Waitakere Ranges Regional Park
Location
- Scenic Drive, Titirangi.
- 45km - about an hour from Downtown Auckland depending on the route.
The Waitakere Ranges Regional Park is divided into a number of different areas. See the Amenities and activities section below for details.
Waitakere Ranges includes more than 16,000ha of native rainforest and coastline. It has 250km of walking and tramping tracks. Those tracks provide access to beaches, rocky outcrops, streams, waterfalls and farms overlooking the wild west coast.
How to get there
There are several ways to access the Waitakere Ranges. Extending from Titirangi to Swanson, Scenic Drive passes through the eastern fringe of the ranges.
Car
From Downtown Auckland, take State Highway 16. Take exit 8 for Great North Rd, keep left at the fork and follow signs for Avondale/New Lynn/Great North Road/National Route 11. Merge onto Great North Road, continue onto Ash Street and then Rata Street. Continue onto Titirangi Road. At the roundabout, take the second exit onto Scenic Drive.
Huia Road 18km (25 minutes)
Signposted from Titirangi, this leads to the southern region of the Waitakere Ranges including Cornwallis, Huia and Whatipu. From Little Huia take the 7km Whatipu Road to Whatipu. Much of Whatipu Road is gravel, winding and narrow.
Piha Road 23km (30 minutes)
From Scenic Drive, this road crosses the heartland of the Waitakere Ranges to Piha Beach. Road access to Karekare and Anawhata range off Piha Road.
Te Henga/Bethells Beach 25km (35 minutes)
Te Henga Road starts from Scenic Drive and joins Bethells Road to lead around the northern area of the Waitakere Ranges, including the popular Cascade Kauri area, ending on the West Coast at Te Henga.
Get directions with Google Maps.
Map
Download a map of the park (PDF 235KB)
Opening hours
Pedestrian access: 24 hours.
Amenities and activities
There is plenty to do including swimming, surfing, fishing, boat launching, horse riding, relaxing, or exploring the 250km of walking and tramping tracks.
Check out individual pages on:
BBQs
There are numerous BBQs spread across the Park. See individual pages, linked to above, for location details.
Boat ramp
Boats can be launched safely at Cornwallis and Huia.
Dogs
Dogs are permitted on a leash in many parts of the Waitakere Ranges. See individual pages, linked to above, for location details.
Historic homesteads
They include Whatipu Lodge, Huia Lodge (was Huia school), Hinge House (a former mill manager’s house), Rose Hellaby House on the Scenic Drive and Keddle House at Anawhata.
Swimming
Black sand and surf beaches can be found at Whatipu. Karekare, Anawhata, Piha and Te Henga - Bethells, while Cornwallis and Huia on the Manukau Harbour offer tidal, calmer swimming beaches.
Walks
Hillary Trail
The Hillary Trail is a self-guided four-day tramp through 70km of native forest and along the wild coast of the Waitakere Ranges Park, connecting various park tracks and basic backcountry campgrounds.
See details of the Hillary Trail.