Travel Reference
In-Depth Information
History
From the beginning of their recorded history, the Ngati Whare, a
hapu
(clan) of the Tuhoe
tribe, lived in harmony with the forest of Whirinaki, and plenty of evidence of their occupa-
tion remains.
Intense logging of the area's native bush began in the 1930s, and by the mid-1970s more
than 130 people were employed in the forest industry at Whirinaki, harvesting up to 30,000
cu metres of native trees annually. The land became a heated battlefield in 1978 and 1979,
when conservation groups challenged government policy on managing the forests. What
most irked conservationists was the practice of removing native trees and replacing them
with fast-growing exotic species.
The result of the bitter conflict was an effort to preserve the remaining native bush. The
forest park was formed in 1984, and a year later all logging of native trees officially ended.
Environment
The northern half of the forest park is relatively low, its tree-covered hills and gullies rising
from 360m to only 730m. The southern half is steep, rugged greywacke country, which tops
off at 1373m at Maungataniwha, the highest point in the park.
The most striking feature of Whirinaki is its unique podocarp forest. Dominating the
forest are towering kahikatea, totara, matai, rimu, miro and tawa. Podocarps are slow-grow-
ing species; many of the trees in the park are 500 to 700 years old, and some have been
dated at more than 1000 years. The size of the trees along the first half of the Whirinaki
Track is truly amazing. If you don't know a rimu from a miro, there are some tree-identific-
ation signs at the beginning of the track, along with a few interpretive displays on podocarp
forests.
The dense podocarps support a diverse bird population, including North Island kaka, red-
and yellow-crowned kakariki (parakeet), kereru (NZ pigeon) and the endangered karearea
(NZ falcon) and whio (blue duck). The other animal that thrives here is trout; there is good
fishing in the Whirinaki, Rangitaiki and Whaeo Rivers.
8
Planning
WHEN TO TRAMP
Whirinaki shares Te Urewera National Park's climate, with decent rainfall and snow on
higher peaks during winter. However, the Whirinaki Track is a well-cut path with no diffi-
cult fords. Beyond this, track conditions vary, and are subject to the vagaries of unpredict-
