Travel Reference
In-Depth Information
WORTH A TRIP
MAHIA PENINSULA
The Mahia Peninsula's eroded hills, sandy beaches and vivid blue sea make it a
mini-ringer of the Coromandel, without the tourist hordes and fancy subdivisions,
and with the bonus of dramatic Dover-ish cliffs. It's an enduring holiday spot for
East Coasters, who come largely for boaty, beachy stuff, and you can easily get in
on the action if you have your own transport. A day or two could easily be spent
visiting the scenic reserve and the bird-filled Maungawhio Lagoon, hanging out at
the beach (Mahia Beach at sunset can be spectacular) or even playing a round of
golf.
Mahia has several small settlements offering between them a couple of guest-
houses, a campsite, a decent pub and a dairy. See
www.voyagemahia.co.nz
for
peninsular info.
TOP OF CHAPTER
Te Urewera National Park
Shrouded in mist and mysticism, Te Urewera National Park is the North Island's largest,
encompassing 2127 sq km of virgin forest cut with lakes and rivers. The highlight is
Lake Waikaremoana (Sea of Rippling Waters), a deep crucible of water encircled by the
Lake Waikaremoana Track, one of NZ's Great Walks. Rugged bluffs drop away to reedy
inlets, the lake's mirror surface disturbed only by mountain zephyrs and the occasional
waterbird taking to the skies.
The name Te Urewera still has the capacity to make Pakeha (white) New Zealanders
feel slightly uneasy - and not just because it translates as 'The Burnt Penis'. There's
something primal and untamed about this wild woodland, with its rich history of Maori
resistance.
The local Tuhoe people - prosaically known as the 'Children of the Mist' - never
signed the Treaty of Waitangi and fought with Rewi Maniapoto at Orakau during the
Waikato Wars. The army of Te Kooti took refuge here during running battles with gov-
ernment troops. The claimant of Te Kooti's spiritual mantle, Rua Kenana, led a thriving
community beneath the sacred mountain Maungapohatu (1366m) from 1905 until his
politically motivated 1916 arrest. This effectively erased the last bastion of Maori inde-
pendence in the country. Maungapohatu never recovered, and only a small settlement re-
mains. Nearby, Ruatahuna's extraordinary Mataatua Marae celebrates Te Kooti's ex-
ploits.
