Taumanu Reserve, Onehunga

Taumanu Reserve, Onehunga is the result of a massive foreshore reclamation project that finished in 2015, designed to restore the foreshore amenities that existed before the motorway was built across Onehunga Bay in 1977.

It’s got great cycle paths, and you can ride over the pedestrian/cycling bridge to the Onehunga Bay Reserve, which has a playground.

If you time it right, you can even take a dip one of the sandy beaches at high tide. Keep going along the foreshore and you’ll discover the new boardwalk around the bottom of Hillsborough.

We parked in the Orpheus Drive car park, at the Seacliffe Road end (where there is plenty of parking, and public toilets) and went along the paths on the foreshore (which is all reclaimed land), then over the biking / pedestrian bridge at the other end. 

Then it was down and around to the playground, which has lots of equipment for different ages. As well as the usual swings and slide, there is a big skate ramp which looks like its best left for those who know what they’re doing 🙂

To get back we continued the loop, going around the lagoon on the motorway side to meet up with the bridge at the Seacliffe Road end and back over the motorway again. The path there is a steep (we chose to get off our bikes) but short shared path (it’s the only part of the loop that isn’t off-road). 

For those of you with dogs, the Onehunga Reserve side of the motorway is an off-leash dog area, except for the playground. There were a number of dogs there when we visited and they were all well-behaved and having a great time. The other side is mostly on-leash, but some areas where dogs cannot go (to protect the seabirds). 

Most of the loop is flat, except for the approaches to the two bridges. If you’ve got very little ones and want to avoid the steep bits, there is plenty of paths to enjoy on either side – just park on the side you want to explore.