Maple 1 day Canyon Minakami

MAPLE CANYON ONE DAY,　MINAKAMI SAT 11TH JULY

Once again the past weekend provided us with beautiful weather in Minakami, and with the recent weekday rain the scene was set for some great outdoor adventures.

On Saturday we had a group of super repeaters who took on the challenge of the Maple Canyon 1 day trip.

Maple Canyon is set high in the mountains above Minakami, in a native forest. We started running the full day course at Maple Canyon last year. The main attractions are the many slides that it offers, but it also has it fair share of larger waterfalls for rappelling and jumping.

Because of the altitude the water is very "refreshing" (a euphemism for bloody cold) and can be drunk directly out of the river. The many frogs and other water based wildlife are a testament to the waters purity. [see below]

Starting off with a spectacular 20m waterfall the group descended into the canyon using ropes and abseiling equipment. Once in the canyon they had a series of challenges to navigate including plenty of slides and jumps.

The first jump once in the canyon gets the heart pumping as you jump into a narrow section of the canyon with lots of water gushing down on top of you from the waterfall above. For those that are not up to a jump you can be lowered by rope.

A short swim out from the bottom gets you to the safety of the riverbank.

After the first waterfall section there is a bit of a river walking section until the slider section starts. Time to enjoy the surroundings of this pristine area and warm up before the next dousing!



Sliders! The sliders start reasonably melow, with only small drops and slight inclines. This is a good warm up for the BIG sliders that the group will face in the afternoon session.

At approx 1pm the group decided upon a nice spot on the side of the river to have lunch. The guides shared out the gourmet sandwiches and soup, followed up by cake for dessert! The crew took a 10 minute kip (sleep) to let lunch settle and enjoy the sounds of the forest, before suiting up again and back into the action.

The afternoon section is mainly slides and jumps, in all shapes and sizes. Below is a selection of pics from the lower section.

[Below: One of the many sliders in Maple Canyon. As you can see by the look on her face, this trip provides excitement plus!]

[More sliders in the lower section of Maple canyon]

By approx 3.30pm the group had reached the end of the Canyon. The whole group looked pretty tuckered out (tired), so all took a slow walk back through the forest to the cars and headed back to base for a few beers and a bit of a yarn. (Yarn; Kiwi slang for having a discussion)

Although Maple Canyon a pretty big day, its well worth the effort. One of the good things about this full day course is that first time canyoners can also participate. So if you have a group with a mix of experience, thrill and fitness levels but want to try a full day canyon then Maple is a good choice.

Maple Canyon info

Full Day Canyoning Schedule