The Ohakune Old Coach Road is the town's strongest day out. The 15 km trail follows the route once used to move passengers and goods between unfinished sections of the North Island Main Trunk railway, before the rail link was completed in 1908.
You can walk it, ride it, or sample the southern section from Ohakune if you have less time. The best moments are the old cobbled road, the bush, the tunnels, and the Hapuawhenua Viaduct, where rail engineering suddenly appears in a quiet valley.