Western Ōkataina Walkway: Walking Guide, Time & Access

Route overview

Western Ōkataina Walkway is open for both walking and mountain biking.

This DOC directory entry covers Western Ōkataina Walkway in Bay of Plenty, within Lake Ōkataina Scenic Reserve. Where DOC groups several walks, times and grades refer to the listed options rather than a single continuous itinerary.

Distance, time and grade

• Distance: 22.5 km one way
• Walking time: 7 hr
• DOC grade: Advanced

Access and alerts

Source checked 2026-10-08. This page is a dated snapshot, not a live track-status report. Check current DOC route information immediately before travelling. An absence of listed alerts does not establish that a route is open.

Dog access

No dogs. Other pets on conservation land rules.

Description

The Western Ōkataina Walkway can be walked or biked in its entirety in either direction from:

• Te Ruato Bay, Lake Rotoiti, or

• from Millar Road on Lake Ōkāreka.

It can also be joined from the Outdoor Education Centre on Lake Ōkataina Road.

Description from Te Ruato Bay

After leaving the car park at Lake Rotoiti, you’ll climb steeply for 15 minutes to the top of a ridge, where there are good views of Lake Rotoiti. The track then continues along an old disused forestry road, descending into Patotara Crater (The Bull Ring). Once out of the crater you emerge on to Lake Ōkataina Road or branch right along the Rongomai Track to continue to the Outdoor Education Centre.

From the Outdoor Education Centre, continue through the whakaruruhau/shelter. In a further 10 minutes’ walk, a junction gives you a choice of:

• Waipungapunga Track on the left leading down to Lake Okataina Road and Lake Ōkataina, or

• continuing along the Western Ōkataina Walkway on the right. This track is steep in places, and the surface may be rough and uneven.

2 hours from the Education Centre an optional track to Whakapoungakau Trig (40 minutes return) is well worth the effort. The summit affords amazing views out over Lake Ōkataina, Rotorua, Rotoiti and all the way to the coast on a sunny day.

The Western Okataina Walkway continues from the junction of Whakapoungakau Trig track to Millar Road.

Track times

• Te Ruato Bay to Outdoor Centre – 2 hr

• Outdoor Centre to Whakapoungakau Junction – 2 hr

• Whakapoungakau Trig Track – 40 min return

• Whakapoungakau Junction to Millar Road – 3 hr

Mountain biking

Start from Millar Road and enjoy an exhilarating downhill from the Whakapounakau Trig all the way into the Outdoor Education Centre.

Getting there

The track can be started on SH 30 at Te Ruato Bay, Lake Rotoiti (21 km from Rotorua) or from Millar Road on Lake Ōkāreka (11 km from Rotorua).

Know before you go

This is a shared-use track. Follow the mountain bikers code: respect others, respect the rules, respect the track.

Sources and reuse

Route descriptions and practical information reproduced from the Department of Conservation, Crown copyright, under CC BY 4.0, subject to DOC's copyright policy. Formatting has been adapted, including flattening page sections; follow the original DOC page for maps, section-specific layout, current notices and linked documents. Outdoor Next is independent and is not endorsed by DOC.

The accompanying photograph is a licensed general hiking illustration, not a photograph of this route.