Visit Kahurangi National Park, New Zealand

A great variety of native animals and plants live in this vast national park, the second largest in New Zealand. 'Kahurangi' itself means 'treasured possession', and with a huge range of native bird species, subtropical rainforest, and complex geological formations, it is easy to understand why.

A highlight of the park is the spectacular Heaphy Track, a four to six day independent walking track traversing tussock high country, rainforest, river valley and coast.

Other key activities are kayaking or rafting in the wild rivers, fishing for trout in the Karamea, or caving adventures inside Mount Owen. The Kahurangi National Park can be accessed from Motueka, but there are also shorter trails leading from Karamea, Takaka and Murchison.