Raetea North Side Campsite
Raetea Forest
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Raetea North Side Campsite
Take a break at the northern foot of Raetea, a lowland coastal forest situated in the Mangamuka Gorge.
Apparently the Raetea Camping Ground is situated in one of the last remaining lowland coastal forests. There is a bit of native bat and bird listening/ watching opportunities to be had.
Notices
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Raetea North Side Campsite access limited
Raetea North Side Campsite is accessible from the north only.
There is no access to the campsite from the south on SH1. The Mangamuka Gorge will be closed for approximately 6-12 months while road repairs are undertaken.
The gate to the reserve is currently locked, the site can still be accessed on foot.
SH1 will be opening again on 20 December 2024.
This is a long term alert.
First published on 1 September 2022. Last reviewed on 5 November 2024.
DOC Campsite Pricing
Raetea North Side Campsite is categorised as a DOC Basic Campsite. The following pricing indicates usual pricing.
DOC Basic Campsite
Basic campsites have very limited facilities so you need to be fully self-sufficient. There are basic toilets and water may be from a water tank that is untreated, stream or lake. Untreated water should be boiled before use to ensure it's safe. Access may be by road or boat.
| Feature | Value | Value |
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| Unpowered Site | Adult | $0.00 per night |
| Unpowered Site | Child | $0.00 per night |
| Unpowered Site | Infant | $0.00 per night |
Adults are 18+ years, children are 5-17 years, infants are 0-4 years.
Details
| Feature | Value | Info |
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Organisation |
DOC NorthlandCentral government organisation |
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Location |
North Island ▷ Northland ▷ Kaitaia |
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Basic Camping
Reviews
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3.5/5
Beautiful scenery.
The bridge was “flooded” so we stayed on the first grass area and just crossed by foot when we wanted to use the toilet. No running water but you can use the stream.
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1.0/5
Annoyythat it was licked in February so had a wasted trip there.
I do ‘t know why the first gate can’t be left open so the field can be used anyway. Would have loved to stay but can’t recommend. The dates open should be added to the app so we can avoid the wasted trip
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4.5/5
Large area.
We were the only ones staying, a few locals stopped in briefly. Nice spot. Tidy long drops across the river bridge. Lots of sandflies so take repellant
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3.5/5
Nice little spot in a meadow, very windy road to get there from the South.
Toilet was clean but a little walk over the bridge. Sandflies are quite severe so wear long clothes in the morning. Locals seem to use the river for a dip, unfortunately one car came to use the field as a loo and left toilet roll blowing all over the field. Quiet spot with beautiful sky. There is also a resident duck who is very friendly, pretending to look for food as an excuse to come over!
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4.0/5
Had a great spot in the shadow for our campervan.
Woke up with a refreshing swim in the river. Toilets were fine (clean+toilet paper).
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3.5/5
Beautiful forest and ditto stream, a long but nice walk to a dry toilet.
Would stay again!
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4.5/5
One of the most spacious spots that I stayed at on my trip that has a lovely view of a dense, tropical forest on the hills.
The bridge flooded a bit overnight, so walking to the bridge required some caution, mainly not to get wet in my case. This site is free and while the outhouse may smell it was cleaner than some of the public restrooms I've seen during this trip. The inconvenience is that it is a bit out of the way to get to the toilet.
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4.5/5
A remote campsite, with many many pitches for cars / campers.
Please do not drive the "bridge". It is only to reach the toilet away from the parking area 100m. There is nothing to be driven or achieved! Toilets were clean, the river serves for refreshment (without shampoo!).
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3.5/5
Beautiful scenery.
The bridge was “flooded” so we stayed on the first grass area and just crossed by foot when we wanted to use the toilet. No running water but you can use the stream.
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1.0/5
Annoyythat it was licked in February so had a wasted trip there.
I do ‘t know why the first gate can’t be left open so the field can be used anyway. Would have loved to stay but can’t recommend. The dates open should be added to the app so we can avoid the wasted trip
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4.5/5
Large area.
We were the only ones staying, a few locals stopped in briefly. Nice spot. Tidy long drops across the river bridge. Lots of sandflies so take repellant
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3.5/5
Nice little spot in a meadow, very windy road to get there from the South.
Toilet was clean but a little walk over the bridge. Sandflies are quite severe so wear long clothes in the morning. Locals seem to use the river for a dip, unfortunately one car came to use the field as a loo and left toilet roll blowing all over the field. Quiet spot with beautiful sky. There is also a resident duck who is very friendly, pretending to look for food as an excuse to come over!
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4.0/5
Had a great spot in the shadow for our campervan.
Woke up with a refreshing swim in the river. Toilets were fine (clean+toilet paper).
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3.0/5
Was a lovely spot with a creek running nearby and like camping in a meadow though a little walk to the toilet.
Toilet was adequate, no other facilities even a handbasin. Lots of others there as well. Not allowed dogs.
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3.5/5
Beautiful forest and ditto stream, a long but nice walk to a dry toilet.
Would stay again!
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1.0/5
Hier waren nur Mücken, man konnte keine Minute außerhalb seines campers sich aufhalten.
Es gab keine Waschbecken und ein Plumbsklo ohne klopapier.
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4.5/5
One of the most spacious spots that I stayed at on my trip that has a lovely view of a dense, tropical forest on the hills.
