About Rangitoto
Rangitoto Island erupted from the sea in a series of dramatic explosions around 600 years ago and is the youngest island in the Hauraki Gulf and the last and latest valcano to be formed in the Auckland volcanic fields.
In the early 20th century, there was a small community living in the ‘baches’ (holiday houses) scattered along the shoreline, but after further building was prohibited in 1937, many of the original baches have disappeared over the decades. There is no more permanent population at the island today.
Rangitoto Island is the home to New Zealand’s largest Pohutakawa forest, with more than 200 species of native plants, and including 40 species of fern. The island is pest-free now, so there are chances that you will be able to see native species like kaka, saddleback, bellbird, kiwi and takahe. 🙂
I missed the first morning ferry so I got only half a day to tour around by myself, gathering advice from others, I decided that it’s best not to save on the NZD$60 the guided tour – which for once I am glad to spent the amount of money.
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| Remember to change the voucher from the ferry store to a proper boarding tickets before you board the ferry. |
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| Hello Rangitoto Island! |
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| Why is it called a Treasure Island? |
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| Before the tour starts… photo time! |
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| What a big tour trunk! |
The island is a BIG, and it is not very accessible by foot, at least not for a lone directionless noob hiker like me.
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| The ‘black rocks’ used to be lava… |
There wasn’t a lot of sign around the island and it looks ‘flat’ to me compare to other island…
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| I for sure will get lost if I were to hike alone 🙁 |
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| Danbo: Looking at the nice scenery… I really wish to be able to stay here forever |
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| Path to the submit… it definitely took me more than 15 minutes! They need to stop quoting time based on experienced hiker speed! |
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| It’s so nice to have a partner who can grow old with you and be able to explore foreign land around the world. |
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| There are always some strong sign of lives no matter how tough is the environment. |
Even with the guided tour, we have just a bare 30 mins free time before we have the board the return ferry…
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| Even Danbo need a rest before he board the return ferry. |
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| Can you tell what are they? |
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| Gosh! So many on the shore! |
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| Think there is some school excursion, so many people queuing to board the ferry! |
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| Good bye, Rangitoto Island! Hope to see you again! |
I’m not sure about you, but I definitely fall in love with the island, I wish I would have chance to come here to hike by myself one day.