Five members and a visitor took up the challenge to walk up to Te Aroha Summit on 18 October 2025. Tina
was the leader.
We arrived at Te Aroha Domain around 8:50 am, but started about half an hour later
due to the late arrival of two members. From the Mokena Geyser to the Whakapipi lookout, it was a 45-minute
walk on the well-benched track. The lookout offers views over the Hauraki Plains. After our morning tea
at the lookout, we continued climbing steeply. We often walked among tree roots, rocks and steps. There
were a few falling trees and landslides, which gave us more challenges. The last 20 minutes seemed the
hardest. When we arrived at the summit, we realised it took us 2.5 hours, half an hour less than the
time on the DOC's website!
While we had our lunch, we were disappointed by the foggy view. We
could hardly see anything near and far, although the DOC information has "Te Aroha mountain provides
360-degree views across the Waikato and Bay of Plenty regions". It was also windy. We started to head
back on the same track after half an hour.
Going down the steep hill wasn't easier than going
up. While the sign says, "TE AROHA DOMAIN 1 HR 30 MIN", we actually took two hours! Two members were
slow and took three hours. The leader learned that they should make sure the participants' fitness matches
the tramp grade.
|
|
