PORT WAIKATO

'Port Waikato' is on the south bank of the Waikato River at its outflow into the Tasman Sea, in northern New Zealand. Now a small town with a population of under 300, it was an important port during the New Zealand Land Wars of the 19th century. The Port has a Wharf Store, established 1893, a restaurant, two take-away shops, library, community hall, fire station, surf club, yachting club and an active fishing club.
Port Waikato is a well-known surfing and whitebaiting destination and a popular holiday spot. Fish can be caught off the rocks and surf beach, and off the sand dunes that border the river mouth. Flounder and Mullet are also plentiful using drag nets.
Just south of the town are spectacular limestone outcrops where some of the Lord of the Rings footage was shot.
A school camp was established near the town in the 1920s.