Lake Taupo

Taupo is the largest lake in New Zealand and sits in a caldera left by a very large eruption, which is why its shoreline curves in ways no river valley would produce. From the town on the northeastern shore the water runs out to a horizon of low hills, and on clear days the volcanoes of Tongariro National Park stand at the far southern end, white for much of the year. The lake is cold, deep and clear, fished hard for trout and used for sailing, kayaking and swimming in summer. On a cliff face in Mine Bay, reachable only by boat or kayak, a set of large Maori rock carvings was cut into the stone in the 1970s.

History

The lake fills the caldera of the Taupō Volcano and, at 616 square kilometres, is the largest lake in New Zealand. The Ngāti Tūwharetoa village of Te Rapa stood by the springs of Maunga Kākaramea until a landslide buried it on 7 May 1846, killing 60 people, among them the chief Mananui Te Heuheu Tūkino II (Wikipedia, Lake Taupō).

What's there

• The southern view - the Tongariro volcanoes across the water on a clear day.
• The Mine Bay carvings - large rock carvings on a cliff face, reached only by boat or kayak.
• The Taupo lakefront - the town beach, with hot water seeping up through the sand at one end.
• Trout fishing - the lake and its river mouths, fished for rainbow and brown trout.

When to go

December to March is the season for swimming and boating, when the water is just about warm enough and the town is at its busiest. Autumn brings settled, still mornings that suit the southern view. Winter is cold and windy but clear, and the volcanoes carry the most snow. Boat trips to the carvings run year round, weather allowing.

What to expect

The lake is big enough that from the town you mostly see water and low hills, and the volcano view depends entirely on cloud, which often wins. Swimming is cold even in February. The carvings are modern rather than historic, which disappoints some, and reaching them means paying for a boat or paddling an hour each way. The town itself is ordinary.

Nearby

Huka Falls and the Wairakei thermal area are just north, Tongariro National Park an hour south.

Key facts