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OUR WALKS
Hikoi ki Paerau are bush hikes with a strong Maori cultural interpretive element.
Walks or hikes, (Hikoi), depart daily from October to April, weather conditions permitting. All our guides are “Tangata Whenua” to the mountain Aorangi in the Rangitikei District of the central North Island of New Zealand. They can trace their whakapapa – family lineage – back to the great Maori explorer, Tamatea Pokai Whenua and his son Kahungunu. Their guardianship of the land stretches back, unbroken, for hundreds of years.
Our guides will share with you not only the history of their people, but also their knowledge of flora and fauna and the area’s geology. For further background click here.
Walk In/Walk Out
Clients and guides meet at River Valley Lodge at 8:45am in the morning. Our Guides brief you on the days activities, kit you out in any gear required, cover several safety issues, plus any issues of a Maori protocol nature.
Following this we have our first taste of adventure for the day. This is crossing the Rangitikei River via a "Flying Fox" - a trolley which is suspended some 3 metres above the river which is propelled across purely by arm power.
This Hikoi does have significant climbs, with most of the first half of the day being the steady climb from River Valley Lodge at about 500 metres (1600 feet) altitude, to the summit of Mt Aorangi at 1300 metres (4000 feet). Going home is just the opposite - lots of downhill! You will be rewarded with spectacular scenery at the summit.
The majority of the hike is through native forest, ascending from patches of immense Rimu trees, through Beech forest, to sub alpine vegetation at the top. Lunch is enjoyed checking out the views of the Northern Rangitikei, and the central North Island high country.
The walk ends back at River Valley Lodge between 3.30pm and 4.00pm.
Fly In/Walk Out
Clients and guides meet at River Valley Lodge at 8.45am in the morning. Our guides brief you on the days activities, kit you out in any gear required, cover several safety issues, plus any issues of a Maori protocol nature.
About 9.30am our helicopter arrives to transport you to the start point of the Hikoi (walk). This 5 minute flight gives you a spectacular overview of the Ruahine Ranges, Aorangi, and the Rangitikei River canyon.
The next 6 hours are spent journeying back to River Valley Lodge. During this journey you will be rewarded with spectacular views, and a feeling of oneness with the forest, the land, and it’s history.
While there is a short uphill section to begin with, most of the Hikoi is either flat or downhill walking. Expect to be back at River Valley Lodge between 3.30pm and 4.00pm.
Lunch and snacks are provided.
Allow a full day for the Fly in Hikoi. For the Hikoi Treks site map click here
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