Smack in the middle of the North Island, the powerful Huka Falls emerge from one of New Zealand’s largest lakes in the form of white rapids and icy blue pools.
The sheer power of these falls can be felt almost instantly upon crossing a bridge overlooking them. In fact, the volume of water that drops every second from it’s ledge is approximately 220,000 litres.
That would fill up an Olympic sized pool in just over 11 seconds!
The bridge appears in the middle of an intricate set of trails that creep beside the Waikato River and pass steaming hot springs. However, this isn’t the only place to get a glance of the falls. There are plenty of stopping points to watch the water squeeze through a gorge hundreds of meters long.
Occasionally boats can be seen floating around the final pool, where the last lookout point resides. These are part of tours that run out of Taupo most months of the year. Although, they do mind their distance from the powerful spitting ledge.
THE DANGERS OF HUKA FALLS
What makes the force of the Huka Falls so mighty is that the normally calm river narrows drastically upon meeting the gorge. The almost 80-meter change is what leads to this dangerous downrush.
Despite their peril, the falls have been kayaked before. The first recorded success came in 1981, with many more thereafter.
While some stories are happy, others are less so. Accidents and worse have occurred in the highly visited natural wonder. The most notable being a cricket umpire’s body found with ankles and wrists bound.
But as long as you are cautious, the Huka Falls (map) is a great place to appreciate the strength nature has to offer.
Fun Fact: Huka in Māori means foam, which is fitting for the white rapids of the falls.
