Botanic Gardens - Totara Park Trail

Botanic Gardens, Auckland

The weather was pretty bad on Sunday morning and only a few of us took our poles and met up with some of Jenny’s group, the Acacia Cove Nordic Walkers at the Botanic Gardens, Manurewa.  The gardens are situated just alongside the Southern (SH1) motorway, it’s a bit of a trek from the North Shore but the Gardens are beautiful; not so much this time of year but four of us from North Shore Nordic Walkers turned up prepared to battle with the elements for a Nordic Walk around the Totara Park Trail.

Donning poles and stout waterproofs our small but enthusiastic group were lead by Ann though the Botanic Gardens and onto the path for the Totara Park Trail.

Nordic Walking Through The Botanic Gardens

Ann was very knowledgeable and chatted to us along the way about the trail and the surrounding area.  One of our walkers Mary, a retired school teacher, told us that there was a school camp facility here. Unfortunately the camp has long since gone, but the bush here is simply outstanding and it's easy to see why it was such a popular spot for a school camp.

Te Araroa - The Long Pathway

Originally the land was purchased by Mr Gillies in 1925 from the Manurewa Land Company, it was in a derelict state when he acquired the land and it was cleared to build a homestead.  The homestead was sold twice before being bought by the Council in 1966 after the previous owner had bequeathed that the homestead should stay and the bush remain in the property of the public.

Statue Outside The Visitor Information Centre

The park is typical of New Zealand bush, with native trees and plants in abundance and teaming with wild birds. The park is well signposted with information at various points about some of the tree and plants.

The track was in excellent condition, wide in parts, although there are a number of steep steps and a few inclines. It wasn’t long before we were at the trail for the Puhinui Stream Track some of which Ann said is bridle path, although we were assured that riders weren’t really encountered that frequently.  We followed the track for some time enduring the wet weather, chatting along the way; to be honest I hate wearing my raincoat, I can’t hear a darn thing so some of the information Ann was giving us was slightly lost so I hurried along to try and get as near as I could to listen.

Lookout Point - Sadly Not Much to See!

We eventually popped out along a road before continuing our track, stopping briefly under a tree before making our way over to the lookout point, Eugenia Rise.  Unfortunately because the day was wet and cloudy we couldn't see much, we could just make out Rangitoto and on turning around we could just see the faded outline of the Sky tower, both of which are always great landmarks to look out for.

We decided to head back to the Botanic Gardens for a coffee to dry off.

Some Of Our Very Wet Nordic Walkers

On the way back into the Gardens Ann pointed out the Te Araroa walkway, this  is a 3000-km trail  from Cape Reinga which is the northern tip of New Zealand to Bluff in the South and it officially opened in December 2011.  The trail one of the longest in the world, passes through bush, along coastline, through farmland and it even crosses through cities; it took ten years to get to the stage it is today and it was done with the help of hundreds of volunteers.

Boatanical Gardens?

The path alongside the Puhinui Stream was recently opened, it’s a significant section of the Te Araroa walkway and I think I read it was 12 km - it's already a very popular walk from the suburbs on the west through to the Gardens and Totara Park on the east.

We made our way back through the garden to the cars for a quick change of clothes and had a chat in Cafe Miko which is a lovely cafe, with beautiful views overlooking the gardens.

Sculpture At The Front Of The Visitor Entrance

My poached eggs and tea were very yummy, just the thing after a cold wet walk.  It's always a pleasure to catch up with our fellow Nordic Walkers and despite the wet weather this lovely walk was worth the wet tramp.

Information & Sources:

http://www.teararoa.org.nz/index.cfm

http://www.manukau.govt.nz/EN/Yourcommunity/ParksWalksBeaches/FindAPark/Pages/TotaraPark.aspx

http://www.manukau.govt.nz/SiteCollectionDocuments/Puhinui%20stream%20forest%20trail.pdf

http://www.teararoa.org.nz/auckland/puhinui-stream-track/

Unsworth Heights - Jack Hinton Drive

Unsworth Reserve

North Shore Nordic Walkers met at Jack Hinton Drive, Albany on Sunday.  It was freezing and frost was still clinging to the ground at 8.00 am as we made our way across Rosedale Park.

