Just to the north west, the highway runs through Mangamuka Gorge in the Maungataniwha Range.

The New Zealand Ministry for Culture and Heritage gives a translation of "stream of the furled shoot of the nīkau plant" for Mangamuka.

[2] Ngāpuhi chief Hongi Hika was shot in the lungs during a minor engagement on the shores of the Mangamuka River in January 1829.

[4] The local Mangamuka Marae and meeting house are affiliated with the Ngāpuhi hapū of Kōhatutaka and Te Uri Māhoe.

[5][6] The Mangamuka Forest survived the logging era with many giant kauri trees intact.