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CURVESCOUT / MOTORCYCLE RIDE

Desert Road starting at Turangi

Plan this ride

Recorded distance
63 km
Riding-time estimate
50 min
Journey
Recorded itinerary
Distance and timing basis

The recorded total and the leg detail need reconciliation. Inspect the leg notes before using this record for timing or navigation. Stops, delays, approach and any separate return travel add time. Basis: producer-declared routed record.

Reading history stays on this device. My road watch requires a separate selection; opening it does not subscribe this ride.

Distance and riding time are measured on the routed road. Check local closures and conditions before you ride.

Open this ride in CurveScout

Why this ride

Volcanic landforms, exposed roads and strong destination anchors. It also links naturally to Tongariro National Park.

Access context

Check NZTA closures, alpine weather, gravel share and ferry status. Specific flag: snow; wind; closures.

Seasonal context

Nov-Apr

Waypoint introductions and full write-ups

  1. 1. Turangi

    Turangi is a fishing town that was built almost overnight. In the 1960s, when the Tongariro Power Scheme needed workers to divert the rivers of the central plateau into hydroelectric stations, a new town was laid out beside the Tongariro River at the southern end of Lake Taupō. About three and a half thousand people live there now, and the place has settled into an easy life based on trout, tourism and the great volcanic national park behind it.

    Read the complete Turangi write-up.

    Recorded stop-planning note

    May refer to an earlier itinerary; verify against your selected route before riding.

    Planning note

    Turangi sits at 0 km, early in the day. Next is Waiouru.

  2. 2. Waiouru

    Waiouru is a military town on the edge of a desert, which sounds like a joke but is simply geography. The settlement sits at about 800 metres on the central plateau of the North Island, in the rain shadow of the three great volcanoes, and the surrounding land of tussock, gravel and wind-bent scrub gets the name Rangipo Desert because of its dry, stony look. In truth it receives plenty of rain, but the soil drains instantly and little grows.

    Read the complete Waiouru write-up.

    Recorded stop-planning note

    May refer to an earlier itinerary; verify against your selected route before riding.

    Planning note

    Waiouru comes up 63 km in.

Recorded source links

Source

More motorcycle rides nearby