Great Lake Trail: 71 km in Waikato
The Great Lake Trail is a named Ngā Haerenga Great Ride in Waikato. The governing figure used here is 71 km (nzcycletrail.com · Great Lake Trail), not a straight line between towns.
Typical time on the route is 2 days. Grade: Grade 3 · intermediate. Season window: October to April.
Three sections: Waihaha, Kawakawa and W2K. Kinloch is the hub. The Waihaha section is boat-access at one end. Grade 3 roots and benching — not a rail trail. Taupō town is the overflow bed base.
The itinerary on this page is the published stop sequence: Kinloch, Waihaha, Whakaipo Bay, Taupō. Cabins and holiday homes load live around each stop; hut and trailhead pins without a town page still search by radius.
Book DOC huts and Great Walks on the DOC system where that applies. Town beds are what this site lists. Carry the day’s food on remote legs — several of these routes have no shop between ends.
Stop by stop
Kinloch — the hub of all three sections. Waihaha — western section, often a boat drop. Whakaipo Bay — W2K southern end. Taupō — town beds twenty minutes away.
Distances, grades and seasons above follow nzcycletrail.com · Great Lake Trail. Confirm opening dates, slips and hut bookings on the operator or DOC page before you travel; alpine and West Coast tracks close or reroute after weather.
