TIMBER TRAIL - VTT

Not far from Taumarunui lies one of the ends of one of the country's best-known (and easiest) mountain bike trails: the Timber trail.

Very accessible and popular for solo, group and family outings, this 80 km trail runs from the communities of Pureora to Ongarue. Fit athletes can cover the entire trail in a day, but it's advisable to allow two days to take full advantage of the trail's magnificent setting.

A former logging area, the Timber trail is an old railroad line used to extract trees from the forest. All along the trail, you'll find remnants of this past activity, as well as explanatory panels on the engineering feats required to build the rail in this dense environment ill-suited to the science of railroading. We also learn more about the lives of the workers and their families in such a remote environment, in a country where everything had to be built.

The trail itself is a delight, between forest and suspension bridges over gorges. The view is breathtaking and the adrenalin flows like water!

For the courageous, a 1h30 detour to the summit of Mount Pureora is possible. Incredible views over the region and Lake Taupō.

The timbertrail.nz website provides all the information you need to organize your expedition: bike hire, accommodation options en route, and contacts to help with planning and bookings.

A pure Kiwi adventure that we can't recommend highly enough.