Trails › New Zealand › Waikato
Huka Falls to Aratiatia Rapids Track
Next nearby hike: Rotary Ride and Waikato River Track 2.7 mi · 4.3 kmExplore Waikato →
Huka Falls to Aratiatia Rapids Track other trails nearby (tap a dot to open it)
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NZ Department of Conservation (CC BY 4.0) · OpenStreetMap · Official page · Basemap: OpenFreeMap (OpenMapTiles, © OSM contributors).
7-day forecast
Open-Meteo (CC BY 4.0)Best time to hike
Year-round
- J21°12°95
- F21°13°90
- M19°11°97
- A16°9°103
- M13°7°109
- J11°5°134
- J10°4°139
- A11°5°126
- S13°6°116
- O15°7°115
- N17°9°101
- D20°11°132
Average high °C · low °C · precipitation mm per month. Highlighted: best months.
How we pick months
Best months are those where the 1981–2010 average daily high is 10–27 °C (50–81 °F), the average overnight low is 0 °C (32 °F) or warmer, and average precipitation is 200 mm (7.9 in) or less. Values are long-term monthly averages for the ~1 km cell at the trail point on the map, from CHELSA V2.1 climatologies (Karger et al., CC0), not a forecast. Higher or more exposed parts of a route can be colder, wetter or snowier.
About this trail
Several times a day the gates at the Aratiatia dam are opened to release the full flow of the river - a spectacular sight from the lookout points. Stay safe and keep clear of the rapids at all times.
NZ Department of Conservation (CC BY 4.0).
Trail facts
- Length
- 4.9 km · 3.0 mi (DOC route geometry)
- Source
- NZ Department of Conservation (CC BY 4.0)
- Difficulty
- Easy (3/10) (Easy · NZ Department of Conservation difficulty (CC BY 4.0))
- Typical time (DOC)
- 10 min | 2 hr
- Official page
- doc.govt.nz/link/7d8f2be1b976470f9ab0da5dbbd
- Nearest town
- 2.2 km NE of Wairakei (Taupo District, Waikato Region) · GeoNames
- Best months
- Year-round
- Country
- New Zealand
- Region
- Waikato
- Continent
- Oceania
- Route centre
- -38.6232, 176.1220
How it’s scored
Easy (3/10). Official rating: Easy · NZ Department of Conservation difficulty (CC BY 4.0).
A score is omitted when we do not have an official rating or enough measured length and elevation gain to compute one. Nothing is guessed. Read the NPS method: https://www.nps.gov/shen/planyourvisit/how-to-determine-hiking-difficulty.htm
Hikers can rate difficulty from 1 to 10 (1 = flat, short, easy walk for anyone; 3 = gentle hills, a little effort; 5 = moderate climbs, some fitness needed; 7 = steep or long, solid fitness required; 10 = extremely strenuous or technical; long steep climbing; experienced hikers only). The community average is shown once at least 3 people have rated the trail; until then the official or computed score is used when we have one.
Nearest trails
distance from the trail centreRotary Ride and Waikato River Track
2.7 mi · 4.3 km · Waikato
Spa Park to Huka Falls Walk
2.8 mi · 4.5 km · Waikato
Opepe walks
11 mi · 18 km · Waikato
Whakaipo Bay tracks
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Kawakawa Bay tracks
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Waihāhā and Waihora tracks
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