The Waikato River Trails is a combined walk- and cycleway along the

Waikato River The Waikato River is the longest river in New Zealand, running for through the North Island. It rises on the eastern slopes of Mount Ruapehu, joining the Tongariro River system and flowing through Lake Taupō, New Zealand's largest lake. It th ...

. Originally conceived and started by local politicians and trustees, in 2009 the trails became one of the seven Quick Start Projects that form the beginning of the

New Zealand Cycle Trail The New Zealand Cycle Trail project (Māori: ''Nga Haerenga'', "The Journeys") is a New Zealand government initiative, co-funded together with local councils and charitable trusts, which is to build and operate a network of cycle routes throug ...

. The trail is proposed to be 100 km long, out of which 50 km existed before the NZCT scheme was created. In mid-2011, work on the last sections of the cycle trail project sections was begun, while the official grand opening occurred early November 2011.

Location

The trails are located in the

Waikato Region Waikato () is a local government region of the upper North Island of New Zealand. It covers the Waikato District, Waipa District, Matamata-Piako District, South Waikato District and Hamilton City, as well as Hauraki, Coromandel Peninsula, t ...

along the

. They pass through the districts of

South Waikato South Waikato District is a local government district in the Waikato Region of the North Island of New Zealand. It is located between the cities of Hamilton to the north, Rotorua to the east, Taupo to the south and Ruapehu District to the west. ...

Ōtorohanga Ōtorohanga is a north King Country town in the Waikato region in the North Island of New Zealand. It is located south of Hamilton and north of Te Kūiti, on the Waipā River. It is a service town for the surrounding dairy-farming distri ...

and

Taupō Taupō (), sometimes written Taupo, is a town on the north-eastern shore of Lake Taupō, New Zealand's largest lake, in the central North Island. It is the largest urban area of the Taupō District, and the second-largest urban area in the Wai ...

. At present, seven trails exist. They are: Arapuni Village to Arapuni Dam, Arapuni Dam to Jones Landing, Whakamaru Dam to Whakamaru Reserve, Ongaroto Bluffs Trail, Whakamaru Christian Camp to Snowsill, Dunham Creek Mobility Trail and the Ātiamuri Trail The Whakamaru Christian Camp to Snowsill trail is approximately 3 km long and takes around half an hour to walk. The Whakamaru Camp is also a great place to camp at.

History

In September 2003, the South Waikato Economic Development Trust established a Waikato River Trail Management Group. The Waikato River Trails Trust managing the trail was incorporated on 3 February 2006. In 2004, a 3 km trail from Arapuni Dam to Jones Landing was opened, marking the start of the construction project. On 10 November 2009, Prime Minister

John Key Sir John Phillip Key (born 9 August 1961) is a New Zealand retired politician who served as the 38th prime minister of New Zealand, Prime Minister of New Zealand from 2008 to 2016 and as Leader of the New Zealand National Party from 2006 to ...

officially launched the construction of the first New Zealand Cycle Trail project at the Little Waipa Reserve adjacent to the Waikato River. This site, on Horahora Road, has now gone down in history as the spot where turf was first turned on the first of seven of the Government’s Quick Start projects. The first contract was signed in April 2010, assigning $3.4 million from the cycle trail fund to construct the last 41 km of the 100 km distance. In addition, it is estimated that volunteer and in-kind work was donated to a total of $1.5 million. The opening was scheduled to be in time for the

2010 World Rowing Championships The 2010 World Rowing Championships were World Rowing Championships that were held from 31 October to 7 November 2010 on Lake Karapiro near Cambridge, New Zealand. The annual week-long rowing regatta was organised by FISA (the International Rowi ...

Lake Karapiro Lake Karapiro () is an artificial reservoir lake on the Waikato River at Karapiro, south-east of Cambridge in New Zealand's North Island. The lake was formed in 1947 by the damming of the Waikato River to store water for the 96-megawatt Karap ...

, near

Cambridge Cambridge ( ) is a university city and the county town in Cambridgeshire, England. It is located on the River Cam approximately north of London. As of the 2021 United Kingdom census, the population of Cambridge was 145,700. Cambridge bec ...

New Zealand New Zealand ( mi, Aotearoa ) is an island country in the southwestern Pacific Ocean. It consists of two main landmasses—the North Island () and the South Island ()—and over 700 smaller islands. It is the sixth-largest island count ...

from 29 October – 7 November. The trail conservatively attracts about 20,000 people per year, with much of the visitors coming from the Auckland and Waikato regions.

