In a few words
« A rich valley, with 4 spectacular waterfalls, and the highlight of the show: a 180m-high cirque. »
Pictures
Map
Datas
Level: Difficult
Geographical location: TARAVAO
Meeting point: 8:15am - 5:00pm in front of SOCIMAT in TARAVAO, just before the “Terre et Mer” restaurant.
Activity time (walking + breaks): outward journey 2h30 - return journey 3h00
Transport time (from Papeete): 1h30 min drive
Places of interest: waterfalls, swimming, river walks
Description
O’OPU is a beautiful canyon opened by Thierry Mongès, founder of the Teanaorivai canyoning association. The valley is divided into a lower, very steep section with large waterfalls accessible only by abseiling, and an upper section with a series of 7 beautiful waterfalls. We bypass the lower part of the valley with 4×4 vehicles and park at the bottom of our hike. The tour takes us upstream all day. Each waterfall will be climbed from the left bank, including one (the highest) just after lunch. It’s a short, but tough and physical climb, before sliding down the river on anuhe for a good fifty meters. Once we’ve reached the last waterfall, it’s just a 5-minute climb up the slope to reach the top of the track where we’ve parked our vehicles. There’s then 30 minutes of rolling descent, with a magnificent view of the TARAVAO isthmus and the Presqu’île, all the way to the fresh icehouse 😉 ! A difficult hike, for both physical and technical reasons. The particularly slippery riverbed accounts for 60% of the route.