Stream Glen Esk Stream

Greater watershed Piha Stream → Tasman Sea

Height Claimed to be 60m/197ft with a main drop of 40m/131ft.

Form Two steep slides, then a plunge that impacts the bedrock in a few places

Volume Splashy

General location Piha, Waitakere Park, 45min west of Auckland

Specific location From Scenic Drive, which skirts the spine of the Waitakere hills, take Piha Road off to the west and down to the beach. You'll see Lion Rock. Turn right (inland) up the Glen Esk Stream valley. The carpark is signed.

Trail access From the carpark a trail heads up the stream through classic West Coast rainforest. About halfway along it turns into a loop—the Kitekite Track crosses the stream on a bridge, whereas some other track (don't remember name) continues on the true right and begins to climb steeply. You want to be on this other track, either now or on the way back, because it's the only place to get a view of the upper drops. After that view it drops down steeply (bit of a scramble) to the plunge pool. Somewhere there's a side trail that goes up to the top, but I haven't yet tried it.

 

Kitekite Falls (spelled Kitakita Falls on the map) is the best known waterfall in the Waitakeres and probably the largest that flows year-round. (Waitakere Falls is larger, but its flow is regulated by a dam.) Set in unspoiled native bush, including a few young giant kauri trees which are currently endangered by disease—there will be signs instructing you to cleanse your hiking shoes before visiting—it offers a refreshing swimming hole and lunch spot. Due to the ease of access and proximity to the famous west coast beaches expect crowds, more so because this is one of those few waterfalls that does in fact photograph best on a sunny day.

 

From off the Kitekite Track a side track leads up to the top of the falls and beyond, eventually coming out at Piha Road after a stiff but short climb. Further up Glen Esk Stream along this track an upper waterfall is indicated on the topo maps. However, it is advisable not to go in search of it. The intrepid Kiwi waterfall hunter known only as cr01 explored the area and found only a tiny cascade. One would be better off exploring the gorge below the main falls which is home to at least one small waterfall.

 

Glen Esk Stream, like most of the Waitakere drainages, has a very small catchment area and is sustained mostly by the prodigious amounts of rainfall the area receives. That said I am not aware of the falls ever having dried up.