Rotokare Scenic Reserve — Attraction in North Island

My partner and I recently visited this nature reserve, and it felt like we were entering a scene from Jurassic Park when we arrived at the gate. The process of getting in was unique - we had to press a button from our car window, wait for the first gate to open, drive into the middle section, wait for the entrance to close fully behind us, and then press another button to open the second gate.

Once inside, the open fields were replaced by a well-cared-for, pest-free sanctuary. As we drove through with the windows open, we were greeted by an incredible bird chorus that seemed like a small paradise we had stumbled upon. It was evident that this place was cherished, as only six cars were allowed to stay per night, and a sign asked visitors not to stay more than three nights a month.

Before setting up our tent by the lake, my partner and I stood there, stunned by the beauty of the place. Birds in groups of two to thirty flew overhead, chirping or gliding towards an unknown destination. The morning chorus was just as impressive, with native birds filling the air with their songs.

We decided to take the two-hour walk around the lake and saw Saddleback birds with loud calls that sounded like car alarms and curious robins that would fly very close to us. The forest was clearly old and cared for, with lengthy vines being a constant in the foliage, making it a bird paradise. We only met one other person during our walk, an old volunteer named Alan, who was cleaning the Hihi bird feeding stations. He told us more about the sanctuary and its birds.

The highlight of our visit was the Hihi bird. These birds are very rare, and in the sanctuary, there were only 60 of them. During our conversation with Alan, two Hihi birds showed up to check if the feeding station was ready yet. Another name for these birds is sewing birds, as their calls sound like an old-style sewing machine. It sounded incredibly loud compared to the size of the yellow-accented bird.

Overall, our experience at the nature reserve was incredible, and we would highly recommend it to anyone looking for a unique and...

Fantastic place for one or two nights of freedom camping! The area is fully fenced and predator free. There are 150? Kiwis although we were not able to find them at night. However this is not a problem at all. The walk around the lake is beautiful (did it once with rain and once with sun) and takes around two hours if you are into birds. The tomtil are everywhere and allow you to take a thousand pictures. But also the Saddlebacks are easy to spot. Very special are the very fast Stichbirds (black head with white spot, yellow breast) which you can spot at one of the two feeder stations. Take sometime for it because they are not easy to get on a photo. As you can see we also found a Fern bird as proof that the environment is extremely in balance.

Public toilets are clean and you park the camper on hard ground (a plus because we had a lot of rain). Max 6 campervans.

And don’t forget to donate (in front...

Gosh, what an awesome place! We were met with a family of saddlebacks right from the start and had a robin dancing around our feet. We did the 4km loop. The first half was easy, wide path, low grade. The second half was a bit narrower and lots of roots to navigate. We took our all terrain pram and had to get the toddler out to walk some bits in order to get the pram through some parts. The 6km is not possible with a pram FYI but the 4km is as long as it's an off-road pram and you have someone else there to help lift it over the odd step or root. Beautiful walk, lots of birds, a true representation of what NZ would've been like before us humans ruined everything. Will...