Pirongia Camping Trip
If you read my Easter post, you’ll remember that travel is a huge deal over the five (or six) day weekend. In full disclosure, I did not travel, but my dear husband took the kiddos on a three day camping trip and left me to relax by myself for a few days. My time alone was glorious, and Jon and the kids made some incredible memories in the Pirongia Forest, a little over two hours south of Auckland and about a half hour from Hamilton.
Jon and the kids parked at the Kaniwhaniwha carpark. From the carpark, it is an easy, 45 minute forest walk to the campsite. There were lots of farms along the path and they saw a newborn baby calf, turkeys, geese, rabbits, and other fun farm and wildlife. This campsite is great because there are no reservations necessary, and it is on a first-come, first-serve basis. Many campsites get booked well in advance of holiday weekends like this, so Kaniwhaniwha is a good one to have in your pocket if you’ve left planning until the last minute.
Jon has all sorts of camping gear that he likes to bring along, so he decided to use our beach buggy to transport all of his stuff to the campsite. This turned out to be a brilliant idea because you need to bring everything with you, including firewood. You’ll most likely also want to bring in your own water, too. There are streams that flow over a lot of rock, but it still needs to be boiled before consuming. There are a lot of livestock and goats in the surrounding area, and its best to be safe than end up with something in your gut.
The campsite itself is huge. There is a large fire pit for the aforementioned firewood, a few trashcans, and long drop toilets. (My husband claimed the long drops are “good ones,” but as someone who is a fan of plumbing, I don’t know how that is possible.) There aren’t showers, but the kids splashed around in the cold stream several times a day, which my husband counted as taking a bath. The bugs weren’t terrible, but take ample mosquito precautions because the bites itch like crazy. Next to the campsite clearing, there is a hay paddock that says it is open for camping, but Jon didn’t understand why anyone would prefer to sleep next to cow patties as opposed to the huge campsite, especially considering one night they had the whole place to themselves and the next night only one other family pitched a tent there.
The Pirongia forest is an exquisite place to visit. The photos don’t do it justice, and my husband said, “this is the best Kiwi forest I’ve seen by far.” All of the paths are typical DOC quality: well maintained and well marked. All of the bridges are in excellent condition. There is also exceptional mountain biking here. Lots of bikers came through and were clearly enjoying themselves.
The highlight of their trip was visiting the Kaniwhaniwha caves a short 20 minute walk from the campsite, and it was beautiful every step of the way. The caves were narrow and full of giant weta. As the kids said, “they were as big as daddy’s hands!” Between the caves and the forest, there was plenty to explore and do for a few days.
Jon and the kids came back thrilled with their adventure and with bags full of smokey-smelling clothes from all of the campfires. I managed to swing by Martha’s Backyard before their trip to get them American marshmallows and graham crackers, and they made sure to eat every last bite of s’more goodness. This is a campsite I think they’ll return to in the future. The kids are already making plans!
