31 July 2014  Media Release from Auckland Council Seventy eight hectares of land on Auckland’s wild west coast has been added to the Waitakere Ranges Regional Park. Councillor Christine Fletcher, Chair of Auckland Council’s Parks, Recreation and Sport Committee today announced the acquisition of the block of land off Te Ahu Ahu Road between Karekare  [ Read More ]

It will be a hot run for Hillary Trail Ultra competitors who have embarked on the first trial of the marathon. As the sun rose in the sky on 29 March about 120 runners gathered at Piha Domain to hear instructions from organiser Shaun Collins and have their boots sprayed with Trigene, before heading down to  [ Read More ]

In a recent Metro, Sir Bob Harvey repeated his claims that not enough people are doing the Hillary Trail. He’d like to see it commercialised to get the numbers up. Today (31 March) I was up on Log Race Road at midday on quite another task, and met, in quick succession, three groups on Day Three of the  [ Read More ]

The Hillary Trail is a a four-day (three night) 75 km trek across rugged country reaching from Titirangi to Muriwai. It is named after the famour kiwi conqueror of Mt Everest, Sir Edmund Hilllary, and was opened on the second anniversary of his death. The route takes in spectacular views of coast and bush, a number  [ Read More ]

Caught up with this group eating their lunch in the Domain at lunchtime Sunday. Coming from Mt Albert Grammar School, they had started the Hillary Trail at Arataki, camped at Karamatura and Pararaha and were on their way to Craw Campground before heading to Te Henga – the classic Hillary Trail. They had no complaints about  [ Read More ]

Snapped this young group doing Duke of Edinburgh Courses on their way through Piha today. In all I saw about 30 in several groups on their way to the next stop-over at Craw Homestead. Their leaders told me they were all doing different parts of the course, so doing trips of different lengths. Just about  [ Read More ]

UPDATE: Camping is no longer occuring on this site because in a flodding siutation it is not safe. The only site where you can camp on a regional park at Piha is at a site licensed to the Boys’ Brigade in Piha Valley. It is visible from Glen Esk Road behind the Sir Algernon Thomas  [ Read More ]