Trail description

Originally, the trail was envisaged as a walking track only. When users started cycling the sections that had been opened, the scope was widened for the trail to be of dual use for pedestrians and cyclists. For cycling, the target market is family off-road usage with a mountain biking grade of 2–3. One section of the trail at Dunham Creek is suitable for wheelchair access. As of early 2010, 30 km of trails are already open for use, 23 km are built but yet to be opened, 6 km are under construction and a further 41 km are planned to be constructed during 2010. As at 2 September 2011 – The section of the WRT between the Mangakino Lakefront Reserve, and the new swing bridge over the Mangakino Stream is nearing completion. From the swing bridge, the trail is completed through to the Whakamaru Reserve and onward to the Whakamaru Dam. The trust also planted 6,000 native trees as part of riparian restoration along the trail, as well as erecting 18 km of fencing to protect the river from direct impacts of dairy farming.

Attractions

At 425 km, the Waikato River is New Zealand's longest river. The Waikato River has spiritual meaning for various local

Māori Māori or Maori can refer to: Relating to the Māori people * Māori people of New Zealand, or members of that group * Māori language, the language of the Māori people of New Zealand * Māori culture * Cook Islanders, the Māori people of the C ...

tribe The term tribe is used in many different contexts to refer to a category of human social group. The predominant worldwide usage of the term in English language, English is in the discipline of anthropology. This definition is contested, in p ...

s including the large

Tainui Tainui is a tribal waka confederation of New Zealand Māori iwi. The Tainui confederation comprises four principal related Māori iwi of the central North Island of New Zealand: Hauraki, Ngāti Maniapoto, Ngāti Raukawa and Waikato. There are oth ...

, who regard it as a source of their

mana According to Melanesian and Polynesian mythology, ''mana'' is a supernatural force that permeates the universe. Anyone or anything can have ''mana''. They believed it to be a cultivation or possession of energy and power, rather than being a ...

or pride. There are several hydro lakes along this stretch of the Waikato River: *Lake Ātiamuri was formed behind the Ātiamuri Power Station. *Lake Whakamaru was formed behind the

Whakamaru Power Station Whakamaru Power Station is a hydroelectric power station on the Waikato River, in the North Island of New Zealand. It is the fourth hydroelectric power station on the Waikato River. Lake Whakamaru is one of the larger hydro reservoirs on the W ...

. *

Lake Maraetai Lake Maraetai is one of several artificial lakes formed as part of a hydroelectricity scheme on the Waikato River in the North Island of New Zealand. It is located southeast of Hamilton, close to the town of Mangakino Mangakino is a small ...

is a sheltered and scenic lake of 4.4 km² close to the town of

Mangakino Mangakino is a small town on the banks of the Waikato River in the North Island of New Zealand. It is located close to the hydroelectric power station at Lake Maraetai, southeast of Hamilton. The town and its infrastructure are administered a ...

. At the lakefront reserve in Mangakino you will find the iconi
Bus Stop Cafe
There is plenty of parking and free camping for tents and campervans. BBQ, power and toilets available. *Lake Waipapa is located where the Waipapa River flows into the Waikato River. *

Lake Arapuni Lake Arapuni is one of several artificial lakes formed as part of a hydroelectricity scheme on the Waikato River in the North Island of New Zealand. It is southeast of Hamilton, to the north of Mangaki ...

is formed by the Arapuni Dam. *Lake Karapiro was the last of the eight hydroelectric power stations built on the Waikato River, created in 1947. The

Arapuni Suspension Bridge The Arapuni Suspension Bridge is located just downstream from the Arapuni Power Station on the Waikato River in the South Waikato District of New Zealand. The suspension bridge in the bush-lined gorge was built in the mid-1920s to allow workers ...

, a popular tourist destination with a span of 152 m, is located just downstream from the Arapuni Power Station.
The Taniwha
is a Multi Sport Event utilising the WRT. Distances from 7–88 km for bikers, runners and walkers this great event normally runs in November.

Corporate sponsorship

Mercury Energy Mercury NZ Limited is a New Zealand electricity generation and multi-product utility retailer of electricity, gas, broadband and mobile telephone services. All the company's electricity generation is renewable. In August 2021, Mercury acquired ...

, the owner and operator of the hydroelectric generating stations on the Waikato River, is a major sponsor of the Waikato River Trails Trust.

References

External links

Waikato River Trails websiteNew Zealand Cycle Trail website
{{New Zealand Cycle Trail Hiking and tramping tracks in Waikato New Zealand Cycle Trail Protected areas of Waikato Waikato River