About us
This group will go on day hikes and overnight camping trips. Suitable for anyone who is keen on adventure, likes a bit of exercise and looking to meet new people.
The main organiser carries a personal locator beacon on all hikes and is a certified Trained First Aider, so you can feel comfortable coming out with us. Safety is always key. Please look at the difficulty rating for each hike as we will do easy hikes for beginners, medium hikes for those with a bit more experience and some more challenging hikes for those who want to test themselves :)
Upcoming events
5
Mt Tamahunga - part of the Te Araroa Trail
Govan Wilson Road / Matakana Valley Road intersection, 1 Govan Wilson Road, Auckland, NZ*Important: This hike is only open to those members who have been out on another Grade 3 or higher hike with Auckland Outdoors in the past 12 months. Please do not take it personally if we move you to the Not Going list if you do not meet this requirement.
Starting from Bathgate Road, Pakiri we will walk along the Te Araroa trail through farmland and forest up to Mt Tamahunga summit where we will stop for a lunch break. We will then continue on the Te Araroa trail until we reach Matakana Valley Road. Amazing views towards Pakiri Beach and Leigh/Tawharanaui regional park.
Please note, this is a one way hike and we will need to do a short car shuttle at the start and end. It is important that you arrive on time and read all the instructions below.
Difficulty rating: 3.5 on our 1-5 scale, 1 being the easiest.
Only people with a decent level of fitness and some technical walking ability (e.g. climbing over tree roots / rocks and navigating slippery muddy conditions should RSVP for this hike. It is not fair to the rest of the group if we have to slow down too much and wait for ill-prepared people. If you are unsure about whether this hike is suitable for you please message either Helen or Mike before RSVPing.Walking Time: approx 5.5 - 6hrs including breaks.
Distance: approx. 8.5kmLed by Helen KF. (mob 021 0282 3600) and Mike F. (mob 027 431 9054)
Here’s the plan:
Before 9.00am – Meet at the intersection of Govan Wilson Road and Matakana Valley Road. There is a small parking bay on the right-hand side of Matakana Valley Road opposite Govan Wilson Road where we all need to meet.9:00am - We will determine how many cars/drivers there are and how many cars we need to leave at the parking bay, which will be our finishing point. If you are not at this meeting point by 9am latest there may not be room in cars for your driver to get back to the starting point. Please be on time.
9:00am - 9:15am - Drivers of the cars being left will hop in the rest of the cars and we will all drive to Bathgate Road (approx 15mins drive). You can park outside the tennis courts. Please be considerate to residents of Bathgate Road and do not park on their properties or too close to driveways.
9:30am - Start hiking. The first 1 hour is straight uphill - anyone not able to stay with the group will be asked to return to the start and wait for us.
10:30am - Short morning tea break
10:45am - Continue hiking
12:45pm - Approx time to reach the summit, lunch break
1:15pm - Continue hiking
3:15pm - Approx finish time*depends on the group
3:15pm - 3:30pm - Shuttle cars / drivers back to the start, then all cars to return and pick-up their passengers
4pm - Option to stop at the Rusty Pelican in Matakana for an early dinner before driving back to Auckland (they have amazing pizzas!) Rusty Matakana Menus | Rusty Pelican
Bring - Normal hiking gear - and have warm base layers like merino or thermal clothes on or in your pack in case of bad weather, a raincoat, strong footwear with great grip. A hiking pole is also useful for some of the steeper sections. This track is unsuitable for running shoes as you can see by the photo I've added of our boots covered in mud :)
Food - Bring lunch and snacks plus plenty of water for yourself (min 2l)
Suggest carpooling. Please comment when you rsvp whether you need a lift / can offer lifts, which part of Auckland and your mobile number. It’s up to you to arrange this among yourselves. Please give your driver $30 for petrol money and to help cover the road toll (either cash on the day or bank transfer).
Northern Gateway Toll: You will need to pay $2.60 each way per car within 10 days of travelling. Transaction Centre | NZ Transport Agency
Meeting location is the intersection of Govan Wilson Road and Matakana Valley Road. Put 1 Govan Wilson Road in your GPS and keep driving another minute or so.
