The view at the summit of Mauao. How awesome would this view be at sunrise?

Sunday 30 July, 2017 - Mauao Summit Walk,
Mt Maunganui

Ah nature, something about it that makes me happy.

I’ve lived in the Bay of Plenty since 1996, and I’m proud to say I HAVE FINALLY climbed Mauao. I walked the base last year, and the summit walk will challenge even those who make an effort to stay active. It didn’t help that my legs were still tired from another walk the day before, but man, the views are worth it.

On this walk I was joined by my friend John, who’s recently moved to Whakatane and a native of Baltimore. He and I did a photoshoot exploring the street art earlier in the afternoon, so we decided to make the most of the trip over.

There are two tracks up to the summit - the stairs which is about ten minutes quicker, but I personally recommend the gravel route which gives you pretty much an unobstructed view of the ocean as you make your way up. I would love to come back and walk this either at sunrise or sunset. The cliff does drop off sharply over the edge, so keep an eye on your footing, however the track itself is well maintained so roots and trees are no problem.

The gravel route takes about 15 minutes longer than the stairs, with some challenging steep sections. Take your time and drink lots of water. Make sure that you stop by the lookout before you hit the summit (that’s if you go by the gravel route, otherwise you just keep walking down once you reach the summit) as I think the views from here are better than the summit itself. Go find the rock that I sat on, the views are incredible, and you will feel envious of the sea birds that nest on the rock face.

Once you get to the summit, it gives you an endless view of the world below, even in winter Mt Maunganui beach is busy with locals and tourists. After John got the shots he wanted, we made our down. As my knees don’t like walking down stairs, we walked down the gravel route again. To cool down, we headed to Copenhagen Cones as they make their own waffle cones in-house.

As we stopped quite a few times, the walk up took us about an hour. We met a friendly local who told us about the lookout, and we’re glad she did. Give yourself a couple of hours to enjoy the walk, bring plenty of water and enjoy another free adventure!