Whakarewarewa, Wai-o-tapu (Aguas Sagradas) y Mudd Lake
Trail photos
Author
Trail stats
- Distance
- 1.37 mi
- Elevation gain
- 23 ft
- Technical difficulty
- Easy
- Elevation loss
- 23 ft
- Max elevation
- 1,046 ft
- TrailRank
-
86
5
- Min elevation
- 947 ft
- Trail type
- Loop
- Moving time
- 26 minutes
- Time
- 31 minutes
- Coordinates
- 361
- Uploaded
- February 21, 2018
- Recorded
- February 2018
near Whakarewarewa, Bay of Plenty (New Zealand)
Viewed 1378 times, downloaded 36 times
Trail photos
Itinerary description
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Whakarewarewa and Waiotapu, in the vicinity of Rotorúa and visited in the same half-day, are areas of small size, of exceptional beauty and that constitute one of the most interesting tourist destinations in New Zealand. The area is designated in AA Traveler with the joint name of Geothermal Wonderland. Allow me the reader an immediate excuse: the actual track of the three points visited is considerably longer, about 7 km, but the file in which the tracks of Waiotapu and Lake Mudd were recorded, and which it was intended to incorporate together, has not been saved and I've lost that information. I have included among the photos that accompany this presentation the plan of the visit to Waiotapu; Given that the trails are perfectly marked, the visitor does not have any problem (once the entrance to the Reserve has been paid) to follow them. The first photos correspond to Waiotapu, later and marked by an indicative are those of Lake Mudd, and finally those of Whakarewarewa.
Wai-o-tapu is perhaps the most interesting. It is part of a Scenic Reserve, managed by the Government, and includes about 18 square km of surface, literally covered with collapsed craters, pools of boiling mud, water and fumaroles. The area is associated with a volcanic activity that began about 160,000 years ago, on the edge of a volcanic caldera that is part of the Taupo Volcanic Zone. The river that collects water from the area flows into the Waikato River and east into the Tasman Sea. The water, which rises at high temperatures of up to 300 ° C, carries in solution numerous minerals (including gold and silver, but also arsenic) that prevent the development of fish in the stream, and usually has a special smell due to the sulfur that combines with hydrogen (sulfhydryls).
At the beginning of the route there is a small lagoon, whose color changes with the weather (the weather pool), and then you go through a crater zone to reach a larger lagoon whose colors also change with the wind and the level of the water (Artist's Palette). A short path through the vegetation is known as The Sacred Track, possibly a place of primitive Maori settlement, through which the Bride's Veil waterfall is reached, entering the distal part of the route, from which it is possible to see in the distance the Ohaaki geothermal power station (whose operation, to take advantage of the naturally heated water, caused the disappearance of a multitude of geysers and other types of eruptions, some of which estimate up to 80% of the total existing in the zone). The sulfur cave precedes the arrival at Lake Ngakoro, with a beautiful waterfall. On the way back, in front of Artist's Palette is the Champagne Pool, a well 65 m in diameter and 62 deep, formed about 700 years ago, with edges of beautiful colors and sloping or broken areas as a result of seismic activity in area.
The Mudd Lake, a couple of km. of Wai-o-Tapu, is an extensive lagoon with large amounts of minerals in solution in the water, which creates an aspect of mud, which boils from the bubbles of released gases. It is the largest lagoon of its kind in New Zealand. Nearby, the Lady Knox Geyser has eruptions caused every day by introducing a surfactant agent into the geyser tube, reaching heights of 20 meters.
Whakarewarewa, the living Maori village, is a less natural area, in which the emphasis can be placed on trying to make the Maori culture known. The houses, in the immediate vicinity of areas with maintained geothermal activity, give an idea of how the Maori of the town live today, although the idea that they live there does not seem disposable to us because tourism provides ample means of subsistence; Of course we do not think that the smell of the place or the steam emanations of the thermal springs seems wonderful to you. The track shows the paths that can be traveled and, although this visit may be the least interesting in terms of geothermal activity, it undoubtedly has many attractions that make it advisable to visit. One last comment, at the end of the southwest area is the viewpoint on the Pohutu Geyser; It is an excellent viewpoint over the geyser, which is located in Te Puia, a private geothermal reserve, which is entered paying the corresponding entry, although its best attraction is better seen from another side (in this case the viewpoint cited).
Wai-o-tapu is perhaps the most interesting. It is part of a Scenic Reserve, managed by the Government, and includes about 18 square km of surface, literally covered with collapsed craters, pools of boiling mud, water and fumaroles. The area is associated with a volcanic activity that began about 160,000 years ago, on the edge of a volcanic caldera that is part of the Taupo Volcanic Zone. The river that collects water from the area flows into the Waikato River and east into the Tasman Sea. The water, which rises at high temperatures of up to 300 ° C, carries in solution numerous minerals (including gold and silver, but also arsenic) that prevent the development of fish in the stream, and usually has a special smell due to the sulfur that combines with hydrogen (sulfhydryls).
At the beginning of the route there is a small lagoon, whose color changes with the weather (the weather pool), and then you go through a crater zone to reach a larger lagoon whose colors also change with the wind and the level of the water (Artist's Palette). A short path through the vegetation is known as The Sacred Track, possibly a place of primitive Maori settlement, through which the Bride's Veil waterfall is reached, entering the distal part of the route, from which it is possible to see in the distance the Ohaaki geothermal power station (whose operation, to take advantage of the naturally heated water, caused the disappearance of a multitude of geysers and other types of eruptions, some of which estimate up to 80% of the total existing in the zone). The sulfur cave precedes the arrival at Lake Ngakoro, with a beautiful waterfall. On the way back, in front of Artist's Palette is the Champagne Pool, a well 65 m in diameter and 62 deep, formed about 700 years ago, with edges of beautiful colors and sloping or broken areas as a result of seismic activity in area.
The Mudd Lake, a couple of km. of Wai-o-Tapu, is an extensive lagoon with large amounts of minerals in solution in the water, which creates an aspect of mud, which boils from the bubbles of released gases. It is the largest lagoon of its kind in New Zealand. Nearby, the Lady Knox Geyser has eruptions caused every day by introducing a surfactant agent into the geyser tube, reaching heights of 20 meters.
Whakarewarewa, the living Maori village, is a less natural area, in which the emphasis can be placed on trying to make the Maori culture known. The houses, in the immediate vicinity of areas with maintained geothermal activity, give an idea of how the Maori of the town live today, although the idea that they live there does not seem disposable to us because tourism provides ample means of subsistence; Of course we do not think that the smell of the place or the steam emanations of the thermal springs seems wonderful to you. The track shows the paths that can be traveled and, although this visit may be the least interesting in terms of geothermal activity, it undoubtedly has many attractions that make it advisable to visit. One last comment, at the end of the southwest area is the viewpoint on the Pohutu Geyser; It is an excellent viewpoint over the geyser, which is located in Te Puia, a private geothermal reserve, which is entered paying the corresponding entry, although its best attraction is better seen from another side (in this case the viewpoint cited).
Waypoints
Photo
978 ft
Comments (3)
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Bonita visita al poblado maorí y haka .....
Increíble lugar. Tal vez las mejores fotos de tu viaje.
Impresionante área geotermal.