Maungatautari New Zealand

As part of our holiday in NZ one of the places we really wanted to visit was Maungatautari New Zealand. A mountain located in the Waikato, centre of the North Island near the towns of Cambridge, Te Awamutu and Putaruru, which is the location of a predator-free fully fenced wildlife reserve.

From the northern side of the mountain you can see as far as Lake Karapiro, and from the Pukeatua side you can see the Kaimai Range, Pirongia, Pureora Forest Park and Karioi... depending on if the weather is clear enough to see that far.

We took a leisurely drive from Auckland via Hamilton, Ohaupo, Te Awamutu, and on down to Pukeatua to the Out in the Styx Cafe and Guest House for our evening meal and accommodation (map).

It was a lovely evening so while our meal was being prepared we quickly took a short drive up to Tari Road car park to take a look at where we would be doing a bush hike the following morning in the Maungatautari pest-proof enclosure.

The Maungatautari New Zealand is a wildlife haven that is now completely predator-free due to predator-proof (even mouse-proof) fence being erected around the entire perimeter of the mountain. We were really looking forward to the next days walk.

Because we didn't have very much time, out of the several walks available, we decided to do the shorter Rata Loop Track inside one of the pest-free enclosures.

The Rata Loop Track walk includes the aviary and tree top viewing tower. The start of the hike can be accessed from Tari Road (Pukeatua) on the southern side of Maungatautari New Zealand, off Arapuni Road opposite the Pukeatua school.

The purpose of the fence is so that native New Zealand birds can be reintroduced into the wild without the threat posed by predators that originally did not orininally exist on these islands. I hope I have my facts right when I say there have now been more than 24 kiwi, 14 kaka and 2 takahe, 79 hihi and 60 whiteheads reintroduced to Maungatautari. The area has the potential to support up to 2,000 birds so there is plenty of space for many more in the future.

A fantastic testament to the success of the Maungatautari New Zealand project was when the first chick appeared from it's burrow on 10th December 2007. This was the first kiwi chick to hatch in the wild on Maungatautari in over one hundred years and this was only possible because of the hard work of members and friends of the trust, and financial support from sponsors of this project. We also visited the places where this chicks parents were hatched; Rainbow Springs in Rotorua and Otorohanga Kiwi House, Otorohanga.

Maungatautari - an internationally significant restoration project, this 3,400 hectare forested, extinct volcano stands majestically on the landscape in the Waikato basin, between Cambridge, Te Awamutu and Putaruru, in the central North Island of New Zealand. Takahe, kiwi, kaka (birds) and kokopu (fish) have already been reintroduced to two pest free enclosures!
Ref: Maungatautari Ecological Island Trust

Visit the Maungatautari Ecological Island Trust web site for more information on this amazing place. Location maps.

 

Out in the Styx Cafe and Guest House is an excellent place to stay while visiting the area, the accommodation is very reasonably priced and the food is absolutely amazing. Out in the Styx Guesthouse also operate a drop-off service to the Hicks Road end of the walking tracks so you can walk back and not worry about having to return for your vehicle.

Other NZ Walks

The Great Walks

More about our New Zealand tour