Sandy Bay Hut - A Great Adventure in the Te Urewera National Park
- David Clouston
- 2 days ago
- 4 min read
Last weekend I had the privilege of staying at Sandy Bay Hut in the Te Urewera National Park.
Sandy Bay Hut is located on Lake Waikareiti, a small lake next to the famous Lake Waikamoana - home to one of the11 Great Walks of New Zealand.
Lake Waikamoana is a 2.5 hour drive from Gisborne or 6 hour drive from Auckland.
We travelled from Gisborne through Wairoa to Lake Waikaremoana. We spent the first night staying in cabins at the beautiful Waikaremoana Holiday Park overlooking the water. It was a peaceful, quiet campground surrounded by steep mountains.
The cabins were lovely and had everything - a kettle, microwave, and fridge.
The cabins are very well priced at $70 total for each cabin per night - a cheap stay for a family or a group of friends. There were 4 to 5 bunk-style beds in each cabin.
The Holiday Park has very good facilities, with a communal kitchen, toilets/showers and large deck overlooking the gorgeous blue green lake.
Different shades of deep blue and green looked back at us.
In the morning, after having our yummy muesli and morning tea, we packed our bags ready to start tramping to Sandy Bay Hut.
The start of the Sandy Bay Hut walk is a short 5 minute drive from the Waikaremoana Holiday Park.
The walk to Sandy Bay Hut is about 4 hours.
There is also an option to row across Lake Waikareiti to the hut. The row boat location is a 1 hour walk from the start of the tramp.
NOTE: Keys are needed to unlock the boats, and oars and lifejackets are in a shed. If you are interested in rowing across the lake you will need to pre-organise this before you leave. This can be arranged via the Waikaremoana Holiday Park reception who give keys to the boats and access to oars and life jackets. There is no one at the shelter to give you the keys.
Fortunately, my brother had pre-organised the rowing option. It was touch-and-go whether we would be able to row; however, it worked out. We were given keys to the boats and could row!!
I love tramping through the forest. I feel myself being healed by the energy of the great trees and native ferns.
After about a 1 hour walk through the trees we reached the lake and row boats. A shelter hut is there, making it a good place for a drinks break or lunch.
We unlocked the row boats and began rowing across the lake. It was harder than I thought it was going to be. The wind was quite strong when we started and the lake was rippling with the wind. I found out that Lake Waikareiti translates to "rippling waters" in Maori - I can see why!
"This is going to take us hours" I thought! Is this safe, rowing across this lake?
However, after about 10 minutes, I started to find my rowing rhythm.
In the middle of the lake, there are islands!
Beautiful, untouched islands with native trees and rocks holding everything together, falling to the water's edge.
A rahui applies to the island, which means in Maori that it is sacred or protected. We were told not to go onto the island.
We ate snacks on the boat, it was fun. I had added electrolytes to my drink to give me energy.
We stopped at a sandy bay along the way, and after about 2.5 hours of being on the water (yes, that long), we eventually rowed into the bay where we found our hut on the lake edge!
NOTE: Rowing across the lake could be done in about 1.25 hours if you rowed without a break . However, prior rowing experience would be needed to achieve this. If you had never rowed a boat before, I wouldn't recommend rowing.
It was a special scene - rowing into one's accommodation.
At our hut, there was 7 other people staying with us.
It was fun meeting the other people. We talked about our shared journey and watched the sunset over the beautiful waters.
I love being in the hut and having a cuppa (hot chocolate if it's cold!). I find hut life brings me back to the essentials - I feel happier with less sometimes.
There is no electricity in the hut, so when it gets dark, people generally go to sleep. And when the sun rises, people usually rise, living by the hours of light.
Sandy Bay Hut is on the lake edge. When I woke in the morning, I could hear the water lapping on the shore, and when the sun rose, I could see the lake from my bunk bed - a special sight.
We got incredibly lucky with the weather.
We rowed back across the lake on a clear blue summer's day. We dived into the water from a large rock on the lake edge.
Rowing is much easier when there is no wind, or if the wind is behind you, I discovered. It made me think how important the wind (and a boat) must have been in the past.
After pulling our heavy boats back onto shore, we ate our packed lunches.
We put our packs on our backs and made the 1 hour walk back to our cars parked at the start of the track.
What a great overnighter!
I highly recommend the Sandy Bay Hut. However, you should be prepared, like any tramp in the New Zealand outdoors. It could be a very different story if the weather changed.
Thank you to the beauty of your area!
Nga mihi nui,
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