New Zealand Gorge
Karangahake Gorge
312 m of rock, cut by the Ōhinemuri River.
Pseudopanax at English Wikipedia · Public domain
The cut
312 metres, to scale.
A slice through Karangahake Gorge where it is deepest and narrowest, measured on the Copernicus relief model every 30 m. Same scale as the landmark standing on the floor.
Standing on the floor, to scale: Great Pyramid · 139 m
Depth is measured to the lower rim; the width is from rim to rim. A 30 m relief model smooths the narrowest walls, so a slot canyon reads shallower than it is.
312m
Depth
measured on the 30 m relief model
8.8km
Rim to rim
measured on the 30 m relief model
18°
Steepest wall
average over 300 m, from the relief
5m
Floor altitude
Rim to floor
3 °C warmer at the bottom.
In January the afternoon reaches 25 °C on the floor, against 22 °C on the rim. The best months to hike are from March to April and from November to December.
- 25°22°Jan
- 25°22°Feb
- 23°20°Mar
- 20°17°Apr
- 17°14°May
- 15°12°Jun
- 14°11°Jul
- 15°12°Aug
- 16°14°Sep
- 18°16°Oct
- 21°18°Nov
- 23°20°Dec
Afternoon highs, 1991–2020 averages (NASA POWER) brought to the altitude of the rim and of the floor with the standard lapse rate (6.5 °C per 1 000 m). Shade, wind and rock change this on the day. Not a forecast.
Gorge in New Zealand
Karangahake Gorge is a gorge in New Zealand, cut by the Ōhinemuri River. The relief model measures 312 m from the floor to the lower rim, and 427 m to the higher one. Rim to rim it is 8.8 km wide where the cut was taken.
Getting there.
- Paeroanearest town · 8.2 km in a straight line
- Parking 1,920 m awaynearest car park in OpenStreetMap, straight line
- Viewpointsnearest viewpoint · 2.7 km from the floor
- Tauranga Airport (TRG)nearest airport with scheduled flights · 50 km in a straight lineCar hire at TRG airport (Tauranga)Discover Cars · sponsored link↗
- From March to April and from November to Decemberbest months to hike (estimate)
Plan the visit
Guided hikes, a bed nearby, a car.
Some links above are affiliate links: if you book through them we may earn a commission, at no extra cost to you. It never changes what the data on this page says.
The river
The Ōhinemuri River runs highest from May to August.
The Ōhinemuri River carries about 9.1 m³/s on average here. It runs highest from May to August.
- 5.7 m³/sJan
- 5.8 m³/sFeb
- 6.5 m³/sMar
- 8.8 m³/sApr
- 11 m³/sMay
- 13 m³/sJun
- 14 m³/sJul
- 13 m³/sAug
- 10 m³/sSep
- 8.7 m³/sOct
- 6.0 m³/sNov
- 6.9 m³/sDec
From about 5.7 m³/s in the lowest month to 14 m³/s in the highest. Its basin above this point covers 281 km².
The Ohinemuri River from source to mouth on Riveryas — coming soon
Estimate: long-term flow from the HydroATLAS model (WaterGAP, 1971–2000) shaped by the monthly rain, snow and temperature of the area (NASA POWER). Dams change it. Not a forecast.
From the sky.
The canyon from above, with the relief shaded, the line of the cut, the river and what people have mapped around it.
N
5 km
Sentinel-2 cloudless 2016 (EOX, CC BY 4.0), 20 × 20 km, north up. The line is the cut above. Points © OpenStreetMap contributors.
Around the canyon.
- 3viewpoints within 5 kmOwharoa Falls
- 1marked hiking routes within 4 kmPaWa Paeroa to Waihi Rail Trail (Hiking)
- 1climbing crags within 3 km
- 10footbridges and suspension bridges within 3 kmCrown Tramway Track, Waitāwheta Pipeline Track, Ōhinemuri Suspension Bridge and 7 more
- 2named waterfalls within 4 kmOwharoa Falls, Dickey Flat Waterfalls
- 4car parks within 3 km
- 2information boards and visitor centres within 4 km
- 4campsites within 8 kmPaeroa overnight parking (paid), Dickey Flat Campsite, Dickey Flat Adventure Camp and 1 more
- 6hotels and guesthouses within 8 kmPaeroa Motel, Racecourse Motel, Paeroa Hotel and 3 more
- 2restaurants and cafés within 4 km
- via ferrata routes within 4 km
- rafting, canoe, kayak or canyoning spots within 4 km
- swimming spots within 3 km
- caves within 3 km
- bus stops within 2 km
Counted in OpenStreetMap, the map anyone can edit, around the floor of the canyon. A low number may just mean nobody has mapped it yet. © OpenStreetMap contributors (ODbL).
Towns nearby
- Paeroa8.2 km in a straight line
- Waihi10 km in a straight line
- Te Aroha12 km in a straight line
- Waihi Beach18 km in a straight line
- Katikati22 km in a straight line
- Waitoa23 km in a straight line
In our other atlases
What else is around Karangahake Gorge.
The river that carved it, the waterfalls inside it, the mountains on the rim, the lakes, beaches and island nearby — from our six sister atlases, each with its own figures.
