Ambury Park to Mangere Lagoon

This run was an unusual one - passing by bird sanctuaries, working farmland, buried landfill and a wastewater treatment plant on the Manukau Harbour. But don’t be put off by the landfill or wastewater plant – the run is better than it sounds.




An accidental discovery

On Monday (Labour Day – a public holiday), we dropped off our dear friend Bridget at the airport after a weekend together. Since the motorway exit to the suburb of Mangere Bridge is on the way back to our house from the airport, we decided to do this week’s run there. It's a pleasant little community which has lots of nice outdoor recreation spaces including a nice waterfront, Ambury Regional Park and Mangere Mountain.

We had intended to do a loop starting from Ambury Park, taking in Mangere Mountain before heading back via the town centre and the north-facing waterfront reserve.

But with no map and with signage which can only be described as crap, we ended up on the ‘Watercare Coastal Walkway’. This area was clearly once industrial, undervalued land which was used for landfill and oxidation ponds and the like. There's been huge projects, I read, to clean this place up and it's now a combination of being lovely and horrible at the same time. Lovely because it’s alongside the sea and has many bird-only islands, and horrible because of occasional wafts of pongy air out of vents from the old landfill now buried underground, not to mention the ugly view of the Watercare plant.

From this walkway we couldn’t seem to find a way back to our planned route, so we just carried on. You have to be a bit flexible when discovering new off-road runs!

After looping the Mangere Lagoon, we decided to turn back. With no tree cover our pasty white winter skin was getting burned (despite the sunscreen) and we were tired from a full-on weekend.

We took a shortcut through Ambury Farm on the way back instead of following the coast. I must say I was relieved to get back to the car and immediately directed Kelvin towards the nearest dairy for an icecream. This is becoming a habit!

We promised to return to do the run in our original plan, so look out for this in future posts, and let me know if you want to join us.

Maps

Here is a mapometer map of this run – nearly 9k. Not really so far considering there were no hills, but it was a hot day and it was very exposed in the heat of the afternoon sun.

See the Watercare Coastal Walkway page on the Watercare website. I was impressed that such a lot of work has been done here to clean up the area and make it bird and human-friendly.

This walkway is also part of the ‘Kiwi esplanade walkway’ – you can learn more about this on the Manukau City Council website. You’ll see it extends even further down the coast than Mangere Lagoon.

See the Ambury Regional Park page on the Auckland Regional Council website for more information on Ambury Park.

Note: I just saw that Auckland Council has put a note on all the websites which means they may be changing to the Auckland Council website soon. I'll fix these links if the information no longer appears on the page.

Evaluation

• Distance: approx 9km
• Terrain: Completely flat
• Track type and condition: Ambury Park has no tracks, just grass. Watercare track is gravel and wide enough for vehicles. Around Mangere Lagoon is another, thinner, gravel track
• Mud: In winter the grass tracks may turn a bit muddy but we are well into spring in Auckland now so there was none
• Views: Amazing views across the Manukau Harbour to Onehunga and Hillsborough, Puketutu Island and you can even see west as far as Whatipu and the harbour mouth
• Novelty: Very novel for us – it was my first time ever to Mangere Bridge, and I am surprised Ambury Park wasn’t one of our family picnic destinations when we were kids as it’s very pretty. Perhaps it was overwhelmed by wastewater ponds and smells back then
• Remoteness: Not remote at all as the suburbs of Mangere Bridge are nearby. But when we were on the Mangere Lagoon track it felt very empty and rural.
• Toilets: At Ambury Park
• Crowd factor: Ambury Park was quite busy with picnickers and walkers, but as we headed south along the coast we saw less and less people. At Mangere Lagoon it was just us. On the way back we saw a family on bikes – this area would be great to take the family for a biking day out
• Watch out for: Sunburn and dehydration as there’s no shade. Smells from the waste water (but it’s not really that bad). No dogs are allowed in Ambury Park, and neither birds nor people are allowed on the bird islands. Oh and it was really windy on the coast – even though it wasn’t a windy day at all anywhere else. I’d be careful out here if it was actually a properly windy day!
• Extra for experts: Keep heading south along the track before heading back – it takes in the Otuataua Stonefields Historic reserve. Or you could head for Mangere Mountain if you’re looking for a really long, challenging run.
  