We passed the cable works and some interesting works being undertaken for the new stadium, continuing past the duck pond and crossing at Paul Matthews Road to take the tunnel through to Unsworth Heights.

Walking Through A Very Frosty Rosedale Park

Jack Hinton was a soldier in WWII who received the Victoria Cross. He was born at Colac Bay in 1906 and joined up in September 1939. Hinton, tired of retreating from a column of German soldiers that had arrived at the port of Kalamata Greece in April 1941, launched an impressive attack by throwing a couple of grenades at the soldiers who fled from their posts. He then led a group of New Zealanders into an attack and they managed to chase the garrison into nearby houses.  They then held the guns and position until they were overwhelmed by German soldiers and unfortunately Jack was shot.

Mist On The Duck Pond At Unsworth Reserve

Jack became a prisoner of war in prison camps in both Greece and Germany.  Apparently he was quite a character and did undertake several attempts to escape. The Kommandant presented him with a copy of the VC medal and offered celebratory champagne at his officer’s club to which Jack is reported to have told the Kommandant to put his champagne up his waistcoat.  After the war he returned to New Zealand and passed away in Christchurch in 1997.

We walked through the bush to the boardwalk which has been finished, but it was very slippery and we had to take great care crossing most of the wooden walkways as a lot of them have metal mesh, which when frozen become quite treacherous.

At the end of the boardwalk we congregated at Barbados Drive and waited until everyone had caught up.  We crossed the road and then followed the pathway into Unsworth Reserve. A lot of work is still going on in this area and the pathways and bush have been cleared.  It looked quite strange and solemn as the frost was still on the grass and trees whilst the storm water pond being home to dozens of ducks was swirling in mist.

Caribbean Drive

It was at this point that some of the group suddenly stopped, we realised that we had left people behind and one of our walkers was most definitely having problems.

This area is in the Albany basin and in winter can be exceptionally cold - certainly more than the surrounding areas.  I headed back to the group and one of the ladies was visibly distressed. She was in pain, wasn’t coping well with the cold and her circulation to her hands had suffered.

Some of our ladies turned back with her to one of the local cafes and Margaret kindly stayed with her until she had fully recovered.

Making Our Way Back

Auckland’s weather can be deceiving as some parts can be mild whilst other parts can be very cold. Having endured lots of terrible winters in the UK and also suffering with “White Finger or Raynaud’s Syndrome” and the consequent chillblains, I can appreciate the great discomfort that poor Pam was going through.

I want to share some advice when out walking in cold weather.  Wear layers, invest in a couple of Merino tops or polypropylene, use good quality socks, wear a hat and wear gloves. I know some people don't like getting over heated so carry a pack that allows you to take off layers as you go. I had a friend that knitted me cuffs to wear in winter and ladies need to wear long pants, preferably lined to keep in the heat, don’t wear jeans. Try wearing a gillet under your jacket as an insulating layer, keeping the core warm is essential, and keep moving.

Some Of The Reserve Has Been Re Landscaped - Look At The Mist!

We quickly continued our walk and headed to Cafe Drina just on Paul Matthews Road where the ladies had gone for a warm. We were all relieved to see that she had recovered well, the staff were very kind. We stayed a while for a chat over coffee and I had my usual English Breakfast Tea with poached eggs on toast, most definitely with a hint of vinegar this week.

Information and Resources:

http://www.nzhistory.net.nz/page/jack-hinton-wins-victoria-cross
http://www.stuff.co.nz/southland-times/news/features/southern-military-history/3918686/Who-ll-come-with-me

More on Walking in Cold Weather: http://www.mayoclinic.com/health/fitness/HQ01681/

Kauri Park



Kauri Park via Rangatira Road



Sunday was a grey day, the forecast was for fine spells with rain and I had organised a walk into a bush area called Kauri Park in Birkenhead.  I arranged to meet everyone at 8.00 am at the Rangatira Road entrance and after a delayed start we set off into the bush keeping to the left and following the track down the steep steps.  I must also mention that to protect the kauri all shoes must be brushed and sprayed before entering this Park and there are cleaning stations available at all entrances.  This is to try and stop soil based disease from damaging the kauri trees and spreading from contaminated shoes.



