Waiotemaramo Loop Track - Tuesday 17th March

Today we had two walks.The first was one of great beauty while the second, through dense forest, called on us to utilize our scrambling skills to the utmost. The Waiotemaramo Loop Track took us through a very pretty forest area full of tall palm trees and fantail like silver fern. Occasionally we would come across a towering kauri tree. We continued alongside a gurgling stream and slowly descended to the very beautiful 20 metre Waiotemaramo Falls. Waiotemaramo itself means "Water of the Moon". We had decided to keep going on what is known as the Hauturu Highpoint Track, which involved a steady and almost vertical climb. There had been constant quite heavy rain all morning and  the falling wet forest leaves had turned the trail into mulch making it extremely slippery, but with the help of tree roots and the assistance of our trekking poles we reached the summit and were rewarded with some stunning if somewhat damp landscape views. The Hauturu Highpoint is marked by a large wooden pyramid mounted on a tall frame and we crowded beneath it like smiling drowned rodents, pleased at our mild triumph before making our way off the bluff, this time thankfully in descent.  By this time we had been walking in excess of six hours in inclement weather with only two ten minute breaks and were keen to get home and reward ourselves with a hot shower and an apéritif.