Your guide to the Waitākere Ranges: Which tracks are open this summer

Stu Leighton, senior ranger Kauri dieback management, talks to the Herald about walking in the Waitākere Ranges this summer. Photo / Michael Craig

Stu Leighton has been a park ranger for 24 years, much of that time in the Waitākere Ranges. These days he is the senior ranger for kauri dieback management at Auckland Council. He tells reporter Bernard Orsman about the disease killing kauri trees and how to enjoy the ranges this summer while caring for the native species.

How popular are the Waitākere Ranges?

About 900,000 people visit the ranges every year. In the past few years there has been a noticeable increase in visitors. This has been spurred by population growth and tourism, but also people wanting to reconnect with the outdoors, go for walks, trail running and swimming near waterfalls.

What is kauri dieback?

A soil-borne organism that attaches itself to kauri roots and slowly starves the tree of its ability to gain nutrients and water. Because it is soil borne it can move on human and animal's feet. The fungus-like organism is called Phytophthora agathidicida (PTA). There is at present no cure for the disease, which kills most - if not all - of the kauri it infects. It can be spread by just a tiny amount of soil, and it is hard to tell by looking whether a tree is infected or not.The disease has become prominent over the past decade, spreading throughout the Auckland region, the Coromandel, and to the Waipoua Forest in Northland, the home of our most iconic kauri - Tane Mahuta.

How did kauri dieback become a problem in the Waitākere Ranges?

It was identified in the Waitākere Ranges in 2006 on the Maungaroa Ridge Track at Piha.
In 2011 a comprehensive survey was carried out to ascertain the spread of the disease with a follow-up report in 2016, which found it was spreading. That led to mana whenua Te Kawarau ā Maki placing a rāhui over Te Waonui-a-Tiriwa, the forested areas of the Waitākere Ranges in December 2017. The rāhui prohibits people from entering the area in order to preserve the environment until kauri dieback is under control.

In May 2018, Controlled Area Notices (CAN) were put in place in parts of the Waitākere Ranges and the Hunua Ranges in order to open some tracks. A CAN is part of the Biosecurity Act. Under the CAN, anyone entering the area must not have any visible soil on their footwear or equipment, and must use the hygiene stations at the track entrances and exits.

A dead kauri tree in the Waitākere Ranges. Photo/ Michael Craig

What's the story with the tracks since the rāhui in 2017?

Currently, 33 tracks are open in the Waitākere Ranges and seven partially open. Nearly 100 tracks are closed and nine tracks are permanently closed. In December McElwain Lookout and Jubilee Trace were re-opened. The council works with Te Kawerau ā Maki and its biosecurity team to reopen tracks. This involves walking a track metre-by-metre with engineers, biosecurity and iwi to see what needs to be done to make it meet the forest standards. Contractors or council staff then get on with the work and the enormous logistics of getting materials to site. Money from an environmental targeted rate introduced by the council last year and the regional parks infrastructure programme goes towards the track upgrades. The decision to close nine tracks permanently was taken by Auckland councillors for areas of high-value kauri seen to be at greatest risk based on advice by biosecurity.

What tracks are due to reopen this summer?

Work is currently being carried out on a number of tracks which will likely to be finished at various times throughout the coming months. These include Omanawanui, Puriri Ridge, Spragg Bush, Donald McClean and White. Work is also programmed to start on Karamatura Track, Karamatura Loop, Cutty Grass, Whatatiri, Winstone and Ahuahu. All work and reopening times are dependent on the weather and other factors.

What measures do people have to take for walking in the Waitākere Ranges?

They must use the hygiene cleaning stations provided at the track entrances and exits to scrub and spray. They must not have any visible soil on their footwear or equipment. DO NOT enter any closed tracks. A person has been charged for entering a closed track three times in five months and could be fined up to $60,000.

Footwear must be cleaned and not have traces of dirt. Photo / Michael Craig

What are the most popular tracks open to the public?

The classics, like Kitekite Falls, located in the western part of the Ranges, near Piha Beach. The spectacular 40m multi-stepped waterfall into a large lake-like pool at the bottom is reached after a reasonably easy 45-minute walk from the end of Glen Esk Rd. Also, the hour-long 2.7km Mercer Bay Loop walk, an easy walk with some steady hill climbs suitable for people of all ages that offers spectacular cliff-top views. Head to Piha, turn left onto Te Ahuahu Rd (1.2km after the Karekare turnoff). Follow the road until it becomes Log Race Rd to a car park at the end. The popular Jubilee Walk at Cornwallis is also due to be reopened this summer.

Kitekite Falls is one of the most popular destinations in the Waitākere Ranges. Photo / Auckland Council

What are some of the best tracks for first-time walkers in the ranges?

A great starting point is the Arataki Visitors Centre at 300 Scenic Drive for advice on what tracks are open, how long the tracks are, what you will see along the way and whether you can combine a walk with a swim. The knowledgeable staff will come up with a tailored adventure.

What are some of the more challenging tracks?

The Te Henga Walkway, which runs 10.3km from Bethells Beach to Muriwai, takes about three-and-a-half hours following an incredible piece of coastline. It is rutted, steep in places and one of the more challenging tracks. Comfortable footwear with good grip is essential and it pays to take plenty of water and sunscreen. Don't wear Converse sneakers. Start the walk at O'Neills Bay at the Bethells Beach end where the track climbs steeply then follows along the cliff top.

Many walking tracks in the Waitākere Rangers remain closed. Photo/ Dean Purcell

What are your favourite tracks?

"A couple, depending on my mood. I do like the tracks that get me high above the coast because the coastline out here is spectacular. I love it," says Leighton, who has been a park ranger for 24 years, mostly in the Waitākere Ranges where he lives at Piha.

His favourites are Comans Track, a 1.8km easy to medium walk above Karekare that forms a section of the Hillary Trail. The other is the spectacular Taitomo, a new track being built along the cliff edge from Mercer Bay Loop down to Piha - a good four-hour walk. It goes from Mercer Bay Loop down to Piha and is due to open shortly.

• For information on tracks in the Waitākere Ranges, go to the council website www.aucklandcouncil.govt.nz or visit the Arataki Visitor Centre, 300 Scenic Drive, between Titirangi and Waiatarua.