Verdict

Not too bad for an unexpected discovery but some parts felt a bit empty and wasteland-like. I’m definitely looking forward to doing the run we originally planned.

Okura Bush: Haighs Access Rd to Dacre Cottage

Okura Bush: Haighs Access Road to Dacre Cottage

Last weekend we went for a run in Okura Bush just north of Long Bay. From Haighs Access Rd there's a pretty track along the coastline through mature native forest. After long slow incline up a headland and a steep descent with many stairs, the track reaches up at Karapiro Bay - a nice north-facing beach.

Okura Bush Walkway

The total Okura Bush Walkway track runs from Haigh's Access Rd in the south to Duck Creek Rd in Stillwater in the north. You can do this track one of the two entry points: from the Haigh's Access Rd end, or the Stillwater end. Total length of the track is about 8km.

My failed run

We intended to an out and back from Haigh's Access Road to Dacre Cottage (an historic homestead on Karepiro Bay). This is a track which we have done several times before - both by ourselves and at events such as the Totalsport Trailfest in February 2010 (unfortunately the Trailfest webpage now shows info for the 2011 Trailfest in Riverhead). The total distance out and back is about 10k.

But unfortunately, I must confess that I did not finish today's run - in fact I gave up after about 10 minutes! I don’t have any excuse except from being absolutely shattered from a 7km run the day before followed by a 12-hour gardening marathon. If there’s one thing that 10+ years of running and overcoming a calf injury has taught me, it’s listen to your body. I just needed some food and a rest. Better sacrifice one run than get injured.

So, sorry, I didn’t run this one. And took hardly any pictures :(

After my failed attempt, we went for Mexican food at Hola! Mexican restaurant in Orewa. I thought it was gonna be great, but the fajita (vege option) was a bit bland. It was also absolutely smothered in cheese so that cheese overwhelmed every mouthful (yes, and probably not vegetarian cheese either!) Kelvin enjoyed his quesadillas though.

To make up for my failed meal after my failed run, I even got an icecream on the way home. I felt like a kid wagging school, missing out on my first trailophile run in seven weeks! The ice cream was also a disappointment. It was a Kapiti boysenberry chocolate thing. I just think I'm not that big a fan of ice cream. Give me chocolate by itself any day.

But I can reassure you, Okura is one of the best off-road running tracks you will find. It’s accessible, pretty, has good quality tracks, ends up somewhere scenic, and you can drive there in about 20 mins from central Auckland.

The only downside is that other people love Okura too, and it is often busy. I always feel a tiny bit naughty running where I know a lot of people are going on day walks with families – there’s nothing worse than going round a corner and nearly tripping over little kids! But there is quite a lot of room here and people always look intrigued to see runners and not at all annoyed by them. Walkers are generally very tolerant of runners on a track, I've found. What do you think?

Anyway, despite the failed attempt last Sunday, I feel I am qualified enough from previous experience to give you an evaluation for this trail anyway, see below. But first, the map:

Map
This track is managed by the Department of Conservation. See the Okura Bush Walkway page on the DOC website for details about the track and a PDF map.

Evaluation

• Distance: approx 10 km
  
• Terrain: Medium-sized hills. A nice balance: they are doable hills- none are horrendously steep - but still enough for a challenge.
  
• Track type and condition: Well maintained NZ native bush track. When you get to Karapiro beach you'll run on sand for a while.
  
• Mud: I suspect we turned around before we hit the muddy bits. This track can be a bit muddy but not so that your shoes get completely covered.
  
• Views: Up on the headland before you reach the beach there are some nice views out to the east through the trees.
  
• Novelty: For us, not very novel as we had been here before many times, but for first timers it's a great find.
  
• Remoteness: This track is quite close to Auckland, and suburbia is moving ever closer. You can see flash houses on lifestyle blocks from the start of the track. But the beaches are only accessible from private land and this track which makes them very remote which is nice!
  
• Toilets: None on this part of the track. There are toilets at the Stillwater end only.
  
• Crowd factor: You're bound to see someone on this track if you keep normal hours - it's very popular with walkers and runners alike.
• Watch out for: Sunburn along the Karepiro Bay part - there's not much shade after being in the nice cool forest.
  
