Te Araroa 29/10/25

Day 34, Kaniwhaniwha to Pahautea Hut (841)

Last night was what could definitely be classified as 'interesting'. Very heavy rain with plenty of thunder overnight, tent tested and passed.

It was a little stream last night

It had actually stopped raining by the morning and I was able to pack up, not dry but without adding any extra water.

Into the jungle 

The path was, as expected, like a river in places but the mud wasn't as bad as I thought it would be.

Some really nice trees

It would have been an excellent ridge if it hadn't been for all the vegetarian. This is what happens here, anywhere that's not farmed is just native bush even up to today's 3000 peak.

Not much of a view

The cloud was low so the occasional gaps did not reveal any interesting views.

Observation tower 

There is an observation tower at the top which I climbed, there wasn't any point but it was there.

Nothing to see from the top

I continued down to the DOC campsite and hut and stopped in the cooking shelter for a museli bar and some water and suddenly it was as if someone turned on a tap. The wind picked up as well and I stayed there for a while thinking it may ease.

SJ & Di playing cards in the hut

It didn't and I went round to the hut for a look and found SJ, Di and Ruby inside. They had arrived last night and decided not to go anywhere today.

Ruby doing some cross stitch 

I stayed for a while and the weather got worse and worse so I decided to stay at the hut for the night. A sensible decision I think rather than walking on in the current conditions which got worse as the afternoon went on. The wind became very strong with hail squalls.

The sky cleared in the evening but the wind was very gusty and the hail not melting on the ground. A bit chilly.

Te Araroa 28/10/25

Day 33, Hamilton to Kaniwhaniwha (832)

It rained overnight but it had cleared by the time I started walking through Hamilton.

The centre of Hamilton 

I was looking at all the buildings in the centre and forgot to turn off onto the trail so did some extra sightseeing before I left the town.

Lake Rotoroa in Hamilton 

Unfortunately there was a lot of road walking again today as the Karamu Walkway over the hills is closed for lambing until October 31st, I didn't think it would matter that much but it's better to stick to the rules and not cause problems for future generations of walkers.

Taitua Arboretum 

Good dairy farming land here, all divided into paddocks with roadways for the cows to travel on.

Cows everywhere 

I forgot to mention yesterday that I had passed a huge milk processing factory but I was reminded of it today because of all the milk tankers driving about.

Milk lorry on a farm road

They were particularly noticable today because it is a holiday and they were about the only trucks on the road.

Beautiful green countryside 

Farmyards are definitely different now if the 16 and 18 wheelers can get in and out.

River up to the campsite 

As forecast it started raining in the afternoon but heavier than they expected and I was looking forward to a nice shelter at the campsite only to find there isn't one.

Campsite 

Tent up and dive inside trying to keep the essentials dry.

Te Araroa 27/10/25

Day 32, Ngaruawahia to Hamilton (791)

A wet night but nearly dry in the morning and then stayed dry all day, cloudy with sunny intervals.

Back to the river

A very straightforward walk today, just following the cycleway / footpath.

Cycleway 

Ngaruawahia is where the Waipa river joins the Waikato which didn't seem much smaller even then.

Cycleway bridge

The cycleway is a well made concrete road and even has a specially built bridge over the river.

Still a big river 

I met two people walking their dog over the bridge and got into a discussion with them and found out that their grandparents came from the Isle of Man. It seems that there are quite a few from there in the area and there even used to be Manx Society meetings.

Nice little café for lunch

After much discussion with myself I had decided to buy a new pair of shoes in Hamilton. The old ones still have quite a few miles left in them but probably not enough to get to Wellington.

Hamilton suburbs 

Unfortunately they didn't have my size in stock but I ordered them anyway and they will send them on to me when I give them a suitable address.

Bridge north of Hamilton 

The half of Hamilton that I have seen is pleasant enough for the fifth most populated town in New Zealand including a cheap Microtel which is as suggested a hotel with tiny rooms, not as small as the Japanese pods but just big enough for me.

Hamilton 

I am planning a longer day tomorrow as I head for less populated countryside so it was useful to replenish the food stocks both in my pack and in me while in the town.

Microtel

Te Araroa 25/10/25

Day 31, Huntly to Ngaruawahia (770)

A cloudy day again with a few sunny intervals and it stayed at a good walking temperature all day.

River and road bridge in the morning 

The first stage was to walk back through the town of Huntly and cross the river on the long road bridge before once again following the river bank up stream.

The Waikato river is the longest in New Zealand 

I had an interesting chat with a local in the campsite kitchen when I was preparing my porridge. Not only did he have a lot of interesting information about the local area but he had also worked in Britain and Ireland and was interested in places he knew there.

At the start of the Hakarimata Walkway 

After about 6k the trail turns away from the river and climbs the Hakarimata Walkway through the bush high above the river.

Steps up into the Bush

There are steps to ascend or descend at both ends but the section in the middle a very rough bush track 

Kauri trees

It was tough walking over the roots and mud with numerous steep accents and decent along the ridge, the whole thing taking me longer than expected. 

A difficult path

There were a few viewpoints on the way but it was a bit misty so the long distances rather blurry.

Looking towards Hamilton 

There were a number of people going up and down the steps at the southern end, obviously a popular route for local keep fit fanatics, someone told me that there are a thousand steps, I believe it.

Some of the thousand steps down 

A nice little place to camp near Ngaruawahia at someone's homestead (Kandoit Earthship). I was invited to the house but he had a couple of Mormon Preachers coming in the evening so I regretfully declined the offer.

Te Araroa 24/10/25

Day 30, Rangiriri to Huntly (752)

There was a shower of biblical proportions last night but it had blown over by morning and the day was bright and dry.

Rangiriri Hotel

A short day today as the next stage over the Hakarimata Walkway appears to have no camping spots and I decided that it would have been too far, for me, to get to Ngaruawhia tonight. Almost a rest day.

Morning sun over the river

Today's route just followed the flood bank on the west side of the river which made it an easy walk with a number of calves and some larger ones for company.

Company of youngsters 

And larger ones

I got to the nicely manicured grounds of the Huntly Golf Club and thought I would go to the clubhouse to see if they had a café.

Huntly Golf Course

I came across someone who looked like a general factotum, but from what he was saying I suspect he could have been the secretary or president.

A bit of road walking after the Golf Club

The bar/cafe was not open but he put the kettle on and made me a coffee and we had an interesting chat before I went on my way.

Huntly power station

The next landmark was Huntly power station. This was built to use the coal from the local coalmine, that is now closed, and it is now a natural gas powered standby for when the renewables can't cope.

Power station chimneys 

A very iconic building, particularly the chimneys.

Sculpture park 

Just past the power station is a sculpture park to commemorate the agreement made in 1995 compensating the locals for a land confiscation in 1860

The river at Huntly

Huntly campsite is good, the town somewhat less impressive.

Huntly campsite