The Alternative Heritage Trail
State Highway 43 Heritage Trail is one of New Zealand's most secluded roads. Pick up a heritage trail brochure for the journey and fill up the gas tank, as there's no fuel over its 150-kilometre length. The highway has not always been the mostly sealed road it is today. When this area was settled in the late 19th century, horses were the only mode of transport capable of crossing this steep and muddy terrain.
Driving over the four steep hills today, you begin to understand why it took a packhorse four days to reach Whangamomona, the midway point. First settled in 1895, with no road or rail access, the great flood of 1924 sealed the village's fate and today there's just the pub and about 25 hardy locals. The one-way 180-metre long Moki tunnel is on the western end of the Tangarakau Gorge. State Highway 43 Heritage Trail provides an exciting alternative if you are driving south from Auckland to Taranaki or to Wellington, or Wellington to Auckland, or as a day trip from Stratford.
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