• Extra for experts: Do the whole track - to Stillwater and back! Or start at Stillwater and run the whole thing. I'm keen to do the Stillwater end of the track again sometime soon and you'll definitely hear about it in this blog when I do!
  

Verdict
As close to a perfect trail run that you can get: close to town, native bush, good tracks, nice scenery, challenging enough terrain... No wonder it's a favourite among walkers and off-road runners alike!

Tokorangi Pa Track, Whakarewarewa Redwood Forest, Rotorua

Last weekend we were in Rotorua for the Ekiden relay race on Saturday, and on Sunday we headed to the Whakarewarewa Redwood Forest to check out their off-road running tracks.

Rotorua Ekiden

First of all I’d like to do a little plug for the Rotorua Ekiden – a 6-leg road relay race around Lake Rotorua. The course is virtually the same as the Rotorua Marathon: a total of 42km. Ekiden races originated in Japan and are now run all over the world. I spent three years in Japan and I always attend this event with the New Zealand Japan Society of Auckland (NZJS) and Japan Exchange Teaching Alumni Association of Auckland which have at least three teams per year between them. It’s a fun event with about 250 teams from workplaces, schools, clubs, and of course you can also form a team with your mates. Everyone really gets into the team spirit and supports their runners over the length of the course. Best of all, there is a prize for the team with the best costume, so there are always plenty of outrageously dressed people to look at. Check out their website: http://www.rotoruaekiden.com/. If you’re keen to join our team next year, please let me know!

Whakarewarewa Redwood Forest

At the Ekiden we met up with Tatsuru, a fellow member of NZJS. Since I met Tatsuru about 3 years ago he has started running marathons and also enjoys long distance off-road running. Like me, he’s spent the winter with cold after cold and is keen to get back into some serious training. On Sunday, Tatsuru, Kelvin and I decided to check out the Whakarewarewa Redwood Forest, which is most famous for mountain biking but also has some excellent walking and running tracks.

Tokorangi Pa Track: 11.5km

Starting from the excellent Information Centre at the Redwoods, this track heads north and follows a wide circle through a mix of pine forest, native forest and forestry roads back to the start. It’s easy to follow and well signposted – you just have to follow the purple arrows. We had a map too, which was handy to judge distances and figure out where we were. You can read the track description on the Redwoods website (under ‘Long Walks’). Here’s my version:

Once out of the first flat section through the magnificent redwood forest, there is a very steep climb through native bush. At this point I thought we might have chosen a route that was too hard to run, but we walked up the really steep bits until the track levelled off somewhat at the top and turned into an undulating old forestry road. By the looks of things this road has not been used for some time as many parts are covered in grass. Up here, through the trees you can glimpse awesome views over Rotorua and the lake. We somehow accidentally bypassed the part of the track that goes to the lookout point and ended up on the “Tokorangi skid” - a very steep track/dry river bed down to the Water Tank and roadside – the northernmost point of the track, and about the halfway point. We were disappointed to miss the lookout point, but instead of climbing back up we decided to conserve our energy to run the second half of this track.

The track then follows a forestry road beside a logged hillside which admittedly isn’t very attractive, but then makes a turn into a very pretty native forest patch complete with crystal clear stream of water. Nice!

On the way back to the Information Centre the track continues to alternate between forestry roads and native bush, until you suddenly emerge into a big open space with a big incongruous building and grassy hill with water treatment ponds at the top. This is a waste water treatment facility, according to the sign. From here, it’s all downhill back to the start and you’ll see lots of mountain plenty of mountain bikers heading up to use the mountain biking tracks.

Maps

You'll see from this Redwoods Walking Trail Map that for all of our effort we only covered a tiny part of the whole park! But we thought that was a good chance to explore further, and promised to return to do the Pohaturoa Track (7.5km) and maybe even a track that encircles the whole park. Lucky Rotoruarians, we thought, having all of this just a few minutes drive away from the city centre!

Evaluation

• Distance: 11.5km
  
• Terrain: Difficult and steep at the start but gets easier. I'm glad we walked those initial hills as we were then nicely warmed up and still had the stamina to run most of the rest.
  
