TECT Park

Getting there

Pyes Pa Road (SH36) at Ngawaro

The walks start from the TECT Park Arrival Centre car park, situated about 26km up Pyes Pa Road (SH36), from Tauranga heading towards Rotorua.

About the walks

The TECT All Terrain Park covers 1,650 hectares, including forestry and native bush. The park is divided into zones, catering for the needs of the different users and the activities they undertake.

There are places for quiet, active recreation like walking, off-leash dog exercise area, horse-riding or mountain-biking and others for the noisier, more boisterous activities like motorcycling, target shooting and rally car driving.

Te Rerenga Trail

1.5-2 hour loop track

If you are looking for light at the end of the tunnel then this walk is for you. This 3.2km medium grade loop track is popular with walkers and runners. It winds through mature pine forest and the bush clad gully of the Te Rerenga Stream.

The gully is reasonably steep but the track is well formed with stairs on steeper sections. The trail follows the stream on the gully floor over a series of boardwalks.

To begin the ascent you enter a 60m tunnel, dug in the last century, to divert the stream under the Tauranga/Rotorua (SH36) road, that was being built at the time. The tunnel was built by hand over a three-year period and the walls and roof show evidence of the hand tools used to excavate. Glowworms feature on the tunnel roof and cave weta inhabit the crevices and holes. Remember - glowworms don't like too much noise!

A short climb goes to Peterson’s Camp where Mr Peterson and his road crew lived during the tunnel construction. The trail follows the creek bed and breaks in to cutover forest before once again entering a mature pine forest, and following Weld Road back to the start of the trail at the Arrival Centre carpark.

There are slippery sections and stairs, so good footwear is essential. It’s useful to have a torch to navigate the tunnel and always take a jacket for protection as the wind and rain can be very chilly at this elevation.

Lost Tank Track

1km return

A short flat native bush track, located near the mountain bike car park in TECT Park (The mountain bike area is well sign posted from the TECT Park entrance).

Mountain biking an equestrian tracks

Many of the horse riding and mountain biking trails in the park are shared with hikers, including the 10km long Buffalo Girl Track. Please take care and respect the rights of other users.