Rowers arrive at dawn on Lake Karapiro, near Cambridge. Photo / Getty Images
It's been a golden day for New Zealand's rowers at the Tokyo Olympics.
Starting with Emma Twigg's gold in the single sculls, our medal tally was further boosted by by the womens' eight claiming silver, and another gold on the lake thanks to the mens' eight.
The hours spent on New Zealand's training ground, Lake Karapiro, has paid off.
To celebrate the Kiwis' outstanding day of Olympic rowing, here are five great reasons to visit Karapiro.
Lake Karapiro itself is a hydroelectric lake on the Waikato River, about half an hour from Hamilton. It's widely known as the high performance base for Rowing New Zealand, but it's also a popular recreational and competitive lake for other water sports such as kayaking, waka ama, swimming, water skiing, and yachting. In fact, tens of thousands of visitors head there every year, both for sporting events and to simply soak up its beauty.
Home of the 2010 World Rowing Championships, it was described at the time as one of the most picturesque lakes in the world, thanks to the beautiful bush and trees lining the edge of the lake.
Lake Karapiro is becoming a popular spot for anglers, with the upper reaches of the lake home to some decent sized fish. Rainbows average 2kg, and brown trout nearly 4kg.
Each year, Fish and Game release around 2000 rainbow trout and 500 brown trout into the lake. The best and most popular fishing is said to be around the head of the lake where the water leaves Arapuni Dam.
Head out on the water for a night-time glow worm tour by Kayak. Lake District Adventures runs tours along the southern edge of Lake Karapiro, where guests paddle up the Pokaiwhenua Steam, under the ancient rock formations, ferns and trees draping over you.
Then, when darkness is all around, enjoy the sparkle of the glow worms and be guided by their light for a magical and unique New Zealand experience.
The Te Awa walk and cycleway runs along the Waikato River from Ngaruawhahia to Karapiro. It caters for all abilities and ages, and was created to be shared between cyclists and pedestrians.
The stretch between Cambridge and Lake Karapiro is about 15.2km long, and a relatively easy ride - an hour one cycle each way, or three and a half hours to walk each way.
This section starts at the international Velodrome, heads into Cambridge as past many horse studs along Maungatautari Road, and is best finished with a stop at Podium Cafe overlooking the lake.
One of New Zealand's most ecologically significant attractions, Sanctuary Mountain Maungatautari has a number of walking trails. It's surrounded by one of the world's longest pest-free fences, allowing endangered species inside to thrive, including birds, skinks, geckos and frogs.
Enjoy the birdsong as you wander through the ancient forest and learn about this incredible conservation project.
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