A track to a Kerikeri waterfall which has been all but inaccessible for decades is just a few months away from opening.
The Wairere Falls, on the Wairoa Stream, was once a popular swimming spot on a trail that existed in pre-European times, but the subdivision of land and the return of dense bush has made access difficult in recent times.
Although the volume of water passing over the falls is less than at Kerikeri's Rainbow Falls the drop is almost as high, and it is an exceptionally scenic spot a stone's throw from Kerikeri.
The 2km track is being built by Kerikeri Rotary, Vision Kerikeri, Friends of Wairoa Stream and others, with landowners along the stream granting access where there is no practical route along public land.
To celebrate the progress so far Associate Minister for Primary Industries Louise Upston and officials from the New Zealand Walking Access Commission were taken on a guided walk to the waterfall on the eve of Waitangi Day.