About | Aongatete Swimming Holes Track
The Aongatete Swimming Holes Track takes you to a spot along the Aongatete River with lots of beautiful pools to relax and have fun in. 30 minutes one way, the track takes you through native bush and ends at the small river, close to a little waterfall. The track starts beside a gate on the right. Great for swimming – it’s cold, but refreshing! Or find a ledge to jump off by the waterfall.
There are four Aongatete walking tracks starting from this point that explore the forest and are mostly covered by the canopy of the trees with walks ranging from 15min to 3 .5 hours. The swimming hole is the most popular of them all so don’t miss it!
There are toilets close to the car park.
Tip: get into your togs before you head to the swimming holes to avoid having to get changed in the bush. They’ll definitely want to get in on a nice hot day – find a pool that’s been in the sun! Take jandals so you can easily slip them on and off. Also, don’t forget the sunblock. If you want to find and feed some eels, bring something to feed them with.
Nearby
Katikati Bird Gardens
Te Puna Quarry Gardens
Location
Just before the end of Wright Road, you’ll see a sign for the Aongatete Outdoor Education Lodge. Drive down and before getting to the lodge, there’s parking for the Aongatete walking tracks. You’ll see the big information board and map for it.
Photos
We heard there was a swimming hole track close to the place where we were staying but didn’t know what to expect so were delightfully surprised by this one. It was a hot summers day and this was the perfect way to cool off. The track getting there is quite shady so the swimming hole is only an easy walk away and the trees mostly keep you away from the sun.
Check the map before you head off, at first we were heading across the fields but then doubled back to check the map again and thankfully we did, the swimming hole track goes the other way and isn’t so obvious!
Making it to the swimming hole and this place was already being enjoyed by lots of other families and small groups. After complaining and arguing a lot of the way, the boys finally forgot everything else and immediately wanted to hop in – it looked amazing! There were so many different pools, the boys had a hard time choosing so raced along to go check them all out before finding the perfect one. There were a few that had little natural rock slides, but further up you’ll find a deep pool that has lots of great places, low and high, to jump off.
In this spot where the tracks ends and there are lots of rocks, we also found little eels! We found one, and then a whole bunch of them came out. Being in love with eels, the kids had a little play, then a family came over and shared some of their bread with them to feed the eels with.
Finally finding the perfect spot away from the others, they got in. Ashton even went down the slide a few times – lots of fun! There are shallow and deep pools – something to cater to everybody! Would definitely come again!
Totally recommend this place especially on a day like we had – it was a scorcher which just made this swimming hole feel like absolute bliss!
