Tupapakurua Falls Track
Alerts
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Forecast point: Tongariro VC (1160m) · 14.7km away
Check the DOC website for current alerts and conditions before you go. This site gets current alert info from DOC, but is not an official source of information.
Walk to a lookout point with views of Mt Taranaki and Mt Ruapehu, then on to the remote Tupapakurua Falls.
Elevation
Cover mapped summer 2023/24.
Description
The track begins with an easy 20 minute walk to the Taranaki Lookout with a view towards Mt Taranaki, and views back to Mt Ruapehu and Hauhungatahi.
From this point the track becomes more rugged, suitable for more experienced walkers. The track follows a ridge and then descends steeply about 230 m down to a stream. Conditions can be slippery / muddy following rain.
Tupapakurua Falls plummet to the valley floor in splendid isolation, amidst regenerating podocarp forest. There is a wonderful diversity of plant and tree species with good stands of tawa, mature rimu, miro and totara.
Climbing back up from the stream, the track winds its way around bluffs with beautiful forest views and good lookout points to the waterfalls.
Return via the same track.
This old Forest Service track was upgraded by the local community in partnership with DOC, adding a wonderful forest walk to the region.
DOC maintains the track to the lookout but not to the falls.
Getting there
Begins at Fishers Road, Waimarino (formerly National Park Village). Either walk from the village up Fishers Road to the beginning of the track itself (30 min), or drive up Fishers Road to the parking area.
Weather
Forecast at the start of the track