About a 20 minute drive north of the Tasman District boundary sign on state highway 65 is the turnoff to the Maruia Falls Scenic Reserve. It’s just a short walk down a hillside track to the bottom of the Maruia Falls, which were formed as the result of a landslide during the Murchison earthquake of 1929. The landslide on the western side of the river pushed the river further west, over an old riverbank. The old riverbank is the falls we know today. It’s difficult to see in this photo, but on the far side of the river is a whirlpool that collects debris that comes down the river, resulting in a flotilla of tree trunks and branches. Between the swirling current and the debris, it is too dangerous to swim at Maruia Falls.
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