Haruru Falls History
For the best part of the last 1000 years the subdued roar of the Haruru Falls has lulled the dreams of anyone lucky enough to find their way into a hidden valley on the beautiful and peaceful Waitangi River.
Just a few easily navigable kilometers upstream from the open waters of the
Bay of Islands, the deep basin at the foot of the falls was once the base for a multitude of canoes and the riverbanks home to numerous Maori villages.
Later, European settlers came to appreciate this idyllic spot, site of the country's first surveyed road in 1820 and river port. The thriving trading station which grew up here soon had a coaching stop and the countrys first licensed hostelry
and while scows sailed up the river, kauri logs were floated down and barged away for milling.
As these transportation and trading activities were supplanted by progress Haruru (meaning big noise) Falls thundered on unabated, its unusual horseshoe shape and central Bay of Islands location making the small township an ideal tourist resort.
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