4 Bathgate Road is approximately where we need to park outside the tennis courts (next door to the school).
*Please note it is VERY important that you all arrive on time so we can confirm how many cars/drivers we have. If you arrive after we have organised the car shuttle there may not be space in the cars for you to get back to the start.
No guests. If you have friends or family who want to join get them to sign-up to Meetup and RSVP.
Be sure to read all the details before you RSVP. If you can no longer attend please update your RSVP immediately to allow others to join. This group will be strictly limited to 30 members. If you pull out at the last minute or don't show up this will be counted as a 'no show'. 3 no shows will trigger a 6 month ban from the group.
We look forward to sharing this walk with you all!
Helen & Mike20 attendees
Mt Te Aroha summit loop
Te Aroha information centre, 102 Whitaker Street, Te Aroha, NZRSVPs will open on the 7th November.
A slightly harder, more challenging hike we will be walking up to the summit of Mt Te Aroha (which is the highest point in the Kaimai-Mamuku forest) and returning via a different track.
Walking distance: Approx 16km
Estimated time: Depends on the group and fitness levels, but expect it to take 6.5-7hrs including stops
Medium-hard level of difficulty, won’t bother regular hikers. A few stream crossings but only minor and you can probably keep your feet dry. There are some very steep uphill and downhill sections of this loop hike particularly the first 3 hours up to the summit. A mixture of rock scrambling, climbing over and up tree roots and normal tramping style tracks.
On my scale of 1 – 5, this hike is a 4. Please make sure you are ok to hike for up to 7hrs at a moderate pace before rsvping. If you are uncertain about this please private message me for a short chat to check whether this hike is for you. We will stop briefly at the first viewpoint approximately 45mins from the base - anyone who has found the first part of the hike a struggle may be asked to turn back and wait for us at the carpark.
No guests. If you have friends who would like to come get them to join Auckland Outdoors and RSVP.
If your situation changes and you can no longer attend please update your RSVP immediately. This is to allow other members to join as the group will strictly be limited to 40 members. If you drop out the day before or on the morning of the event or don't turn up this will be treated as a 'no show'. 3 'no shows' will mean that you cannot join an event for 6 months. This rule is in place to be fair to others in the group.
Led by Mike F. (027 431 9054)
Before 9.00am - Meet outside the information centre in Te Aroha
9.00am - Start hike
4:00pm - Approx finish time
Option afterwards to have an early dinner at The Grand Tavern which is directly across the road from Te Aroha Domain where the hike finishes. The Grand Tavern Menu | Classic Pub Food & DrinksBring - Normal hiking gear - and have warm base layers like merino or thermal clothes on or in your pack in case of bad weather, a raincoat, strong footwear with great grip. A hiking pole is also useful for some of the steeper sections. As we are going up a mountain to almost 1,000m it can get very cold if the wind picks up or cloud comes in. Please make sure you come prepared. I bring plastic zip-lock bags to put things like phone in so they won't get wet and found that gloves were a great addition to my usual hiking gear to prevent frozen fingers. NO JEANS. If you turn up wearing jeans to the hike you won't be able to join the group.
Donation - We ask all members to help contribute towards website and other costs involved in running these events. You can either bring a gold coin on the day or make the donation direct to our dedicated bank account:
Helen Kerslake-Forbes 06-0998-0909890-03Food - Bring your own lunch, snacks, fruit and enough water (min 2l)
Suggest carpooling. Please comment when you rsvp whether you need a lift / can offer lifts, which part of Auckland and your mobile number. It’s up to you to arrange this among yourselves. Please bring $35 cash for your driver for petrol money or make arrangements to transfer them the money direct to their bank account.
Driving - allow at least 1.5hrs driving time from central Auckland and at least 2hrs if coming from the Shore. Just before you reach the information centre there is a small road (Boundary Road), where you can park your cars. There are signs indicating where hikers can park.
Also please bring a change of clothes and footwear particularly if carpooling.
Be sure to read all the details before you RSVP.
I look forward to seeing you.
Mike
1 attendee
Past events
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