Hiking To The Pouakai Tarn - All The Info You Need.
The Pouakai Tarn is one of our favourite hikes to date. Not only is the bush walk itself extremely enjoyable but look at the view you’re rewarded with at the top. Seeing the perfect mirror reflection in person is an incredible experience and a must do! Normally we like to have places to ourselves but sharing this view with others kinda made the experience that much more enjoyable! We spent hours up here taking in the different scenes Mount Taranaki presented while chatting with all our fellow photographers and hikers that were up there that evening. We hope this guide gives you all the information you need to tackle this epic hike yourself. Enjoy!
Where?
You will find the Pouakai Tarn located in the Mount Egmont National Park just out of New Plymouth.
Park at the Mangorei Road Carpark.
The walk is mostly uphill (700m elevation), well marked and is boardwalk or steps for majority of the hike. It's a reasonably easy track which requires an easy/intermediate level of fitness. We would recommend wearing either hiking boots or running shoes. The track can get extremely muddy so something you don't mind getting dirty.
It's approximately 1 hour 45 min to the Pouakai Hut and a further 15 min to the tarn.
You have the option of staying the night. You can hike up with a tent and pitch it near the hut or tarn, you can stay in the hut (you will need to buy a hut pass for $15 from either of the 2 visitor centres in the national park). Keep in mind there are 12 beds in the hut which need to be booked in advance. Finally if you have a self contained van you could sleep in the carpark.
When?
The best time to visit is when there is no wind, so you can achieve that perfect mirror reflection shot. We use the Windy app, along with the snow-forecast or metservice websites to check the weather. We find these to be the most accurate. We have heard of people who have done this walk up to 6 times before they got the right conditions. Planning with this mountain is key!
A bit of cloud can add atmosphere but you don't want so much that you can't see the mountain, so make sure to check the low clouds in the Windy app. The mountain is very temperamental, we spent 3 days in the national park waiting before we got to view the mountain so be prepared to wait.
The view is beautiful at any time of the day but we prefer the softer light at sunset or sunrise. If you stay in the hut or tent then you will get to see both!
You can visit all year round. In winter time the mountain will have snow on it which would be amazing.
Tips!
It's an extremely popular spot and with good reason, so expect to share the tarn with lots of other people. Please be respectful of the sensitive area around the tarn. Follow the rules of the signs.
Bring a tripod and shoot as low to the ground as you can.
Wear warm clothing as it gets very cold.
Bring a torch.
Toitu Te Whenua // Leave The Land Undisturbed
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