5 Best winter walks in New Zealand
Waiwhakāta, Lake Hayes Loop Track | Arrowtown, 8km loop
One of the easier segments of Te Araroa, the Lake Hayes Loop Track is just 5km from picturesque Arrowtown on SH6. Stride out from Lake Hayes Pavilion or North Lake Hayes Picnic area, and on a still day you'll be rewarded with sublime views of snow-capped Coronet Peak reflected in the lake's mirrored surface. Bird watchers will want binoculars, as the 280ha lake is home to a variety of species, including the pūteteke, or Australian crested grebe made famous by John Oliver in the 2023 Bird of the Year – and with rebooted rabbit control, the flora and fauna are flourishing. Mostly on flat terrain, this is a comfortable winter walk, with some boardwalk sections. Cycling is also permitted but because the path narrows in places, please share with care.
Lake Hayes is home to the pūteteke, a rare grebe made famous by a comedy show. Photo / QueenstownNZ
Karangahake Gorge Walkways | Waikato Region
The gorgeous Karangahake Gorge cuts through the Coromandel and Kaimai Ranges, with a choice of short strolls and longer hikes. It is an area of outstanding natural beauty book-ended by the mining towns of Paeroa and Waihī – pull over at the carpark beside Ohinemuri River and cross the impressive swing bridge. Information panels provide details of the walks, including the 2.5km Rail Tunnel Loop. Ninety minutes of easy walking through lush native bush, on this loop you'll see the crown battery stamper, built in 1892 for crushing quartz.
You'll also find a 1100m tunnel, so hooray for phones with torches! Karangahake Gorge Historic Walkway is another beauty and at 7km takes about four hours and follows the Ohinemuri River, with gold mining relics dotted along the way. It features three bridges and a cascading waterfall – there's a swimming hole if you fancy a midwinter dip. The 2km return Windows Walk is also divine, with secret tunnels and windows cut through rock that offer perfectly framed views of the awa. It is part of the Hauraki Rail Trail Cycleway, so keep your eyes peeled for bikes.
North Shore Coastal Walk, Long Bay to Devonport | Auckland, 23.5km
Also part of Te Araroa, this 23.5km gem can be walked in its entirety from Long Bay to Devonportif you're feeling especially frisky. Alternatively, break it down into bite-sized sectors. Start at Devonport's ferry building and follow Te Araroa's markers by the foreshore heading towards North Head, before coming to Cheltenham Beach and Narrow Neck. Relish views to Rangitoto from the coastal path, then meander through Milford and Castor Bays. Interpretation panels bring history to life, as do relics from World War II, including tunnels and gun emplacements. Each beach has its own flavour, with Rothesay, Castor or Brown's ideal for lunch, then before you know it, you'll arrive at Long Bay Regional Park. Some sections are tide-dependent, with alternative road routes, but it's well signposted, and if you do the whole thing end to end, it takes about seven hours.
Tokatoka Scenic Reserve Track | Northland, 0.5km
An impressive landmark 17km south of Dargaville, Tokatoka looms beside the curving Wairoa River. A short walk that offers sweeping 360-degree views from the 180m summit, it's a steep ascent, so take time to catch your breath at the top and gaze out to the river, the distant Kaipara Harbour and the far-off ranges. It was once a volcanic plug, and it's awe-inspiring to stand on the remnants of an ancient eruption, on top of the world, looking down on creation, to quote Karen Carpenter. It has well-formed tracks and steps cut into rock – be cautious after rain, and if you're on a roadie, do check out Trounson's Kauri Park 55km to the north, as it's an unsung wonder for lovers of ancient trees.
