Scenic Highlights

Rising high in the Kaimanawa Ranges, the Rangitikei River has carved a spectacular canyon from one end of the district to the other. Where the often-turbulent water has met a barrier of bedrock, it has created a series of steep rapids and beautifully clear pools. Closer to the sea, the river is slower and braided.

At the Tararua and Te Apiti wind farms, a vast army of wind turbines grace the skyline. In addition to generating valuable power for the national grid, they have become an iconic tourist attraction for the district. Locals have created interesting ways to appreciate the wind farms, including quad bike tours and horse treks.

Manawatu is one of only a few places in the world where you can watch a mountain range grow. The region has several anticlines, and they are considered some of the best-preserved and most easily accessible examples on the planet. Clearly visible from the road, the 20 kilometre Pohangina Anticline runs alongside the Southern Ruahine Range which, about half a million years ago, may have begun life as one or more anticlines. The Pohangina Anticline is rising at a rate of at least one millimetre a year - rapid growth in geological terms.

Part of an extensive dune field stretching 200 kilometres from Patea to Paekakariki, Manawatu's 6000-year-old coastal sand dunes sweep 18 kilometres inland at their widest point. The Himatangi sand dunes were once an important gathering place for Maori looking for fish.

The Manawatu Gorge is a classic example of what happens when a mountain range intersects a river. It's also one of only a few places in the world where a river flows east to west through a main divide.
Initially the river flowed westwards, across a landscape that showed no sign of the present mountain ranges. Over the last million years, a wedge of basement greywacke rock has been slowly thrust upwards between two major faults. During this period, the Manawatu River has continually cut down through the rising mountain range to create the gorge. The road and railway cling to the top of the vertical walls.