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Top Places: Egmont National Park/Mt Taranaki, western coastline, New Plymouth, Whanganui River.
New Plymouth in Taranaki is the major commercial centre for this region and
is situated on the rugged west coast. To the east of the city is Mt Taranaki
a huge conical shaped volcano which dominates the landscape. The Volcano rises
to 2518 metres out of the surrounding plain and is as little as a 30 minute
drive to the coastline.
Mt
Taranaki is surrounded by lush temperate rain forest and the area is protected
with National Park status. The Park was created in 1875 and was expanded to
include the Kaitake Ranges. The total area covers some 24,000 hectares.
Mt Taranaki also has a ski field called Manganui which competes with the ski fields on Mt Ruapehu, a near by volcano situated in the Taupo Region.
Mt
Taranaki has some great walks too. One of the best walks in the park is a
4 hour walk to Fantham's Peak. Another walk called The Mountain circuit circum
navigates the volcano and covers 55 km and takes 3 to 4 days in Summer. There
are also 3 roads that take you part the way up different sides of the mountain
and many walking tracks that take you the rest of the way.
The Taranaki Region has
many surfing beaches on the coast and the unusual black sand is caused by
deposits of iron from volcanic eruptions.
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