3 Rankers Reviews
1 Face-to-Face
14 Walking
1 Kerikeri
Marios Gavalas
Author And Researcher
I'm Marios, delivering the best of Aotearoa's nature walks to your device.
I've personally walked hundreds of New Zealand's tracks and spent months in libraries uncovering interesting information on New Zealand/Aotearoa. And you'll find a slice of that research on this page - enjoy!
FREE MAP - The best of 21 nature guidebooks on one map.
Interpretive panels explain the ecology of the forest and kauri, which are the feature of this walk.
This short boardwalk is one of Northland’s icon sites providing an outstanding experience. The track winds through a mature stand of kauri, swamp forest and associated vegetation.
From S.H.1 near Kerikeri, follow Puketotara Road, then turn right onto Waiare Road (unsealed). The start of the walk is signposted 6.5km on the left, 1.5km after the Puketi Recreation Area. There are two parking bays close-by.
Puketi Kauri Forest is also signposted off S.H.10 on Waiare Road 2km south of Kaeo.
The elevated boardwalk weaves a sinuous path through the forest. It is suitable for wheelchairs.
Various growth stages of the kauri are visible, indicating how the form of the tree changes. After the early ‘ricker’ stage, when the kauri exhibits a pyramidal form, it develops a solid columnar trunk. It’s lower branches are shed and it’s graceful crown opens to capture the light. Once established the tree continues to gain bulk, until after millennia, it benevolently fades.
A number of trees fell during a devastating cyclone in 1959.
Kokako and kiwi sometimes roam the reserve although meetings now occur with unfortunate rarity.
The name Manginangina means ‘in and out of sight’. Maori used the nearby hill as a lookout to watch approaching canoes on the indented coastline.
Some of the trees show scars left from the days when taps were cut into the bark to bleed gum. A bushman would return months later to recover the lumps of valuable sap that formed around the wounds. This practice was later banned (but never policed) because of the harm it did to the trees.
Feature | Value | Info |
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Location |
North Island ▷ Northland ▷ Kerikeri |
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Categories |
Alexandre G
Ranking: 10/10
Quick & easy walk. I don't enjoy walking in the forest because I enjoy landscapes more, but missing this one would have been a shame, I really enjoyed it.
Each camping location is approved by a regional council in NZ. So if it shows on the map, you’re allowed to stay.
The Rankers Camping NZ app, is also in association with…
Philipp
Ranking: 10/10
Awesome walk. Big Kauri. Wild forest.
paulweig
Ranking: 10/10
This kauri forest mini-walk has all the ingredients of a full-size Waipoua experience. Arguably the easiest to access of all the Puketi walks, a wheelchair-friendly boardwalk ensures ones feet cannot get wet while traversing an ancient swamp. Abundant giant kauri fill the vista and the quietness of the thick understory of native bush is punctuated by calls from the prolific bird life. Good interpretation signage tells the kauri story well. Time to complete the loop and return to the convenient parking area if time is taken to fully appreciate this place is around 20 minutes.
Thanks to all the good people working for the NZ Department of Conservation - for all your hard work - making NZ more beautiful, accessable and healthy! Cheers 😍