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New Zealand
> National Parks > Whanganui
Whanganui
National Park is close by and there are heaps of excellent walks
throughout the region, one of the
most popular being the 40-minute bush walk from the Mangapurua Landing to the Bridge to Nowhere, 30km up
the stream from Pipiriki. The Matemateaonga Walkway
and the Mangapurua are much longer, and are one-way
tracks. They either begin or end on remote parts of
the river, and you need to get a jet boat to get
out.
Most of
the Jet boat operators are based further up the
river at Ohakune, Raetihi, National Park or
Taumarunui. The river ends at Wanganui, and the
Wanganui River Road runs along the river most of the
way between Wanganui and Pipiriki. It is an
excellent drive, and is worth going out of the way
for!
This
road can be taken as a round trip to Raetihi, going
past the Paraparas and the Mangawhero River Gorge.
The road leads you to some amazing natural and
historical sites, some of these being the old Maori
Pa sites, several Maori villages, churches, and
buildings. There are also some old riverboats, which
are being restored.
There
are many very good walks coming off this road, with
lengths from 3 hours to 8 hours. They have an array
of farmland, native forests, amazing views,
sandstone bluffs and fossilised shellfish beds. It
is important to make sure you have enough petrol
here or you might find yourself stuck! If you’re not
driving, the best way to see this area is the mail
bus, which takes sightseers along for a ride!
Accommodation -
DOC Website.
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