Kauri Park Tracks

This park has huge kauri trees, I believe that the older trees are actually to the North of the park and are quite easy to spot along the track, the kauri is indigenous to New Zealand. I'm told that they are the "conifer" tree of New Zealand.They can grow to 50 metres in height and originally much of the North of the North Island and Northland would have been covered in kauri.  They are simply one of the most impressive trees I have ever seen; they have huge trunks with girths up to 16 metres. Apparently the bark flakes and sheds from the tree to protect it from invading parasites. Maori used the timber of the tree to make boats, to build with, to make carvings and the gum was mixed with water and plant extract which was then chewed - sort of an early version of chewing gum.

Kauri Trees

The trees are evidence of ancient woods going as far back as the Jurassic age, sadly much of the kauri forests had been plundered by the 1900’s as European settlers arrived the kauri was used for timber and the gum extracted. The young kauri tree was very popular for making masts and spars.  The great kauri forests and bush were cleared to make way for farmland and houses.

Steep Steps and Narrow Tracks

In the early 1920’s 15 acres of this park were first made a public reserve,by Birkenhead Borough Council. A lot of improvements were made, tracks were constructed and entrance gates were made to the tracks in 1931, then in 1948 a serious fire threatened the reserve. A further 5 acres were added to the park in 1965 which was then under the control of the North Shore Scenic Board.

Stopping for a De-robe

The track we followed from Rangatira Road is the beginning of the loop track and to the left the main kauri grove is only few minutes’ walk away. The trees here are around 200 and 400 years old. 

Much of this track is not suitable for Nordic Walking, it’s steep, very slippery and much of it is boardwalk and what isn't boardwalk is narrow in places and riddled with tree root.  It is however beautiful, it’s been lovingly restored with tanekaha and kauri.  The nikau, puriri and many other plants and trees live amongst the kanuka (shrub). It can be quite dark in there as the trees are tall and the canopy is dense in parts.

Very Steep in Places and Slippery Underfoot

We crossed the bridge at the stream which took us past native plants, orchids and ponga trees. Eventually as we walked further we came out at Hebe Place so we turned back and followed the track through to the right but couldn’t pick up the track.

Beautiful Trees, Plants and Bush

Despite having a map we did find following the track difficult, it would be useful if the tracks were marked to make them much easier to find.  However we continued walking through until we came across another entrance at Kauri Road where we continued making our way around the park on the footpath.

Walking through the Street and Back to Rangatira Road

We made our way up the steep Waipa Street, turned right at the corner of Verran Road and continued along Rangatira Road and back to the cars.

We spent a few minutes searching for one of our walkers before making our way over to Verrans Espresso and food.

This is a lovely old fashioned Kiwi cafe, waitress service with a beautiful selection of food and beverages.  The service was excellent and my Blueberry Dazzle smoothie was one of the best I’ve had for a long time and my eggs on toast were scrumptious.

Information & Sources:

http://www.bngcommunitytrust.org.nz/kauri.php
http://www.localhistoryonline.org.nz/cgi-bin/CUI?e=0-------0----------0-1-0-0-&a=d&c=nshore-newspapers&cl=CL3.1980s.1981&d=nsnw-NNI-AAA-9680
http://www.doc.govt.nz/conservation/native-plants/kauri/

Shepherds Park – Oruamo Creek

A few peeps were surprised that I had organised a walk on Sunday as it was the Queen’s Birthday weekend.  My philosophy is that I’m sure that the Queen won’t mind and as her royal subjects we owe it to her to keep fit and well.

Shepherds Park, Beach Haven

I chose Shepherds Park as June Stevenson and I have worked there with Green Prescription patients, we’ve only used the footpath and park and when I found that there was a walk around the estuary I was keen to take a look.

