Mt Karioi

About an hour west of Hamilton lies the extinct Volcano known as Mt Karioi. The track starts off fairly steep through grassland and then thick forest on a very well marked track. Upon reaching the ridgeline you are greeted with excellent views that only get better the higher you go. After the initial climb the walk is fairly undulating until you reach the summit. There are a few ladders/stairs/near vertical ascents where you have the aid of a series of chains but nothing too challenging. The track, though well marked, gets very muddy, so if you decide to attempt this after wet weather be prepared to wreck the clothes you're wearing because you almost certainly will slip at some point. There is a helipad at the very top with 320 degree views out to the Raglan Harbour and beyond.

Lookouts

Scrambling or Climbing

Coastal

Rainforest

756m

Maximum Elevation

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Getting there

Navigate to 596 Whaanga Rd (dirt road) Raglan for the start of the official track. GPS will tell you it's earlier than it actually is, keep driving a few hundred meters and there is a large carpark and an obvious track up the hill.

Route/Trail notes

Upon leaving the coast you briefly walk through thick vegetation on a very clear track. The track is marked with arrows the entire way. Eventually you get to grassland and make a steep walk to the next level of forrest. From here the track becomes a bit more varied with ladders, chains steep ascents and descents. Lookout is located 1hr from the summit that looks back over Raglan Bay. Radio tower located at the top, and if you continue walking a bit further you will get to a helipad with amazing views.

Permits/Costs

Nil cost

Other References

https://www.doc.govt.nz/parks-and-recreation/places-to-go/waikato/places/karioi-area/tracks/karioi-summit-tracks/

GPS Tracks

No GPS available for this walk yet.

Comments

Long but reasonably steady walk. Has amazing views pretty much the whole way! We went after a couple of weeks of sunny weather and there was still slippery mud on the track towards the top, so it would be absolutely diabolical in the wet! Took us about 4hrs return and had one of the best summit views in New Zealand! Quite popular too, would have seen about 10-15 other people doing it the day we did.
Vonsnrub on 11 Feb, 2019