Over the weekend, we decided to head away from the city and toward the outer edges of the greater Auckland region. Auckland is known as the one real, bustling metropolis in New Zealand… and it is, but that doesn’t stop it from possessing its own little oases of stunning natural beauty that the rest of the country so effortlessly offers.
Hunua Falls
On Saturday, we headed South and East to the Hunua Ranges, not too far from the Auckland/Waikato border. It’s an hours drive from the CBD and about half an hour from the SH1 motorway. But almost immediately after leaving the highway, the surroundings transform into the wonderful rural landscapes you might typically associate with New Zealand; but not so with Auckland.
You drive alongside a very pleasant stream that grows in both size and aesthetic value as you get nearer the falls, offering little tasters in the form of tiny waterfalls along the way.
The Hunua Falls reserve is immaculately kept and despite the toilets and the odd picnic bench, the area easily maintains all of its natural beauty. The actual falls were fantastic – better than the pictures even. A wall of water 30 meters high gushes into a large pool at the bottom, which then feeds off into a small river.
It really was a beautiful area and the falls were genuinely spectacular – my favourite New Zealand waterfall to date. However, just a day later it soon became my second favourite New Zealand waterfall!
Kitekite Falls
On the Sunday we again headed away from the city toward the outer edges of Auckland – this time to the west coast to the lovely area of Piha; again about an hours drive from the city. We’d been to Piha beach a few months ago but decided to head back in the summer having since read about Kitekite Falls.
The falls are accessible by a ~30 minute track (each way) which starts at the end of Glenesk Road (2 minutes from Piha beach by car). The walk is really nice as it makes its way alongside a vivid blue stream/brook and sheltered by the lush combination of palms and kauri trees.
About 20 minutes into the walk, you leave the stream and head up a relatively steep section before leveling off at a point which offers tremendous views of the forest below. Eventually, you come to an opening in the trees, framing an absolutely stunning view of Kitekite Falls in its entirety; all SIX falls combining to create one glorious waterfall.
You then continue a little further down the track to the base of the falls. This is the bit that bowled me over. I’d come across similar scenes before when browsing through pictures posted by the many Twitter accounts that post photos of amazingly beautiful places from all around the world. Suddenly, I was staring right at one!
From the base you can see the bottom three falls, around which the high walls curve inwards to create the most perfect looking pool you’ve ever seen for the falls to drop into. I only wish we’d caught it on a boiling hot day as it was just crying out for me to dive into it!
We’ve seen some amazing sights since being in this country and although we’re yet to see the majority of it, this little oasis goes right to the top of the list for now and will take some beating.
If you’re in Auckland – which you no doubt will be if you find yourself travelling New Zealand, then take the time to head out west to Piha and enjoy the exceptional views, wonderful beach and experience the perfectly isolated Kitekite Falls, just a 30 minute walk into the bush. You won’t be disappointed.