Pouakai Tarns

The Pouakai tarns are a handful of shallow pools on a boggy alpine plateau on the Pouakai Range, facing Mount Taranaki across a valley - and on a windless morning they reflect the cone almost perfectly, which is why the image is on half the tourism material for the region. Getting there is the part the photograph hides. The standard route from the Mangorei Road end climbs about six hundred metres over roughly two and a half to three hours, a great deal of it on steps cut into the hillside, through goblin forest and then onto boardwalk across the plateau. It is a real day walk, not a viewpoint. The reflection needs three things at once: no wind, no cloud on the mountain, and usually early morning - which is why many people stay at Pouakai Hut, booked ahead, and walk the last section at dawn. On a typical day the mountain is in cloud and the tarns are just puddles.

What you actually see

• The reflection - Taranaki mirrored, when wind and cloud allow.
• The stepped climb - six hundred metres up, mostly on steps.
• The plateau boardwalk - across the bog to the tarns.
• Pouakai Hut - the overnight option below the plateau.

When to go

December to March. Dawn, after a still clear night, is when the reflection happens - which in practice means staying at the hut. Book it well ahead.

Honest expectations

This is a hard five to seven hour return walk, not a stroll to a lookout, and people underestimate it badly. The mountain is in cloud most days. The plateau is exposed and cold. Stay on the boardwalk - the bog is fragile.

Nearby

Dawson Falls and the Egmont National Park tracks are on the mountain; New Plymouth is north.