A hike that ends with a soak in yet another of Aotearoa’s beautiful hot water beaches?! Yes please!! Whilst the Tarawera Trail is a tough hike, it’s worthwhile with stunning views over Lake Tarawera and Rotomahana. The native bush you walk through is lush and green with many a fern to accompany you.

There is the opportunity to have a soak in a hot water spring about halfway through the hike and then end your efforts with a dip at hot water beach along the edge of Lake Tarawera. To get yourself back to the parking at the start of the hike, you have a lovely boat ride along lake Tarawera and a short shuttle ride. A great day out in the Rotorua district on a lake that is steeped in cultural history.

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Details

Starting Point: Tarawera Rd Carpark

Distance: 15kms, we did 16km to include the hot water pool at Wairua stream

Duration: 4 hours

Difficulty: Moderate/Hard

When: April

Local iwi: Tuhourangi and Ngati Rangatihi

Additional Information: This is a one-way track, so you’ll have to book a water taxi to get you back to the start unless you want to turn it into a 32km hike.

Trail Map

Getting to the Starting Point of the Tarawera Trail

There is a large parking area at the start of this hike with clean toilets. If you’ve booked with Totally Tarawera, they will take you in a shuttle back to the car park after your boat ride back to land.

The Trail

The hike follows the southern shores of Lake Tarawera amongst beautiful bush. The trail itself is a little overgrown in places and washed away slightly, making this a tricky track to follow. It’s worth the effort though, with a natural hot water stream before the big climb of the trail and ending at hot water beach at the lake’s edge.

At the start of the hike, you will follow along the Te Wairoa stream and catch glimpses of the buried village of Te Wairoa, which was buried under volcanic ash in the 1886 eruption that destroyed the pink terraces. If you have time after your hike, this is an interesting place to visit and see the remains of the village, alongside stories of survivors.

Hawaiki Bay

The beautiful lakes edge of Hawaiki Bay along the Tarawera Trail

Hawaiki Bay is the first time you will come to the lake edge and be able to feel the water. There are picnic tables at this bay and a beautiful lake beach to take in the sights. A great place to stop for a snack and even a quick dip in the water if the morning isn’t too cold. The views of Mt Tarawera from here are very impressive.

Carry along the trail climbing up into the fern filled bush. There is a strategically placed bench at the top of your climb to take in the view and catch your breath. You’ll climb back down before crossing the crystal clear waters of Twin Streams.

Wairua Stream Hot Pools

Probably the best park of the Tarawera Trail, Wairua Stream Hot Pools

You’ll have another climb to Oneroa lookout before descending to Wairua stream. Here you can either choose to follow the trail up the steepest climb of the hike or veer left to have a soak in the hot pools of Wairua stream. Obviously we took the trail to the hot pools! It’s a flat walk to the hot pools and although this isn’t included in the trail, it is well signposted and easy to follow.

We found soaking here to be more peaceful and warmer than the final hot water beach. We highly recommend taking the detour to get here. We had our lunch on the lake’s edge and met a few people who boat to the hot pools here. Everyone we met said it was much better than hot water beach so we took our time enjoying a soak amongst the bush.

Rotomahana Lookout

A place to catch your breath - Rotomahana Lookout along the Tarawera Trail

Once you make your way back to the main trail, you’re faced with the hardest climb of the hike. You’ll first come across some rock walls prone to crumbling and slips, so be aware of the signs asking you not to stop here and watch out for falling rocks! It’s a hard slog to the top but the views are incredible from Rotomahana lookout. Aptly named as it provides views over the neighbouring lake of Rotomahana. You’ll follow the narrow ridge top amongst the trees for a beat before descending to the water’s edge of Lake Tarawera.

Hot Water Beach

Hot water beach to finish the hike of Tarawera Trail

Once you hit the water’s edge, you follow the beach for a km or so to find hot water beach. It’s well signposted, as there is a campsite just before the warm water. We took our shoes off and walked through the lake to get to the beach instead of following the trail along the undulating edge of the bush. The water here is nice to soak in, but hard to find a hot patch that isn’t scolding. The small hot water stream that empties into the lake is quickly cooled by the lake, resulting is a swirl of hot and cold water.

After a tough hike, it’s quite refreshing as long as you aren’t hoping for a warm bath like water. It’s a very picturesque place to have a soak. The water taxi will pick you up from here. You can see it coming from a way off giving you time to get out of the water and get dry before enjoying the boat ride back to the start of the hike.

Extra Tips/Info for the Tarawera Trail

We found this trail rather hard and definitely needed the breaks that swimming in the lake and hot water pools provided. Tiff struggled with knee pain on the constant ascent and descents of this hike. It got so bad by the end that Nathan had to carry her backpack for the last descent down to the water’s edge. Keep this in mind if you aren’t great with uphill and downhill hiking.

 

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