The next spot I am going to write about in New Zealand has been visited by me not once, but twice, during my stay in New Zealand. It is the Hunua Falls! The circumstance was curious: The first time, I had been to New Zealand alone, and my brother, who lives there, took me to Hunua Falls with him and his friends.
The second time, my parents came over to New Zealand, and we went there with my brother and parents. Anyway, enough of the backstory – this is Hunua Falls! This waterfall is part of the Hunua Ranges Regional Park in Auckland. The waterfall itself is part of the Wairoa River, which makes its way through an ancient volcano. Unfortunately, I have not been able to visit the volcano, just the waterfall. But still, it was a perfect place.
I took this picture the first time I visited Hunua Falls, which was on a cloudy day and hence did not offer me much opportunity to take pictures. However, the second visit to Hunua Falls was different.
The Falls, Auckland
The Falls, as I said, is located in a regional park, where people can go for long hikes. However, we did not go on that hike.
The entrance to the Falls had a procedure: People needed to clean their footwear in a particular special station designed for the purpose of a specific pathogen that affected New Zealand’s native tree, the Kauri. The trees were slowly dying all over the country, and the footwear + hiking gear cleaning station was an effort to combat that.
Close up, and the falls looked like this:
There were people in swimsuits enjoying the water, but there were only a few doing so, and we did not come with swimsuits.
There were two banks: one is where I was standing when I took the above picture, the other one is where you see people standing. To cross to the other side required passage on slippery rocks: an undertaking.
On the other side, the scenes I saw were magnificent. I’ll let the pictures do the talking.
Here comes the pics
A pathway connecting the opposite bank to the main entrance, which I was not aware of, but I did find it. (It looks like something out of Lord Of The Rings, to be honest):
Aaaand… That’s it. Without a second thought, Hunua Falls, Auckland was a very refreshing place, with plenty of potentials as a picnic spot (do not litter, please!). There is a food stand near the entrance with snacks and burgers and other things to have, including beverages.
Until next time!
Accommodation in Hunua Falls
Tight Budget Stay in Auckland: If you’re looking to book a stay in Auckland on a tight budget, check out accommodations on HostelWorld. Check out the accommodations for the best prices today!
For a great family vacation, booking.com always has great deals around to help you. Here are some of them:
Here are some other places you might like to visit:
Find this post useful? Pin it for later:
*This post contains affiliate links to travel-related sites. A small commission is received at no additional costs of the services to you. We only recommend products and services that we trust.
Great pictures Vishal. I’m amazed to know that you had to clean your shoes to save the native tree. New Zealanders are must be sensitive for nature and ecology.