Beach Haven is located North West of Auckland city, the first European settlers to this area arrived in the 1860s and until the early 1920s the area was primarily rural consisting mainly of farms growing strawberries and holiday homes (baches).  The area was subdivided for housing later in 1923 and during the construction in 1959 of the Auckland Harbour Bridge the housing development in the area was sufficiently completed to make it into a largely urban populated area.

Making our way to the Bush Walk

Shepherds Park is named after the family who lived there on a farm, originally the area was market gardens before it was developed into a park for community use.  The park offers many amenities including rugby, soccer and tennis; it also features an outdoors fitness circuit for anyone to use.

The headland that is adjacent to the park has been restored to a beautiful bush environment. It’s situated on Hellyer’s Creek and still contains middens from previous Maori occupation. Centuries later Thomas Hellyer opened a kauri mill business in 1840 that supplied timber to Auckland city.

Outstanding views of Hellyers or Oruamo Creek

North Shore Nordic Walkers met at 8.00 am at the park via the Melba Street entrance and parked outside the football (soccer) club. We were joined by June and Paul Stevenson from Nordic Kiwi who were also keen to try the walk.

We started our walk by taking the path on the left past the back of the soccer club, turning right at the Oruama Landing sign we made our way through the bush and onto the track. We followed the track by the coastline though the bush alongside the houses that back onto the water.  

Some of the steps are steep and can be slippery

I’d advise anyone trying this track to take extra care when it’s wet as it is full of tree roots and holes. It is quite boggy in parts although some of the track is boardwalk and there are steps to climb to take in the views of the estuary and the upper harbour, with a backdrop formed by the steep slopes of Greenhithe.

Beautiful tree canopies along the walk and some branches are at head height!

We stopped to look at the views at Hellyers Creek (Maori name is Oruamo which means “for all”) before continuing along the coastal track.  The views are truly outstanding along the estuary, we passed many little wharves some of which looked to be in very precarious positions. The area is marsh wetland and teaming with birds. The plants and trees are magnificent along here, with huge rimu, kauri gum trees and many of New Zealand’s native trees have been replanted by volunteers and the team at the Kaipatiki planting project.

Beautiful views along the estuary track

We proceeded along the track before exiting at Beach Haven Road, turning right we then continued right into Lancaster before taking the left turn back into Melba Street and onto the car park.

Boardwalk view

I think everyone was surprised and delighted at such a beautiful walk that is tucked away on the other side of the park. It’s definitely worth about an hours trip out to walk the area.

One of the small wharves along the way

After a short deliberation we took the cars into the small centre of Beach Haven and walked across to Cafe Au Bon Coin Patisserie, which is on the corner of Rangatira Road. It’s a small establishment but has the friendliest staff with excellent service and I can recommend poached eggs on toast, ils étaient très bons. ; )

Information and Sources:

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Beach_Haven,_New_Zealand

http://beachhavenaucklandnz.blogspot.co.nz/2008/02/parks-hilders-park-beach-haven-wharf.html

http://www.bngcommunitytrust.org.nz/shep.php

http://www.harboursport.co.nz/site/harsport/files/ACOM/N%20S%20Walks&Maps/FINAL%20BEACH%20HAVEN%20-%20SHEPHERDS%20PARK%20July.pdf

Northcote Tuff Crater

The Tuff Crater Restoration Project

The weather on Sunday was ok, despite the downpours during the week the weekend wasn’t too bad at all. It was just as well as I had been advised that the Northcote Tuff Crater (also known as Tank farm) and Onepoto Basin walk was treacherous underfoot when wet.  I was hoping to have a local with us as a guide but unfortunately they were unable to make it so we tramped on regardless.

View from the look out at St Peters Street

The North Shore Nordic Walkers met at the Library at Northcote at 8.00 am.  We walked down College Road crossing over to number 77 turning right onto the walkway in St Peters Street; we stopped at the Crater lookout and then turned right onto the track which was mostly gravel, boardwalk and around wetland. Further on we crossed onto the grass adjacent to the motorway.

