Taranaki and the Forgotten World Highway camping loop

New Plymouth and the mountain

Use New Plymouth as the reliable base for fuel, food and a coastal day. Mountain cloud changes quickly, so walk the lower tracks when visibility or wind makes exposed routes a poor choice.

Egmont National Park trailheads are not interchangeable campsites. Stay only where overnight use is permitted and use the exact access advice for the track and vehicle.

Stratford to Whangamōmona

Fill the tank in Stratford and treat the highway as the day's experience. The sealed and unsealed sections, narrow bridges and tight bends suit a calm pace rather than a target arrival time.

Whangamōmona has limited accommodation and camping capacity. Confirm the night in advance, particularly around events, and carry food for hours when small businesses are closed.

Taumarunui and the return

The Tangarakau Gorge and Moki Tunnel demand attention from wide or high vehicles. Know the campervan dimensions and stop before any section that does not provide safe clearance.

Taumarunui restores ordinary services and opens routes toward Tongariro or Waikato. Check fatigue before adding another long leg, because the highway's short distance hides a full day of concentration.

The Forgotten World Highway is a commitment

State Highway 43 runs roughly 150 kilometres between Stratford and Taumarunui with no fuel along it, a section of unsealed road through the Tangarakau Gorge, and a single-lane tunnel. It takes far longer than the distance implies and there is no way to shortcut out of the middle.

Fill the tank at either end, carry water and food, and check the road status before setting out. It is a fine drive in reasonable weather and an unpleasant one in heavy rain.

Whangamōmona is the reason to go slowly

The self-declared Republic of Whangamōmona, with its own passports stamped at the hotel, is the highlight of the route and a genuinely good pub stop. The Republic Day celebration runs biennially and fills the village completely, which is either the reason to go or the reason to avoid those dates.

There is a small camping area and the hotel has rooms. Either is a better plan than trying to drive the whole highway and reach a town at the far end in one day.

Mount Taranaki is a serious mountain

The Pouākai Crossing and the summit route look approachable from the road and are not. Taranaki has a high fatality record, weather that changes within an hour, and terrain that becomes genuinely dangerous in cloud. It is not a mountain to attempt casually.

Check the forecast for the mountain rather than New Plymouth, tell someone your plan, and turn back early. The lower walks around Dawson Falls and the Kamahi loop give you the forest and the views without the exposure.

New Plymouth is underrated as a base

The Coastal Walkway runs 13 kilometres along the waterfront, the Len Lye Centre is genuinely good, and the city has the services to reset a trip properly before or after the highway. It works far better as a two-night base than a single overnight.

Use it to do laundry, restock and check the mountain forecast before deciding which of the Egmont walks to attempt. The weather often makes that decision for you.

The Surf Highway and the coast

State Highway 45 loops around the western side of the mountain between New Plymouth and Hāwera, and it is a far easier drive than the Forgotten World Highway with a string of surf beaches along it. Ōakura, Ōpunake and Kina Beach all have camping and the coastline is consistently good.

The contrast is the point of a Taranaki loop: the mountain in the middle, forest and farmland on the eastern side, and a run of black sand surf beaches on the west. Doing both sides makes it a proper circuit rather than an out-and-back.

Cape Egmont lighthouse and the coastal road around Pungarehu give the classic view of the mountain rising straight out of farmland. It is best in the early morning before cloud forms on the summit, which it usually does by late morning.

Rail carts and the tunnel

Operators run rail carts along the disused Stratford to Okahukura line, including through the Hobbits Hole tunnel, which is a genuinely unusual way to see the country the highway passes through.

These need booking ahead and run to a schedule rather than on demand. If it appeals, build the day around the departure time rather than hoping to fit it in.

Places along the way