• Track type and condition: Lovely, soft pine forest/native forest floor.
• Mud: None to speak of.
• Views: We missed the lookout point which was disappointing. If you do this run let me know if you find it. We did get a nice view over Rotorua and the lake from the tracks at the top though.
• Novelty: For us Aucklanders, very novel!
• Remoteness: Feels like you are in the middle of nowhere. At the water tower end there is a road nearby but apart from that it's just you and nature. Oh, and mountainbikers, although they mostly use different tracks so you don't need to worry about them crashing into you.
  
• Toilets: At the Redwoods Visitor's centre. There's a water fountain there too which is a nice touch.
  
• Crowd factor: We saw quite a few mountain bikers on the way back but there's more than enough space here for everyone.
  
• Watch out for: Steep downward hills, but these are pretty much par for the course on off-road runs, right?
  
• Extra for experts: There are so many trails to choose from - if you've still got energy you could do lots more!

Verdict

The hills make for a challenging middle distance off-road run, but the variety of scenery keeps you interested right until the end.

Western Springs to Meola Reef

This week we did a mostly off-road run in the central city which takes in three parks and passes by the Auckland Zoo, MOTAT and off-leash dog exercise area on Meola Reef.

Western Springs

We parked at the top of the aptly named Bullock Track (very steep) on Old Mill Road. You can also park in Western Springs, by the playing fields, but we wanted to cover as much terrain as possible.

From the corner of Old Mill Road and Bullock track, there is a forested track going down the hill, which then goes across the playing fields. Then you can run around the Western Springs lake - there is a path but we ran on the grass. We exited the park and ran along Motions Rd (the only ‘on-road’ part of the run). Along here, watch out here for the old tram which takes passengers between the zoo and MOTAT (Museum of Transport and Technology)!

Seddon Fields/Jaggers Bush
From the end of Motions Rd you can get to Meola Reef one of three ways: across Seddon Fields sports ground, through Jaggers Bush, or along the tramway to Motat II. I recommend the lovely forested track through Jaggers Bush – the track and stairways have recently been upgraded and the area has a river and mature trees. The track comes out onto on Meola Rd.

Meola Reef
Across Meola Road, you can access Meola Reef – a small peninsula between Point Chevalier and Westmere. It was created by a lava flow and you can see how it trails off into the sea. These days it’s covered in grass and you can run around the edge, starting on tracks near the mangroves. At the tip there are picnic tables and views across the harbour to Birkenhead and Chelsea – last week’s run!

On the western side, there’s an off-leash dog park – a favourite hangout of Kelvin and mine before we lived together. All the owners stand near a bench at the top and the dogs all run around and play together – big ones with little ones, yappy ones with scary ones, fluffy ones with shorthair ones....and all have a great time. There’s even a swimming hole for dogs and a platform where they can enter and exit the water! The owners all socialise and discuss their dogs, and we would always feel like like a childless couple whenever we were there, spying on other people’s dogs! It's usually all very entertaining. But today, there were only two dogs....we felt a bit cheated.

Back to Western Springs via Motat II
We returned via Motat II with its aircraft museum, and went back around Western Springs lake on the zoo side this time. It was just about sunset, and being spring there are lots of signets and goslings. Western Springs is such a nice place – if you’ve only ever seen it in the craziness that is the Pasifika Festival you must go and experience on another day – it has a tranquillity that you don’t often find in the central city.

Maps
Mapometer map of this run
Auckland City Council pages: Western Springs, Jaggers Bush, and Meola Reef

Evaluation

• Distance: about 6-7km
  
• Terrain: easy peasy. So good for beginners.
  
• Track type and condition: mostly grass or gravel track. A tiny bit of road.
  
• Mud: Virtually no mud! We've had a few days of sun now though
  
• Views: from Meola Reef there are some nice water views. But I also like the fact that there is such nice parkland in a relatively central part of the city
  
• Novelty: Not really novel but nice to visit some areas we hadn't been to for a long time
  
• Remoteness: Not at all
  
• Toilets: Many in Western Springs, and another at Meola Reef
  
• Crowd factor: There's enough space here for everyone
  
• Watch out for: Trams! And geese. And whatever it was making that sound we could hear over the zoo walls
  
• Extra for experts: You could head (via 1-2kms of suburbia) to Coyle Park and run the western side of Pt Chevalier before returning via Meola Rd.

Verdict
An easy, fun, feel-good run with lots to see. Running this on a sunny spring evening on daylight savings time will make you feel like nothing is wrong with the world. Thumbs up!

