Carved into a Waikato hillside, this formerly derelict quarry has been transformed into a 42-acre garden and arboretum. Planting, which started in 1991, has been designed to use and enhance the landscape of rocky outcrops, ponds, flowing water, and broad vistas toward Mt. Pirongia.
The Arboretum has been awarded the prestigious ‘Garden of Significance' status from the New Zealand Garden Trust. It is the location of New Zealand's most extensive sculpture gallery.
Features include:
The Waikato Sculpture Trust (see right hand tab [Trust] above) runs successive sculpture exhibitions and a gallery area in the Park. There are three new exhibitions annually. Commissions from sales help run future exhibitions. A catalogue and map provides a guide for your visit.
The Park is open every day of the year from 10am until sunset.
Café
Leaping Frog Cafe is open at weekends and public holidays from 10am until 4pm. The café closes June, July and August.
Refreshments lakeside: the Leaping Frog Cafe is open at weekends and public holidays through until May for lunches or morning and afternoon teas.
For groups of between 20 - 45 people, we can cater for lunches any time of the week provided we have four days notice.
This Thursday, after a worrisomely stormy day the skies cleared and accompanied by a light, refreshing breeze, guests arrived and the annual Craigs Investment Partners and KPMG Peoples Choice Award ceremony got underway.
This year’s winner is a superb work, ‘Velvet Stampede’ by South Island artist Neville Parker. This column of butterflies soars upward gently unraveling as it reaches for the sky. Made from steel, Neville cut and carved this work from scratch, a three-month marathon.
In his own words, "The idea of carving, (an ancient process,) in a modern medium, something natural and as light as butterflies in something as heavy as a half ton steel pipe is just too mad to resist".
We are grateful for Neville’s ‘madness’ and it is clear than many people have responded positively to his work. The Park has seen over 3000 visitors during this exhibition. This award is truly the ‘peoples choice’; votes cast for their favourite piece by those seeing the exhibition. (Photos of the winning sculpture can be seen under Sculptures section of this website).
