Hike and BBQ - Omanawanui track

Hi guys, the weather is getting better so let’s head out to do the Omanawanui track followed by a bbq on the beach after the hike. Please bring something for the BBQ to share.

Omanawanui is the best track in the whole of the Waitakere Ranges with fantastic views of the Manukau Harbour and Auckland City, Awhitu Peninsula, and Whatipu Beach.

Ōmanawanui Track reopened in 2021 after a major upgrade which has made it more accessible. Work included installing 2.5km of box steps – approximately 2420 individual steps on Ōmanawanui Track – as well as boardwalks at the trig station and a unique floating one around a historic pā site. It means narrow ridges and steep terrain which characterised the track are now easier to negotiate.

Starting at Whatipū Beach at the mouth of the Manukau Harbour, Ōmanawanui Track is nearly 3km long and climbs approximately 373m, running ribbon-like between the harbour and the native forest-clad Waitākere Ranges. The track itself winds through regenerating native bush, low scrubland and past exposed rock faces to a ridge offering stunning views of the harbour and surrounding area.

From here, hikers head down the ridgeline, past a former pā site, before once again climbing to the recently upgraded trig station lookout – the highest point – giving 360-degree views of the wind-swept West Coast and the best view of the Manukau bar, which was the site of Aotearoa New Zealand’s worst maritime disaster.
Hike Ōmanawanui Track on a clear day and you may even be rewarded with vistas all the way down the coastline to Mt Taranaki.