The bridge flooded a bit overnight, so walking to the bridge required some caution, mainly not to get wet in my case. This site is free and while the outhouse may smell it was cleaner than some of the public restrooms I've seen during this trip. The inconvenience is that it is a bit out of the way to get to the toilet.
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1.0/5
Was closed for winter in october...
Still stayed just outside the gate in the car parky area, as did 6 others. Was a long journey to the toilets, which are not nice. Just a hole from the toilets into a big container, so you can just see and smell everything, not ideal.
Theres also a chicken “twiggy” who resides there and is very charming to begin with but then turns into a savage and won’t leave you alone. He also just loves to scream at about 5 in the morning just to everyones joy. Twiggy was lucky to live, not sure he’ll have the same luck next time he annoys a tired camper, good luck Twiggy. Think he annoyed me more than the toilet.
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2.5/5
Closed for the winter when we arrived just a small paking area on the highway probably a very nice area in the summer but not in the winter
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4.5/5
A remote campsite, with many many pitches for cars / campers.
Please do not drive the "bridge". It is only to reach the toilet away from the parking area 100m. There is nothing to be driven or achieved! Toilets were clean, the river serves for refreshment (without shampoo!).
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3.5/5
Relaxing place off of Highway 1, right next to a beautiful stream.
Didn’t hear the traffic at all which was a nice surprise. A lot of space for camping. Only issue was the toilets are on the other side of the wir, so meant jumping over the water. A local eel is swimming in the stream which was cool to see. Drop toilets were clean, no water around, so no sink. Was a pretty chill spot.
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4.5/5
Beautiful scenery, plenty of space easy found..
quiet and enjoyable stay good for heading north next morning as we done..
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2.5/5
We arrived late in the evening and left early so we probably didn’t get to appreciate the surrounding.
We struggled to find the toilets which are a bit away and had to fight with all the mosquitos at night.
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3.0/5
Best place around cause it's the only one.
Try to park on the gravel, the lawn is muddy and can get stuck. Toilet is a bit of a walk and you possibly get wet feed. Sandflies and mosquitoes around
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3.5/5
Cool spot but vehicle access to the more picturesque area was blocked.
Felt very safe and quiet. Zero light pollution so the stars were amazing. There is a composting toilet but be prepared to get your feet wet crossing the weir to get to it.
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4.5/5
Great spot!
A little tricky to find at night but still not difficult. Just be ready to turn right (if heading south) immediately after the bridge. Once you do arrive the field is large and lovely with massive trees and a little stream wrapping around. They have placed a giant boulder in front of the small bridge crossing the stream, I imagine because they were tired of getting people unstuck from that area. But the field before then is on higher ground and if you aren't right by the water I reckon the chances of getting stuck are pretty slim. Beautiful composting toilets just a couple minutes away, across the aforementioned boulder blocked stream. All around loved this place. 9/10 instead of 10/10 just cause it was a little tricky to find at night, drove past it once and had to turn around. Great spot tho, would definitely stay here again!
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3.5/5
Could have been an amazing spot!
Main grass area was shut. Probably for the winter for it was quite wet. Bridge to the toilet was overflowing with water. People had left a bunch of rubbish on a pile. Nice friendly chicken walking around. Lots of sand flies.
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1.5/5
We stayed here at the end of May and didn't manage to get there until dark.
It was a VERY difficult place to find. You have to take a hidden turning just past the bridge. We drove in and parked but couldn't see much, it wasn't until the morning that we (and all the other campers) realised we were completely stuck! The ground can't handle even a small amount of rain, the mud is thick and there is only one "safe" spot on shorter grass. There is no phone signal available here and it's quite a walk to find help. Yes, the views are amazing and it's off the beaten track, which is why I've given it 3 stars, but there is nothing here and you have to keep your fingers crossed it doesn't rain!!
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3.5/5
Many places to park.
Shade. Cross the stream. Don't worry all the cars can cross. We prefer to stayed before because we woke up at 5amfor the sunrise at Cape Reinga. Cool. Just after the hill if you come from the south.
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4.5/5
Great spot especially since it's a free camping site.
Nice open spaces and heaps of access to the stream.
We had no reason too feel unsafe but agree that if rain is imminent then best not to go over the weir.
Thanks to DOC for providing such a great place.
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3.5/5
Well it all started out lovely.
Pitched the tent next to the babbling brook and even had an evening dip in it. Sandflies were severe there though. WARNING: if rain is imminent don't camp on the other side of the weir. The water rose about 500mm and was very fast moving carrying dead trees overnight. Four vehicles got stuck there for the day until Kevin who looks after the site came and removed the tree and helped us to escape! Thank you Kevin!
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4.5/5
We loved this spot - I agree that it could be a bit tricky knowing if you have found the right location if you arrive in the dark, but we found everything ok.
If you just see the gravel area with large boulders, you haven't gone far enough.....cross the concrete bridge and find a spot along the creek on the grass. Site was spacious, composting toilets (nice touch for enviro-conscious) were very clean and it was in our top 3 for FREE DOC sites this trip. Heard one truck in the morning, but still more quiet here than most free sites we found. On my list for next time.
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2.5/5
Very free.
We went to the place on the rankers app that marked this campsite, but we dont think it was the right place. It was night, and was creepy like jacqueline said it might be. Didn't find find the toilets, but it was a beautiful and secluded spot by a stream south of kaitaia. If memory serves me right, the sign did say Raetea Forest, but didn't look like the pictures. Id stay there again though.
