New Zealand - Owhango, Ohakune
- Mar 4
- 6 min read
Hello Friends and Family,
The beginning of our second week in New Zealand is still meeting us with new and exciting things to explore. From Rotorua we drove about two and a half hours to Ōwhango. We finally found the waterfall we had been looking for when we visited Bruny Island. It is not in Australia, it is here in Tongariro National Park New Zealand.
We didn't even have to go off trail to find the waterfall, but ya'll know we did just becuase it is fun.
After our little mini-adventure to the waterfall, we arrived to our AirBnB. It was a post office and telephone exchange.
The decorations were eclectic, but what we enjoyed the most were some of the old letters that were on display. One letter was written from the old postmaster to the new owner about the post office closing. You could see how much the post office would be missed in the community.
Just around the corner from the old post office was a scenic reserve.
There was a whole section of the reserve that you could explore by bike or 4-wheel drive. However, there was a sign that warned it was for experienced adventures and to bring everything you may need, because once you start there is no turning around. We stuck to the simple looped walking trail and left the real crazy for someone else.
The following morning we woke up super early, well, super early for us, to go on a Forgotten World Adventure. We drove golf carts outfitted for an abandoned rail road track.
The entire stretch of the railroad is about 89 kilometers. We drove on track for about 27 km. When the railroad was taking passengers and freight through this area it was a happening place. There was a Ford dealership that sold the most Fords in New Zealand. There was even a theater. Now it is just beautiful farmland and truly a forgotten world.
The Forgotten World Adventure has a 2 day and 4 day tour. We figure if we are ever back in New Zealand we will try an overnight trip on this abandoned stretch of railroad and travel all 89 km.
The next day we drive to Ohakune. It's only about an hour away from Ōwhango. We arrive early enough that we decide to rent some electrical bikes. We finally found a place that had not only electric mountain bikes, but also a kid seat.
The bike trails were so much fun. We have done electric bikes a handful of times on our travels, but never mountain bikes. And these trails were just a lot of fun. There were so many different terrains. We would go from forrest, to prairie and then to gravel.
We then left the national park and headed onto the Old Coach Road. The Old Coach Road was essentially the horse and buggy road. However, once trains and cars became available the road was used less.
We rode the all the way to Hapuawhenua Viaduct. This is an old bridge that was used for trains. Now it is a foot bridge as technology has improved and trains no longer need to use curved bridges.
We had to hustle back to the bike shop as we were trying to beat the worst of the rain. But it was so good to get back on bikes again. It had been some time since we had been able to ride as a family. Atlas was pretty quiet the entire bike ride. He would look back and give me a grin to make sure I was following him and daddy. By time we got back to the car, he couldn't even make it to dinner before he fell asleep.
The next day we went on a speedboat on the Whanganui River.
You can do a 3 or 5 day canoe paddle down the river. Our tour guide said a 3 day canoe trip is a good time, but a 5 day trip is a test of your relationship. Canoers aren't the only crazy people on this river. There was also a mountain bike event happening at the same time. Bikers have a month to ride 500km from the northern tip of the North Island to the southern tip of the South Island. The fastest it has ever been completed is 10 days. We met some of the bikers who were doing the trail but not participating in the race. They had the attitude of I will do it as long as I'm enjoying it. If I make it I do and if I don't then I don't.
As we walked along the trail, our guide showed us how the Maouri people would mark their trails. They would us a leaf that was silver on one side and green on the other. Our guide told us that he just chops them off of the trees and they always seem to land on silver side up.
After about a 40 min walk we arrived to the Bridge To Nowhere. It is called the Bridge to Nowhere because, once it fell out of use grass started to grow on the bridge and it made it look like it led to nowhere.
I'm not going to lie, the bridge itself is a total tourist trap. However, getting to the bridge is a very nice adventure. You ride the jet boat which is absolutely amazing. Besides being on the water and the amazing views, the driver does some 360 degree turns which are a lot of fun. And then you take a beautiful walk through the forest. Once we arrived to the bridge, we had a little lunch and a little tea while we learn some history about the bridge and the area as it used to be used as farmland. However, the area was very poor for farming and the farmers eventually moved on. Then you retrace your steps. You do have the option to add on a 2 hour canoe ride back, which we skipped, because Atlas is not old enough yet.
By the time we got back into town the temperature had dropped quite a bit. Which meant we awoke to snow on the mountain.
That concludes our time on the north island. We drove back to Auckland in order to catch a plane to Blenheim in the south island.
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