges and Kaimanawa Forest to the east; and Mount Tauhara, Lake Taupo and the volcanic peaks of Tongariro National Park to the south.

The Te Ara Ahi Cycle Trail now skirts this mountain and picturesque Lake Ngahewa nestles at its base. Kerosene Creek (Hakereteke), named after its characteristic odour, has provided a meeting place for local bathers since the early 1900s. A well-graded and benched track left the Old Waiotapu Road and followed the st(r)eam. Hot spots and cascades with natural swimming pools under small waterfalls looked tempting, but signs warned us to keep our heads above water to avoid the meningitis amoeba. An interesting commentary on the warm streams and springs is an alternative translation of Waiotapu, namely “water under sacred prohibition”, which may refer to its noxious aspects. Boiling mud and water is an outstanding feature of this vicinity. Walking a circuit via Mud Volcano, Thermal and Hellsgate Roads took us past numerous examples, ranging from murky grey to almost black. Tell-tale wisps of steam enticed us to push through the broom to see fumaroles and violently bubbling cauldrons. Our rambles took us to what was (until 1925) the site of the largest mud volcano in the country. The original cone is now eroded and vigorously-active water and mud fill the pool. It is more readily accessed by car via an offshoot from

Opposite page: Looking down on Echo Lake.