What was thought to be a quick visit to a water garden turned out to be one of our best hikes ever.  We were not sure what to expect at the Jardin d’eau Vaipahi as the descriptions online described a botanical garden.  So, we thought this would be a quick stop before we moved on to Teahupoo, the deadliest break in the world.

The site of Vaipahi was a sacred site in the ancient times.  It was a place of religious importance because of the presence of purifying sources. In the past, the spirits of the deceased of the Teva clan took this “path of purification of souls” during their quest for paradise.

One sign reads:

“Following meticulous directions and incantations of Te’ura-i-Hamano, the spiritual entity was plunged into the quivering waters of Vai’ō’ō, thus beginning the purification journey.  Light and humble after the bath, it was cleansed from the stains of life by the mighty breath of the gushing waters of the Vaipahi waterfall.”

In addition, the signs tell us that the souls were taken for the high priestess of death, Te’ura-i-Hamano, into the spiritual transcendent and saving waters.  The powerful breath of the gushing waters of the Vaipahi waterfall loosened the strains that stuck to their skin from the souls.  Having successfully completed an imposed ritual, the souls obtained the eternal rest offered in the garden of delights of Rohotu-No’ano’a, a paradise of the Ma’ohi people.

A really beautiful belief and so well stated. 

Hiking the Vaipahi Falls

Jardin d’eau Vaipahi

As we continued to read the signage, we discovered a map indicating three hiking trails.  We really wanted to explore the longest, huge loop.  However, we were ill prepared.  We were wearing flip flops and did not have sufficient water or food.  We were also on a schedule with our rental car.  So, we decided to compromise by walking up the short waterfall path and down the longer path.  There are three hikes.  A “short” hike of up to 120m which is 30 minutes one way.  A medium hike up 180 meters at about 75 minutes one way and a long hike up 287m which takes 2hrs 30 min one way.

The short hike was straight up following and crossing the river.  We had at least a dozen different waterfalls in varying sizes along the path.  Everything was incredibly green, happy, and healthy. We were enveloped by the shade from the towering trees that surrounded us.  Water gurgled and lapped along the rocks lazily as we passed by.  Truly beautiful to all our senses.

There were well placed ropes to help you cross a few tricky river crossings and along the steep edges.  But for the most part, you could easily leap across the river, or step on the river rocks, or fallen trees.

The top left photo shows the map.  We took the blue trail straight up along the waterfall rivers and cut over to the orange trail down a wide pine needle path.

Cole was the only one brave enough (or silly enough) to dip into the cool, fresh water.

Cole dips in the cool waterfall

Back to Jardin de Vaipahi

The way to the falls was by far one of the prettiest hikes we have ever done.  We all decided this was one of the best hikes ever!  Once we made the top, we were a little disappointed as it was just a juncture where all three trails met.  No spectacular views or waterfalls or anything.  Just a sign pointing out the direction of each trail.  We hopped on the orange trail and headed down.

End of our trail hike

The path on the way down was rather wide and covered completely in pine needles.  It made it a wee bit slippery, but far more easy to navigate.  We came across a few other tourists and enjoyed a few pretty views on the way back to Vaipahi Gardens.

This was certainly an unexpected surprise.  We did not expect to find a hike let alone one so very beautiful.  A true gem.  We will certainly come back do traverse across the other trails.

When I had better internet, I found this website describing our three hikes at the Jardin d’eau Vaipai.

Coming up next, we make one of Cole’s wishes come true by taking him to the world-famous surf site of Teahupoo.  And you can check out the Tahitian natural grottos if you missed our last blog.

Events from this blog post occurred during the last week of July, 2021.  Our blog posts run 10-12 weeks behind our adventures.