dawson falls

Easy drive to visitors centre, nice walk [partly steep] to the falls, nice scenery at the falls, really nasty toilets at the visitors centre [a little bit more cleaning would not harm at all]OverallGo there and have a look at the falls. You will not regret it.

Under an overcast sky we drove up the narrow winding road to the car park, wide vehicles and camper vans need to be very careful.The walk is very pleasant and easy on one side of the stream, harder muddier on the other. Prams and push chairs were being used and the track is quite wide.At the head of the track some agility is required to get to the top pools.Strangely no bird life or sound was observed, quite sad really after walking similar sites in the SI and hearing Tui's, Robins and the like.

we had come to the falls after a recommendation from family in New Plymouth. Absolutely beautiful. from the moment you leave the farmland and drive through the forest to the almost etheric path down to the falls. Very inspiring.

Only a relatively small waterfall but the setting in natural bush is impressive. Be prepared to walk about 10-15 down a relatively steep road and a few hundred steps. Just remember you also need to walk back up these.

Located on the south side of Mt Taranaki, Dawson Falls are another excellent New Zealand waterfall. The falls are accessed by driving to Stratford, turn right into Celia St/Opunake Rd, then turn right into Manaia Rd, and driving up the mountain to Dawson Falls Information centre. The falls walking track is located some 500 metres back down Manaia Road. The walking track to Dawson Falls is very steep with many steps! Be careful in wet weather, as the track can become slippery, but the view of the falls at the end is worth the descent. There are other walking tracks in the rainforest near Dawson Falls as well, but watch the weather, as it can change quickly!

Beautiful day so we detoured to Dawson Falls on our way south from New Plymouth to home - not difficult to find, well signposted. The last 6 km is on a narrow sealed mountain road but room for passing traffic - we met a bus coming in the opposite direction and although I was a bit nervous, it went past easily, you just have to be a little bit cautious. The bush on the way up was just beautiful, we tend to take this for granted in NZ I think but no wonder overseas visitors are blown away. Stopped in at the Visitor Centre manned by a very pleasant helpful DoC ranger, then drove 2 min back to the Falls walkway. The path was well maintained, lots of handrails and not too steep to the lookout. I wasn't going to go to the base of the Falls as I''m not as agile as I was but couldn't resist it and am pleased I went. It was a bit wet underfoot and quite steep going back up all those steps but a few rests did the trick. Although the drive in from the SH takes half an hour or so the walk is only 5 - 10 minutes. There is a loop track if you want to venture further. If it's a busy day it's probably best to leave your car in the Visitor Centre carpark but we took ours to the start of the track where you can park 4 or 5 vehicles. There are clean rest rooms at the carpark.

Only spent an hour here, but wish it could have been longer! Will definitely be back and spend more time in the National Park. Easy walking but beatific scenery and lots of walks.

we love being outdoors and this trip was worth it. the had been wet all week and the mountain still covered in cloud all made for a grwat trip. the DOC lady wad helpful and worth talking too at the start.we will be back to do some of the tracks in summer after the rest of the ice and snow had melted.

The drive up to the falls is interesting. It is one lane with thick bush on either side. The visitor center was closed the day we were there but the trails were well marked. The power station is five minutes from the visitor center and the falls view point ten minutes. The power generator is the oldest in continuos operation in New Zealand. You can look through the windows and see the turbine and the open frame generator. The water going through the turbine causes the building and ground to rumble. The water fall is one of the prettier ones we have seen. There is a cafe near the visitor center that had a good bowl of soup. It is all free, except for the soup, and well worth a visit.

The falls themselves are nice but the path down is quite steep and muddy from the nights rain/snow. But the drive up to the falls is on a tree covered one lane road up to a resort. It's only about 5 minutes to get up there and is wonderful with the sun shinning through the leaves.

Saw through misty rain but still well worth the walk, which was in itself very enjoyable - lots of native bush and we were the only two people on the track.

We had three kids and four adults and everyone loved these waterfalls. There is only a short walk from the road but there are a lot of stairs. The forest is lush and cool and the waterfall itself was very beautiful with the pool at the bottom very inviting. If you have mobility problems, this is not the walk for you.

a easy walk to, with a set of steep(ish) steeps to get you down to the bottom, this waterfall is a must if you are in the area. Best after rain and early in the morning, (otherwise expect not to be alone, and this is a place to be alone in)!

Spectacular drive in through the bush on a narrow one lane road. Luckily we only met two cars, so try to go when there aren't many people about.The walk itself was very nice, be sure to go down to the base of the falls. Boots are the best footwear as the track is uneven and can be slippery.Shortly after rain there will be much more water going over the falls. A beautiful place with the spectacular Mount Taranaki always present in the background.

Like all of Mt Taranaki it is beautiful place to visit in the native bush, can be reached on foot in about 20 minutes from East Egmont. The area has some distinctive trees covered with mosses and lichens, so that it looks like a 'goblin forest'