Riveryas1 rivers in the canyon
Cascadyas2 waterfalls nearbyComing soon
Peakyas10 mountains within 15 kmFigures from the sister sites' databases (Wikidata, HydroATLAS, GeoNames, NOAA, OpenStreetMap). Links open when each site is online.
Month by month
The weather, at the floor and at the rim.
| Jan | Feb | Mar | Apr | May | Jun | Jul | Aug | Sep | Oct | Nov | Dec | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Afternoon · floor | 25 | 25 | 23 | 20 | 17 | 15 | 14 | 15 | 16 | 18 | 21 | 23 |
| Afternoon · rim | 22 | 22 | 20 | 17 | 14 | 12 | 11 | 12 | 14 | 16 | 18 | 20 |
| Night · rim | 12 | 12 | 11 | 9 | 7 | 5 | 4 | 4 | 6 | 7 | 8 | 11 |
| Rain (mm) | 66 | 75 | 81 | 100 | 114 | 115 | 117 | 103 | 89 | 84 | 57 | 95 |
| Rainy days | 9 | 9 | 10 | 11 | 14 | 14 | 14 | 16 | 14 | 13 | 11 | 12 |
| Sun hours/day | 8.4 | 7.3 | 6.9 | 5.8 | 4.7 | 4.1 | 4.5 | 5.1 | 5.5 | 6.3 | 7.2 | 7.2 |
| Afternoon · floor | Afternoon · rim | Night · rim | Rain (mm) | Sun hours/day | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Jan | 25 | 22 | 12 | 66 | 8.4 |
| Feb | 25 | 22 | 12 | 75 | 7.3 |
| Mar | 23 | 20 | 11 | 81 | 6.9 |
| Apr | 20 | 17 | 9 | 100 | 5.8 |
| May | 17 | 14 | 7 | 114 | 4.7 |
| Jun | 15 | 12 | 5 | 115 | 4.1 |
| Jul | 14 | 11 | 4 | 117 | 4.5 |
| Aug | 15 | 12 | 4 | 103 | 5.1 |
| Sep | 16 | 14 | 6 | 89 | 5.5 |
| Oct | 18 | 16 | 7 | 84 | 6.3 |
| Nov | 21 | 18 | 8 | 57 | 7.2 |
| Dec | 23 | 20 | 11 | 95 | 7.2 |
Averages 1991–2020 (NASA POWER) for a cell about 55 km wide, brought to the floor (5 m) and the rim (432 m) with the standard lapse rate. Not a forecast.
Photographs
Seen from the trail.
Recent years
Wet years, dry years.
Rain of each month as a share of the 1991–2020 average. A dry year means a lower river and hotter rock; a wet one, more water in the gorge.
| Jan | Feb | Mar | Apr | May | Jun | Jul | Aug | Sep | Oct | Nov | Dec | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2020 | 24% | 14% | 67% | 32% | 113% | 201% | 130% | 129% | 60% | 73% | 171% | 33% |
| 2021 | 65% | 101% | 94% | 67% | 86% | 124% | 119% | 99% | 183% | 157% | 93% | 114% |
| 2022 | 40% | 202% | 176% | 76% | 131% | 190% | 256% | 121% | 228% | 174% | 384% | 163% |
| 2023 | 585% | 297% | 87% | 122% | 236% | 166% | 86% | 70% | 209% | 104% | 155% | 122% |
| 2024 | 109% | 80% | 109% | 85% | 120% | 113% | 117% | 112% | 77% | 140% | 131% | 86% |
| 2025 | 122% | 56% | 68% | 207% | 131% | 184% | 211% | 124% | 140% | 155% | 315% | 98% |
130% or more: wet month 70% or less: dry month
Compare with the neighbours.
Karangahake Gorge
New Zealand
- 312 mDepth
- 8.8 kmRim to rim
- —Length
- 18°Steepest wall
Te Whati Nui A Toi Canyon
New Zealand · 165 km
- 442 mDepth
- 19 kmRim to rim
- —Length
- 28°Steepest wall
Manawatu Gorge
New Zealand · 322 km
- 225 mDepth
- 17 kmRim to rim
- 6.0 kmLength
- 23°Steepest wall
Where these figures come from
| Name, type, published depth and length | Wikidata (Q1728947) · CC0 |
|---|---|
| The cut: depth, width, wall and 3D model | Copernicus DEM GLO-30 · © DLR e.V., © Airbus Defence and Space GmbH, Copernicus/ESA |
| River flow and basin | HydroATLAS / RiverATLAS v1.0 (Linke et al. 2019) · CC BY 4.0 |
| Climate | NASA POWER, 1991–2020 |
| Viewpoints, trails, bridges and the river line | © OpenStreetMap contributors · ODbL |
| Images | EOX Sentinel-2 cloudless 2016 · CC BY 4.0; Wikimedia Commons |
| Rivers, waterfalls, mountains, lakes, beaches and islands nearby | Coastya, Lakeyas, Peakyas, Cascadyas, Islandyas, Riveryas |
Every figure is an average, an estimate or a count from a public dataset. Licences and methods: data sources.
The family
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