Tawa Trails
A host of riding opportunities in the western hills above Tawa have been opened up by a combined walking/cycling trail in the Forest of Tawa – Te Ngahere-o-Tawa. This Wellington City Council trail ties in with our vision for a cycling link from Porirua and Tawa through to the coast at Redrocks with plenty of access points along the way for cyclists in neighbouring suburbs and shorter trail loops for local communities.
Climbing Trails Kiwi Crescent This 1.8km combined walking and cycling trail starts at the Kiwi Crescent entrance to Te Ngahere-o-Tawa and climbs up to Turbine Road which runs from Ohariu Valley to the top of the Porirua landfill. This trail has a great surface, but has a couple of short steepish bits as it winds its way up through an old plantation forest with patches of regenerating bush. Te Ara Tai Tonga From Porirua, Turbine Rd is also accessible via Ta Ara Tai Tonga which starts at Spicer Botanical Park and climbs up to the northern end of Turbine Rd. Ta Ara Tai Tonga, built by Porirua City Council, is an easy 1.8km 2-way combined walking/cycling trail which takes you through a mixture of vegetation, including regenerating native bush, pines and open grasslands. To ride Te Ara Tai Tonga from the Spicer Botanical Park carpark, follow the signs and cross Broken Hill Rd about 100 metres up from the Spicer Landfill gates. https://www.trailforks.com/trails/te-ara-tai-tonga/ Descending Trails Kēmu O Rua Haurua The name says it all - Kēmu o rua haurua (Game of two halves). Both sections of this 1.6 km grade 3 descent are awesome, just very different. The entrance is 100 metres below the high point of Turbine Road (on the Ohariu Valley side) above the Forest of Tawa – Te Ngahere-o-Tawa. The first half starts with a gentle loss of elevation as the hand-built bit siddles along the hill amid old pines and regenerating bush just below the road. There are plenty dips and corners (and two bridges and sneaky little jump options) to keep you interested. Eventually the elevation loss speeds up with a couple of big dips before you hit the more open second digger-built half which features big beautiful berms designed for sustained speed. Now you’ll be truly flying on this massively popular trail. There are two options to get to this trail: From the Kiwi Crescent entrance to Te Ngahere-o-Tawa climb up to Turbine Rd on the walking/cycle trail or if you are coming from Porirua take Te Ara Tai Tonga starting at Spicer Botanical Park and ride your way up past the landfill onto Turbine Rd. A great loop option is to continue south along Turbine Rd to Ohariu Valley Rd and climb back up on this grade 3 trail that initially rises gently as it follows a stream (which it crosses a number of times) before zig zagging its way up to top of Turbine Rd. This 1.3km trail, built by the Kennett brothers, is part of Te Araroa Walkway. To find this trail, turn right at the end of Turbine Rd and look for the trail sign on your right at the end of Ohariu Valley Rd. https://www.trailforks.com/trails/te-araroa-spicer/ Ohariu Valley – Turbine Rd summit (Both Directions) A great loop option is to continue south along Turbine Rd to Ohariu Valley Rd and climb back up on this grade 3 trail that initially rises gently as it follows a stream (which it crosses a number of times) before zig zagging its way up to top of Turbine Rd. This 1.3km trail, built by the Kennett brothers, is part of Te Araroa Walkway. To find this trail, turn right at the end of Turbine Rd and look for the trail sign on your right at the end of Ohariu Valley Rd. https://www.trailforks.com/trails/te-araroa-spicer/ |
Trail reports and links to trail information
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