Kauri Point to Chelsea Estate, Birkenhead

This run on the southern coast of Birkenhead – just over the bridge from Auckland City – is in a coastal cliff forest with pretty harbour views. But beware of steep slippery clay steps, mud, military land and maybe even some random drunk people.

Kauri Point Centennial Park
We did this run on the first Tuesday after daylight saving - a beautiful sunny day. We began the run off Onetaunga Rd in Birkenhead, where there are three entrances to Kauri Point Centennial Park. Various steep tracks go down towards Kendall Bay, and a couple go westward but end abruptly with a 3m high barbed wire-topped fence or 'Beware, explosives' sign announcing the boundary to NZ Defence Force land next to the park. This whole area is like a naughty teenager - it's got potential but is a bit unruly so has been proffered to the military. I guess it's a bit steep to do too much else with.

So we turned back and headed down towards Kendall Bay. This is a nice beach, accessible only by the track we had just run, and has great views over towards West Auckland.

From Kendall Bay there is a great track eastward towards the Chelsea Sugar Refinery Estate. The nicely maintained track gives way to mud and clay again, and here we heard hooting, yelling and flying pine cones, only to encounter two very drunk men absolutely reeking of alcohol, laughing and throwing pine cones at each other and just generally playing silly buggers. What on earth were they doing here? Strange place to be - they must have walked down from the Birkenhead shops, about 3km away. They didn't seem aggressive, but were very intoxicated so 'Mr and Mrs Runner', as they called us, laughed with them nervously then ran away very fast until we couldn't hear them any more.

Chelsea Sugar Heritage Estate
Now, "off-road run" and "sugar refinery" are words you probably don't hear in the same sentence every day, but here in Birkenhead they go together quite nicely. The Estate is open to the public during the day, and visitors can wander around the grounds which include lakes, regenerating forest and beautiful views towards Auckland City.

Getting here from Kendall Bay is easy - just follow the track east. But it's not an easy track to run on: the parts that aren't completely criss-crossed in tree roots (which are surprisingly difficult to run on) are a swampy mud-puddle mess.

You emerge from the bush on a road within the Chelsea Estate - follow this down the hill to view the lakes and rest of the estate. From the looks of the map, within the estate there are some other bush tracks which we didn't explore - we were too tired from the initial hills. Plus, it was starting to get late and we didn't want to encounter our drunk friends again in the dark, so we headed back to Onetaunga Rd.

Maps
Here's the best map of Kauri Point Centennial Park that I could find, published by the Birkenhead Northcote Glenfield Community Facilities Trust.

For Chelsea, the only maps of the tracks are on the picture boards onsite (you can see a picture in the Trailophile Picasa gallery). See the Chelsea Sugar and Auckland Regional Council websites for more information about the Chelsea Estate.

I attempted to map this run on mapometer....didn't really succeed though! Our good old Wises Map in the car had a better view of the off-road tracks.

Evaluation

• Distance: probably about 5kms....but feels like more
  
• Terrain: some really steep tracks at Kauri Point - great for those looking to do hill work
  
• Track type and condition: mostly clay in Kauri Point, with a mixture of crude steps just cut away into the clay and proper wooden steps. Bit of a mixed bag: some maintained well; some not.
  
• Mud: The Kauri Point park just had dry clay. On the Kauri Point to Chelsea part: a lot. And this is at the end of a sunny day
  
• Views: nice views looking over towards Auckland city
  
• Novelty: Very novel, especially the Chelsea Estate part
  
• Remoteness: The slice of forest is quite thin and steep, so this run is not remote at all - houses are very close by all the time, but unseen because of the bush
  
• Toilets: None! You'll need to plan well and go before you leave. There are public toilets in the Birkenhead shops
  
• Crowd factor: There were only a couple of people using these tracks and I imagine they would stay relatively uncrowded even in summer
  
• Watch out for: tripping over tree roots, falling down cliffs, no toilets
  
• Extra for experts: I think you'll be tired enough if you've run up all those hills!

Verdict
Very challenging tracks. Good practice for those really difficult off-road runs with lots of hills, but not so enjoyable if you're just starting out! Chelsea Estate on its own is also worth a visit if you haven't been there before.