Braeburn Walk

Braeburn Walk is a forest loop on Lake Rotoroa’s southern shore, with a spur to a mossy waterfall and a return through the bush. Following the complete route to the falls and back to the small roadside start maps to about 3.8 km (2.4 miles) and takes roughly two hours. DOC lists 2.5 km, but that figure conflicts with the connected mapped route and recorded walks near 3.7–4 km. Plan for the longer distance if you want the waterfall and full circuit. Most of the opening is easy; the waterfall spur is steep enough to make the whole walk easy to moderate.

The walk starts on a wide, nearly level track through remnant beech and podocarp forest. Its flat opening follows the remains of a road built during 1950s hydroelectric investigations. A small stream and footbridge were noted on the early stretch; farther on, the track rises gently toward the loop junction. The forest is dense with ferns and large beech, and DOC describes it as rich in bird life.

Take the steep spur to reach the mossy cascade. It zigzags uphill, and the tread can be muddy or slippery on the way down. The waterfall is visible from the track; the slope down toward the pool is steep, so stay on the path instead of scrambling to the base. The other leg loops back through ferny forest, past cascades and glacial boulders, with occasional glimpses of the lake through the trees. Keep to the track where it follows the stream.

The wide, flat start is the remnant of a road built in the 1950s for hydroelectric investigations. It gives the opening a very different feel from the narrower, steeper spur near the falls. Along the loop, mossy moraine and scattered erratic boulders are reminders of the glacial landscape beneath the forest.

The distinctive tree-fuchsia avenue is one of the walk’s best details. Kōtukutuku is New Zealand’s largest fuchsia and one of its few native deciduous trees. Its flowers open green and deepen to burgundy; the hermaphrodite flowers have unusual blue pollen. DOC notes that the species often grows along disturbed forest edges, where fewer browsing animals have stripped it out.

Use the marked Braeburn Walk access on Braeburn Road, about 400 m west of Gowan River Bridge. The start has a small roadside parking area. Don’t confuse it with the main Lake Rotoroa car park and facilities, which serve the separate Nature Walk. Dogs are not permitted. Pack water and warm layers; food and drinking water at the trailhead or on the route were not confirmed, and DOC warns that freezing conditions can occur in the park at any time of year.