Waikato
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The Waikato is the first region south of Auckland, and is an area of rich undulating farmland dominated largely by the Waikato River. In Maori Waikato means “flowing water” and this river certainly flows with ever increasing power ! At 425 kilometres in length it is New Zealand’s longest river – rising on the Ruapehu mountainside it begins life as a the Tongariro River which then flows into Lake Taupo and emerges as the Waikato eventually to open into the Tasman Sea on the west coast of the country. Whilst the main river has many industrial uses, not least of which is to produce hydroelectricity in it’s eight power stations, it is also possible to take a scenic cruise in a steamboat too.
Many early Maori settled here along the river farming and fishing. In the first half of the 19th Century the European settlers also came to enjoy the rich farmlands, but in the 1860’s there were clashes between the two in the period know as the Land Wars. Agriculture continues to be important, as does the generation of a significant proportion of the North Island’s electricity consumption.
The principle city of the area is Hamilton, which with a population of around 160,000 is New Zealand’s 4th largest city. Hamilton is very much a commercial centre providing numerous services and trading opportunities for the surrounding agricultural areas but also has attractive gardens and a popular zoo.
Cambridge (population 16,000) is a lovely boutique town with some great antique and arts & crafts shops. It has a very English ambience, and is a centre for breeding racehorses. Nearby Lake Karapiro has become a modern rowing centre at international standard.
Matamata, not far away, is also renowned for thoroughbred horse racing and is now on the tourist map thanks to the recently opened Hobbiton Movie Set (from the Lord of the Rings movies).
Waitomo and King Country
Waitomo is a compact area to the south of Hamilton and west of Lake Taupo, it is located within the central sub-region known as King Country. King Country (or Te Roke Potae) is so called from the time of the Maori Land Wars in the 1860’s when the then Maori King Tawhiao took flight at the end of the Wars and sought refuge in the countryside here.
The Waitomo area is quite unique consisting of limestone scenery, with rolling farmland stretching towards a relatively undeveloped coastline and underground a world of limestone caverns, underground rivers and lakes, and glowworm colonies. A glow worm is a beetle that emits a greenish light from the organs in it’s abdomen.
Waitomo is one of New Zealand’s oldest tourist attractions, and still is extremely popular with native New Zealanders and overseas visitors alike. The Waitomo Caves are something really special – there are many charted caves and at least five of these are accessible to the public. They provide superb examples of stalactites, stalagmites, occasional gigantic caverns including one of a size capable of swallowing up a lifesize cathedral ! And, of course there are a multitude of glow worm colonies.
Besides the guided tours of the caves it is also possible to “black water raft” in certain of the caves – this involves accessing the cave, and locating an underground river which is then rafted by torchlight, providing a very atmospheric exploration of this underground phenomena.
In the wider King Country there are many other activities available for the visitor, including: walking, horse riding, quad biking, and even learning about sheep shearing at the Te Kuiti sheep shearing centre.
Along the coastline there are small village settlements and wide harbours, all very unspoilt. There are boat cruises available on the Kawhia Harbour, which is a historically significant settlement for Maori. Off shore there is some excellent game fishing for marlin and tuna, and also an abundance of shell fish.