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
NZ Herald
9 hours ago
- NZ Herald
5 Best winter walks in New Zealand
Waiwhakāta, Lake Hayes Loop Track | Arrowtown, 8km loop One of the easier segments of Te Araroa, the Lake Hayes Loop Track is just 5km from picturesque Arrowtown on SH6. Stride out from Lake Hayes Pavilion or North Lake Hayes Picnic area, and on a still day you'll be rewarded with sublime views of snow-capped Coronet Peak reflected in the lake's mirrored surface. Bird watchers will want binoculars, as the 280ha lake is home to a variety of species, including the pūteteke, or Australian crested grebe made famous by John Oliver in the 2023 Bird of the Year – and with rebooted rabbit control, the flora and fauna are flourishing. Mostly on flat terrain, this is a comfortable winter walk, with some boardwalk sections. Cycling is also permitted but because the path narrows in places, please share with care. Lake Hayes is home to the pūteteke, a rare grebe made famous by a comedy show. Photo / QueenstownNZ Karangahake Gorge Walkways | Waikato Region The gorgeous Karangahake Gorge cuts through the Coromandel and Kaimai Ranges, with a choice of short strolls and longer hikes. It is an area of outstanding natural beauty book-ended by the mining towns of Paeroa and Waihī – pull over at the carpark beside Ohinemuri River and cross the impressive swing bridge. Information panels provide details of the walks, including the 2.5km Rail Tunnel Loop. Ninety minutes of easy walking through lush native bush, on this loop you'll see the crown battery stamper, built in 1892 for crushing quartz. You'll also find a 1100m tunnel, so hooray for phones with torches! Karangahake Gorge Historic Walkway is another beauty and at 7km takes about four hours and follows the Ohinemuri River, with gold mining relics dotted along the way. It features three bridges and a cascading waterfall – there's a swimming hole if you fancy a midwinter dip. The 2km return Windows Walk is also divine, with secret tunnels and windows cut through rock that offer perfectly framed views of the awa. It is part of the Hauraki Rail Trail Cycleway, so keep your eyes peeled for bikes. North Shore Coastal Walk, Long Bay to Devonport | Auckland, 23.5km Also part of Te Araroa, this 23.5km gem can be walked in its entirety from Long Bay to Devonportif you're feeling especially frisky. Alternatively, break it down into bite-sized sectors. Start at Devonport's ferry building and follow Te Araroa's markers by the foreshore heading towards North Head, before coming to Cheltenham Beach and Narrow Neck. Relish views to Rangitoto from the coastal path, then meander through Milford and Castor Bays. Interpretation panels bring history to life, as do relics from World War II, including tunnels and gun emplacements. Each beach has its own flavour, with Rothesay, Castor or Brown's ideal for lunch, then before you know it, you'll arrive at Long Bay Regional Park. Some sections are tide-dependent, with alternative road routes, but it's well signposted, and if you do the whole thing end to end, it takes about seven hours. Tokatoka Scenic Reserve Track | Northland, 0.5km An impressive landmark 17km south of Dargaville, Tokatoka looms beside the curving Wairoa River. A short walk that offers sweeping 360-degree views from the 180m summit, it's a steep ascent, so take time to catch your breath at the top and gaze out to the river, the distant Kaipara Harbour and the far-off ranges. It was once a volcanic plug, and it's awe-inspiring to stand on the remnants of an ancient eruption, on top of the world, looking down on creation, to quote Karen Carpenter. It has well-formed tracks and steps cut into rock – be cautious after rain, and if you're on a roadie, do check out Trounson's Kauri Park 55km to the north, as it's an unsung wonder for lovers of ancient trees.