Boardwalk around the Crater

Onepoto, (Maori for short beach) is a volcanic crater or maar on the North Shore situated near to the approaches to the Auckland Harbour Bridge, The 26 ha crater is the result of a number of massive eruptions about 250,000 years ago. It first emerged as a freshwater lake, then later became a tidal lagoon when sea levels rose after the last ice age. The crater floor has been reclaimed and now has a sports field, a children’s playground and a lake surrounded with beautiful native bush.  Some areas of the tuff were quarried away in the 1950s to obtain landfill for the Northern Motorway. The tidal Onepoto Stream runs through the swamp under Onewa Cycle Bridge near Waitemata Harbour.

 View from the Motorway Bridge

This area was also known as Tank Farm - the name comes from the  petrochemicals storage tanks which were located here during World War II.

Onepoto Domain

At the end of the walkway we climbed up the steps onto the motorway bridge to take a look at the traffic zipping past; the view of the city is spectacular from the footbridge.  From the bridge we walked back across the grass and past the Pumping Station on the left. Taking a right between the houses we walked though to Heath Ave. Following our map we headed right down Sylvan Avenue where we crossed over to number 72 and along the track to Onepoto Basin. We followed the track through the park to the playground then we heard the loud speakers, Auckland Run Series were having one of their events and we arrived in the middle of it. Curses. Mental note - must check the events calendar for future walks!

Children's Playground

We stopped to look at our map when a helpful young lady came along and gave us directions to another walkway to take us to Northcote Tennis club, unfortunately it clashed with the runners and we tried to find an alternative route. Grace found us a track between the houses but it circled back further along the street so we ended up back in the race;. Curses again. Anyway we meandered for a wee while before deciding to walk facing the runners along the street and exiting Exmouth Road before turning right into College Road and back to the library.

The Lake

We walked though to the shops and found a lovely cafe for our coffee, I had very yellow eggs on toast and was told that they were probably organic although I don’t know as my Nan would say "eggs is eggs", but they tasted superb!

Information & Sources:

http://www.sciencelearn.org.nz/Contexts/Volcanoes/Sci-Media/Animations-and-Interactives/Volcano-map-of-New-Zealand

http://www.theaucklander.co.nz/news/slow-boat-to-danger/1018200/

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Onepoto_(volcanic_crater)

World Nordic Walking Day 2012

New Zealand

This is the third year of the World Nordic Walking Day event, and New Zealand was the first country to commence the celebrations at the Sir Peter Blake Marine Educational and Recreational Centre at Long Bay, Auckland on the North Shore and hosted by Paul and June Stevenson our INWA representatives. The centre is ideally located with fabulous views of Long Bay beach and cliffs, and a great venue for our event.

The Sir Peter Blake Marine Education &Recreation Centre

Despite the cold and wet weather the previous day we had a great turn out and the weather improved as we met at 8.30 am and separated into our groups for the two walks starting at the beach. There was a 45 minutes walk through the park and back and a 90 minute walk organised to go up the cliff past Granny’s Bay.

Taking Poles to Long Bay Beach

Long Bay beach is a kilometre long and to start the celebrations of our unique exercise of Nordic Walking we warmed up with some exercise on the beach then walked to the North end to walk across the park, along the grass and towards the Vaughan Homestead. 

Warm up on the Beach

The homestead is over 100 years old, made of New Zealand Kauri and Puriri native wood. It stands overlooking the beach at Long Bay with magnificent views of the park. We lingered a while to look at the view before taking the nature trial through the bush and separating into our groups. 

Vaughan House Greensleeves - Caught you Sheila

Our group led by Paul and myself walked through the cattle gates across the trail and onto the cliff top. The views are simply magnificent, it’s quite slippery along the rest of the cliff track here and we picked our way carefully through the mud and wet grass to a great viewpoint - someone was surprised that they could see the lighthouse at Tiritiri Matangi Island.

We returned to the track via the Nature Trail and through the park, taking a toilet break along the way and then back down the beach to MERC at the South end.

