This is a sweet little waterfall in the Hawke’s Bay that requires a day trip to the beach to really make the most of the roadie out there. The great thing is that you don’t have to hike to the falls (it’s maybe a 5min walk from the road) but you do need to know where it is, or you might miss it!!! You would never know there’s an amazing picnic-swimming-waterfall spot off the road just by driving past.
So. Pack a picnic and take the 45 min drive south of Napier and head to Waimarama Beach for the day. You will not regret it. It’s so beautiful. Maybe one of the best North Island NZ beaches we have visited to date. The swimming was amazing. And I mean, seriously, check out this view:
If you’re super keen for a whole day outing, you could even squeeze in Te Mata Peak on the way. We didn’t do this, but maybe next time!!
Then, drive as if you are heading back towards town along Waimarama Rd until there’s a left hand turn to Maraetotara Rd (yes! These roads have super helpful names that are the same as your destinations!). In 2.5km (20mins from the beach), you will see on the right hand side 2 different car parky bits. You can park at either of them, wherever there is room.
From each of the carparks there are little tracks down the falls. We made it a “loop walk” and went down one and cane up the other, then walked back to the car along the road. The falls are super obvious and there are heaps of great picnic spots (that give intense lord of the ring vibes) like this one:
About the falls:
From what I can gather, the falls are part of the old Havelock North Power Station. It looks very concrete and I presume is an old dam. There is actually a “Maraetotara Historical Walkway” where you can walk to the old power station but we didn’t know about this at the time.
The falls are not very high and we saw people jumping from the top (although I wouldn’t advise this unless you’re a really good swimmer and adrenaline junkie-then it’s your risk to take). There is also a rope swing from a tree at another jumping spot.
Below the falls is a large swimming area, which was amazingly refreshing. It reminded me of swimming in Vanuatu natural pools. Unfortunately we did spot an eel, which was like eeeewwwww (and I then got out and refused to get back in. But in reality it would have been fine).
I wish I’d taken more photos for you, but I was too busy soaking up the sun and enjoying my swim. Will try remember my go-pro in the future so that I can snap more pics.
Happy exploring
(& don’t stop chasing those waterfalls)
Xx
Moochelle