While sometimes listed as Kitakita, Te Kawerau ā Maki kaumātua Rewi Spraggon believes the traditional name was Ketekete, referring to a clicking sound made before an ambush.

[7] A loop track, used by around 30,000 people a year (2005),[8] follows the Glen Esk Stream with minor undulations (on the south side) up to a lookout with a large Macrocarpa bench seat, made by offenders doing community work (2005).

It had been closed to the public due to kauri dieback and under rāhui from Te Kawerau ā Maki in conjunction with the Waitākere Ranges Local Board and Auckland Council.

It has taken many decades for the young kauri (Agathis australis), known as 'rickers', to regenerate and finally begin to emerge through the forest canopy again.

[10] The walk to the falls progresses through a patch of nīkau palms where the call of the tūī is frequently heard from above.

Other native plants include silver tree-ferns, pūriri trees whose red berries attract kererū (native pigeon), and the rangiora plant (termed 'bushman's friend' due to the soft underside of its broad leaf).

[12] New Zealand longfin eel, (Anguilla dieffenbachii) hide among the rocks around the base of the falls.

Restrictions are in place to protect the rare moss growing in the wet areas of the waterfall.