Otago Daily Times
2 days ago
- Otago Daily Times
Arriving on a jet plane
Of the dozen or more planes which landed at Dunedin Airport on Tuesday, one Jetstar flight was just that little bit more special than the other arrivals. When the Airbuses' wheels hit the Momona tarmac at 2.30pm, Dunedin Airport was once again Dunedin International Airport, as the first of three scheduled weekly flights between here and the Gold Coast reconnected the southern city with Australia, and the world. To say that the flight had been eagerly awaited would be a major understatement. Southern tourism operators, already slammed by the impact of the Covid-19 pandemic, have been desperate for an international flight of some description to resume on a route to Dunedin. While tens of thousands of cruise ship passengers make for a busy spring and summer, operators do bring tours to Dunedin in autumn and winter, and some visitors to southern skifields do roam further afield, there is no substitute for a potential 20,000-plus visitors a year landing at your doorstep. Quite apart from the potential tourism spend benefits of the new route for Dunedin, for families who have loved ones on either side of the Tasman, reuniting for important life milestones will now be just that little bit easier. Both they and the business community will welcome not having to book three or four connecting flights to get themselves from Dunedin to points further afield, or having to make a time-consuming drive to Queenstown or Christchurch to fly directly out of the country. The subject of international flights has been an important one for Otago Daily Times readers — it is a regular topic of letters to the editor, and even more so after local teen Benjamin Paterson launched his lobbying campaign for Dunedin to be put back on flight schedules. This was, of course, something which many people in the city had been working on for many months, although the added impetus of the publicity Benjamin gained did those working in the background no harm whatsoever. Many people, from the airport to the council to local politicians to Benjamin Patterson, can claim a moment in the sunshine which that first plane was bathed in when it landed in Dunedin on Tuesday. But in many ways the hard work starts now. As many of our aforementioned readers have noted in their letters, Jetstar is a business, not a charity, and unless people use this new route it will be closed. The expense, let alone the carbon footprint, of transtasman flights will be unjustifiable if the Airbus is full of empty seats. Dunedin's tourism operators already enthusiastically spruik the city and region's virtues to potential overseas visitors. Those efforts, not just in the Australian market but further afield, will now need to be redoubled so as to ensure a steady stream of sightseers to the city. Conference organisers should also be encouraged to put Dunedin back on their schedules, now that it is potentially easier for overseas attendees to make their way South. Inevitably, some have questioned whether Coolangatta is really the prime destination in Australia which southerners wish to travel to. But quite apart from the fact that there is plenty to recommend about its Gold Coast location, Coolangatta is an hour by road from Brisbane and its airport has regular connecting flights to all state capitals, as well as Indonesia, Canada and the United States. That does indeed make Dunedin closer to the world. The welcome mat was well and truly out on Tuesday, and hopefully it will remain so. Takutai Tarsh Kemp The death of Te Pati Māori MP Takutai Tarsh Kemp yesterday was the second time this Parliamentary term that the House has had to adjourn business as MPs mourn one of their own. She was not a prolific contributor in the debating chamber, but the kidney complaint which she quietly managed and which claimed her at the cruelly young age of 50 offers an explanation for that. It is also a reminder, as was the death of Green list MP Fa'anānā Efeso Collins last year, that there is an inequality in life expectancy statistics in New Zealand. Ms Kemp was a campaigner for Māori deprivation to be recognised and addressed, and that will be her political legacy.
1News
3 days ago
- 1News
NZ cities retain top-20 ranking on world's 'most liveable' list
Auckland and Wellington have both maintained their positions in the recently released list of the top 20 most liveable cities in the world for 2025. The City of Sails has again shared its seventh-placed equal ranking with Osaka, Japan, up two places from ninth equal last year. Our capital city Wellington stayed the same, coming in at 20th place. Both cities had recently been ranked highly by the annual index by the Economist Intelligence Unit. Wellington on one of those "good days". (Source: Getty) ADVERTISEMENT Auckland was ranked the world's most liveable city and Wellington was ranked fourth in the 2021 index. Across the ditch, Melbourne came in at fourth place while Sydney came in at sixth. Perth and Brisbane were ranked 15th and 16th respectively. The Danish capital of Copenhagen dethroned the Austrian capital of Vienna for the number one spot, ending a three-year reign. Christopher Luxon is expected to travel to Sydney to meet with Australian Prime Minister Anthony Albanese on Wednesday. (Source: Getty) The index, created by the Economist Intelligence Unit, rated 173 cities worldwide on factors such as stability, healthcare, culture and environment, education, and infrastructure. Damascus, Syria remained the least liveable city in the world. ADVERTISEMENT "Despite last year's regime change, Syria's capital city continues to be scarred by years of civil war and has seen no improvement in liveability," wrote the authors of the report. The top 20 most liveable cities 1. Copenhagen, Denmark 2. Vienna, Austria (tie) 2. Zurich, Switzerland (tie) 4. Melbourne, Australia 5. Geneva, Switzerland ADVERTISEMENT 6. Sydney, Australia 7. Osaka, Japan (tie) 7. Auckland, New Zealand (tie) 9. Adelaide, Australia 10. Vancouver, Canada 11. Luxembourg 12. Toronto, Canada ADVERTISEMENT 13. Helsinki, Finland 14. Tokyo, Japan 15. Perth, Australia 16. Brisbane, Australia 17. Frankfurt, Germany 18. Calgary, Canada 19. Amsterdam, Netherlands ADVERTISEMENT 20. Wellington, New Zealand.