Top of the Cliff before Pohutukawa Bay

At the centre we had a quiz, speeches and acknowledgements for Nordic Walkers that had achieved their personal goals by entering events.

Paul Stevenson gives the Message from INWA President Aki Karihtala

All of the speakers were Nordic Walkers and most had very personal and interesting experiences to share with us.  It was a great fun morning and we are lucky to have some strong Nordic Walking groups across Auckland; we did have Nordic Walkers visit us from Rotorua too.  It was a great opportunity to catch up with some of the other groups and Walking Group Leaders and exchange walking ideas and walk plans.

Bronze bust of Sir Peter Blake

The morning went so quickly I felt like I didn’t get the chance to speak to everyone that I would have liked to, but it did give me the opportunity to meet some of our new Nordic Walkers. June mentioned one of our instructors Sandrine Smith is leading a team for the Arthritis NZ marathon and I will also be taking part and are looking for more participants.  If you want to know more about the event or sponsor our team, The Nifty Nordic Walkers here’s our details: http://ow.ly/b5man. Thanks!

Orewa - Alice Eaves Reserve

Before I met with the intrepid North Shore Nordic Walkers on Mothering Sunday, I was presented at 6.00 am in the morning amid lots of clattering in the kitchen, a beautifully made cooked breakfast consisting of two hard boiled eggs, bacon, beans, two crumpets and a toasted teacake by my two beautiful children.  Needless to say by the time I met the group at Orewa Surf club at 7.30 am I was fit to burst!

Orewa Beach and Surf Club

Orewa is a small town North East of Auckland city centre, the beach is ideal for Nordic Walking. It is 3 kilometres of long sandy beach situated on the Hibiscus coast, home to surfers, kayakers, kite surfing, wind surfing and swimming.  You can also catch the Orewa Surf Club life guard training and events down on the beach on a Sunday. The clubhouse was originally first built in 1960 although the club history dates it back to the 50’s. It was added to in the 70’s but  in 1990 the clubhouse was finally finished and is now located in pole position adjacent to the beach at the South end.


Road to Alice Eaves Bush

The morning was cold but sunny and ideal Nordic Walking weather, so we wrapped up and ventured forth.

We walked to the North end of the beach and crossed over the Hibiscus Coast Highway to The Old North Road and into the entrance for Alice Eaves Reserve.


Kauri Tree over 300 years old

There is a massive Kauri in this reserve over 300 years old and the area is brimming with native trees like Puriri, Rimu,Totara and Nikau, you definately get the sense of history walking amongst some of these ancient trees.

There is a Pa not far from the Hillcrest boundary; apparently it has a few middens that indicate it was previously used as a living area by Maori tribes people in the area and was lived in until around 1827. The land was taken over by European settlers and was eventually purchased by Mr & Mrs Eaves in 1919. When Alice Eaves died in 1955 she bequeathed the land back to the nation.


Nukumea Stream Walkway

The reserve is maintained by the Lions club, they have signage on the gates and signposts at some of the trees.

We walked through the Reserve on the lower track which takes you along a wooden walkway that runs adjacent to the Nukumea Stream and the Kensington Park development.

The Blue Footprints for the Millenium Footpath

The track does go on further but there is no walkway and can be very slippery underfoot, we continued along until we came to the point where the track became unsafe.  We then headed back to the stream and the crossing at Kensington Park. There is a higher track that leads onto the Pa area but we'll leave that for another day.

We then walked through the new housing area and back onto the millennium path at Puriri Ave continuing along the road and back across the highway onto the beach.

The Clock Tower on Puriri Ave

The group unzipped and de-coated feeling very warm, some of us made it over to the King’s Plant Barn for coffee.  I really couldn’t face another breakfast so I ordered a berry smoothie again.
Information & Sources:

http://www.orewasurfclub.co.nz/history.html
http://www.rodney.govt.nz/DistrictTownPlanning/plans/ReserveManagement/Documents/Alice_Eaves/AliceEaves_Amended_Plan_March08.pd