The best waterfalls in Kawerau

Most waterfalls fall from the top. Tarawera Falls comes straight out of the side of a cliff, like the mountain itself is bleeding water, and you only get to see it if you show up on the right day of the week.

A friend and I drove out on a Saturday with zero backup plan if we'd gotten the day wrong. We hadn't. What followed was close to five hours of walking through some of the most untouched forest I've seen in New Zealand, a swimming stop where the current was slow enough to actually get in, and a final ten minutes where none of that mattered because we were just standing in front of water erupting sideways out of solid rock.

Here's what you need to sort out before you go.