March 2026 - NZ Road Trip - Hiking in Taranaki

We continue down the scenic Forgotten Highway to Stratford in Taranaki, the central West side of the north island. Our base is Stratford Motor Camp, a beautiful campground, centrally located and with great facilities.

Importantly it is within a short walk of the town centre and the pub, as our arrival coincided with the rapid departure of summer and a cold snap that dumped snow onto nearby Mount Taranaki. With the temperature down to 4 deg C at night and a bitingly cold southerly wind, we hoofed it to the pub for a few pints, some games of pool and dinner. Returning to our van it was so cold that Alex had a fleece and woolly hat on in bed!

The next day with temperatures staying cold, we chose a protected hike in the foothills of Egmont National Park (The Plateau – Enchanted – Waingongoro Loop (3 hr 30 min – 4 hr). We started wrapped up in long trousers, down jackets and wooly hats, then the layers came off as we headed uphill and back on again as we headed down.

The weather and temperature improved the next day so this time we decided to head up to the alpine area above the tree-line. We chose the Tahurangi Translator Tower Round Trip 4 hr return and it was a fabulous hike with a steep climb (550m elevation) to the Translator Tower and Tahurangi Lodge where we stopped for lunch right at the edge of the snow line. We then followed the poled route b elowancient lava flows across exposed alpine terrain. The flora was stunningly beautiful.

Legs suitably tired the next day we had a rest day and drove to New Plymouth where we climbed 156m high Paritutu Rock and ate fish and chips in the botanical gardens. We even joined all the kids in the zoo!

Early start the next day for the grand finale - Fanthams Peak.

Fanthams Peak (Panitahi) is a 1,966-metre secondary volcanic cone on the southern flank of Mt Taranaki. It is an overwhelming 1150m elevation climb with steps through forest, then through scrub, then a wooden staircase that went on forever and when you think you are almost there, the scree slope starts - by far the hardest part of the climb. Two steps forward, one sliding step back in the loose gravel. It was such hard going that it completely sapped our energy. All the while we were thinking we have to get back down this!

We had the most amazing weather throughout the climb, before the cloud crept up the side of the mountain as we approached the summit. The first part of the descent was through cloud but sliding down the scree was much easier than going up once I mastered the technique.

7 hours later we crawled back to the car in the visitors centre.

But what a fantastic culmination of our visit to Taranaki. Next year we are planning to stay up the mountain in a hut.

But now....some R&R.

Mount Taranaki

Egmont National Park (The Plateau – Enchanted – Waingongoro Loop (3 hr 30 min – 4 hr)

Tahurangi Translator Tower Round Trip 4 hr round trip

Paritutu Rock in New Plymouth and the view from each side

Fanthams Peak hike 7 hours return - Fanthams Peak is the smaller brother on the left on Mount Taranaki