The Moawhango River is a major river of the centre of New Zealand

New Zealand

New Zealand is an island country in the south-western Pacific Ocean comprising two main landmasses and numerous smaller islands. The country is situated some east of Australia across the Tasman Sea, and roughly south of the Pacific island nations of New Caledonia, Fiji, and Tonga...

's North Island

North Island

The North Island is one of the two main islands of New Zealand, separated from the much less populous South Island by Cook Strait. The island is in area, making it the world's 14th-largest island...

. It flows generally southwest from its sources in the Kaimanawa Range

Kaimanawa Range

The Kaimanawa Range of mountains is located in the central North Island of New Zealand. They extend for 50 kilometres in a northeast/southwest direction through largely uninhabited country to the south of Lake Taupo, east of the "Desert Road"...

 35 kilometres to the east of Mount Ruapehu

Mount Ruapehu

Mount Ruapehu, or just Ruapehu, is an active stratovolcano at the southern end of the Taupo Volcanic Zone in New Zealand. It is 23 kilometres northeast of Ohakune and 40 kilometres southwest of the southern shore of Lake Taupo, within Tongariro National Park...

 to reach Lake Moawhango

Lake Moawhango

Lake Moawhango is a small lake located with the New Zealand Army's Waiouru Training area. It is fed by tributaries running off the slopes of Mt Ruapehu, and feeds water into the Tongariro River Hydro scheme via the Moawhango Tunnel...

 at the southern end of the Rangipo Desert

Rangipo Desert

Rangipo Desert is a barren desert-like environment in New Zealand, located in the Ruapehu District on the North Island Volcanic Plateau; to the east of the three active peaks of Mount Tongariro, Mount Ngauruhoe, and Mount Ruapehu, and to the west of the Kaimanawa Range.The Rangipo Desert receives...

, 10 kilometres north of Waiouru

Waiouru

Waiouru is a small town in the centre of the North Island of New Zealand. It is on the North Island Volcanic Plateau, 25 kilometres south-east of Mount Ruapehu, and in the Ruapehu District....

. From here, the river flows southeast, passing the small settlement of Moawhango before its outflow into the Rangitikei River

Rangitikei River

The Rangitikei River is one of New Zealand's longest rivers, 185 kilometers long.Its headwaters are to the southeast of Lake Taupo in the Kaimanawa Ranges. It flows from the Central Plateau south past Taihape, Mangaweka, Hunterville, Marton, and Bulls, to the South Taranaki Bight at Tangimoana, 40...

 eight kilometres southeast of Taihape

Taihape

Taihape is the Northern gateway town of the Rangitikei District, located near the middle of the North Island of New Zealand. It services a large rural community and lies on State Highway 1, which runs through the centre of the North Island.- Economy :...

.