Trees' company in the Waitakeres

The Montana Heritage Trail is an upgraded circuit of long established tracks. Photo / Supplied

I've always considered kauri to be elegant, aristocratic trees, like characters in those period dramas the BBC used to do so well.

And, sure enough, when we came across a cluster of youngish kauri - probably only a couple of centuries old - on the Upper Kauri Track in the Waitakere Ranges Regional Park, they reminded me of group of trim young hussars resplendent in their rakish uniforms, standing with some slender debutantes in flowing green gowns, waiting for the violins to strike up a waltz.

Once upon a time I used to spend almost every weekend in the Waitakeres, enjoying the wonderful bush, spectacular views, superb beaches and great network of tracks, but I haven't been there recently, so a walk round the Montana Heritage Trail was a timely reminder of what a fantastic place it still is.

The trail is made up of a circuit of long-established tracks - Auckland City, Upper Kauri, Long Road, Fenceline and Cascade - upgraded with the aid of cash from Montana Wines and promoted as an 8km/four-hour walk.

It's an ideal introduction to the regional park, requiring only a modest level of fitness - though there are a couple of steep climbs - mostly with an excellent surface and lots of viewing spots to provide excuses for a breather.

The kauris were the highlight for me. Unfortunately, as we all know, only about 2 per cent of the kauri forests which once covered the top of the North Island survived the onslaughts of the loggers. But the steep terrain in the Waitakeres allowed some pockets of older trees to survive, and the fact some of this area has been preserved as parkland for over a century means young kauri have been able to thrive as well. As a result, this is one of the best places anywhere to experience the magnificence of kauri forest.

But that's not all you'll find on this trail. It runs through some wonderful bush with impressive specimens of rimu, kahikatea, puriri, totara and tanekaha, with here and there the white splash of clematis flowers, and a forest floor covered with spreading ferns and twisting supplejack vines.

Needless to say, our native birds love this and as we walked round the circuit we heard many a riroriro forecasting rain - inaccurately as it turned out - got lectured by a couple of fantails, enjoyed several tui singing, watched a family of kakariki playing high above (okay, they may have been rosellas), recognised the sewing machine call of the hihi and spotted a black robin flitting along the track.

As you'd expect in a place that gets a lot of rain, there are plenty of streams. A short detour goes to the lovely Cascades waterfall, for a time the trail runs alongside the Waitakere reservoir and its spectacular dam provides an ideal picnic spot.

There are plenty of reminders of the area's history, ranging from a carving at the start of the trail by carvers from Te Kawerau a Maki, the tribe once based at nearby Te Henga Beach, to information boards recalling the loggers, farmers, gumdiggers and storekeepers who once lived here.

But the area's most impressive inhabitant is another kauri - this time probably 1000 years old - found near the start-finish point of the circuit in a corner of the Waitakere Golf Club. This ancient giant holds a whole community of other plants in its arms and also provides a home for native bats, kauri snails and kereru. It's a true monarch of the forest.

If the youngsters I saw at the start of the trail were hussars, this one was an arrogant earl, exuding the sort of strength and power developed by a lifetime of unquestioned authority.

Further information: You can get details of trails in the Waitakere Ranges Regional Park here.