Trail running adventure on the Manukau Harbour coastal trails – Auckland Magazine

Steering clear of the Waitakere Ranges, a group of west Auckland trail runners is exploring the network of coastal trails around Manukau Harbour.

Faced with the prospect of driving some distance out to scenic trails, or pounding the pavements and shared paths of their local area, the group is now hitting the trails between Green Bay in the west and Taumanu Reserve at Onehunga Beach in the east.

The footing on their new route is a combination of trail, road, boardwalks and steep stairs.

It’s a case of toughing out the climbs, hanging in there on the descents and being prepared to take a few urban detours; it also offers magical views, some joyous trail experiences through regenerating forest, sections of wetlands boardwalk and across mudflats.

Running on mudflats

The group highly recommends it as either as a fun challenge or an option for serious runners to introduce hill work and stairs into a training program in an interesting unexplored destination.

Navigation

The route you will take depends on the tide, and there are some great shortcuts to be had when the tide is at its lower stages, but be prepared to get your shoes muddy. A topo map (which can be accessed on a smartphone app such as iHike) is a great way to safely navigate the combination of street and trails. 

Waikowhai Recreation Reserve

This group started in Green Bay Reserve and finished at Onehunga Beach – a one-way total of around 16.5km (for 460 vertical metres) that took about 2.25 hours plus stops. You can make it longer by adding on more sections, or shorter by starting anywhere on the route

Seashore between Waikowhai Reserve & Hillsborough

The Lynfield to Onehunga section is called the Wattle Bay Loop and a map of this with information on low tide options can be found here [PDF].