Above: Aerial photo courtesy of Graeme Murray Photography. 1. The track between the start and Blue Lake (Tikitapu), 2. Lake Tikitapu, 3. Lake Okareka, 4. the hills of the Western Okataina Walkway 5. Lake Okataina, 6. Lake Tarawera.

Below: The lakes of the Tarawera ultramarathon. The start is at the Redwoods in Rotorua (top right-hand corner). You'll run from there around Blue Lake (barely visible) and over a small hill to Lake Okareka (also barely visible). Following the north shore of Lake Okareka, you'll enter the Okataina scenic reserve, around Lake Okataina. From Okataina you'll crest a small hill to Lake Tarawera at Humphries Bay (just below the double arrows >> in this image). You'll run the northern Tarawera Track (alongside the lake on the RHS of this photo).

From the Tarawera Outlet you'll follow the Tarawera River past the Falls and then follow the river all the way down to the township of Kawerau.

Not part of the course, but visible on the left of this photo are the foothills of Mt. Tarawera (foreground) and Lake Rotomahana (far-left in the background).


Looking the Other Way


Lake Okareka (foreground) and Lake Tarawera and Mt. Tarawera (background). The run proceeds along the foreshore of Lake Okareka from right to left as you view this image. The second aid station of the course (and first relay change-over) is on the beach at the bottom left-hand corner of this image.