This one is for my Wellington riding buddies, a naughty little track in the centre of things.
This track is one way, it should only be ridden from Newlands downhill due to traffic dangers from starting at the bottom.
Heading up Newlands Road turn sharp right into Wakely Road at the first left hand bend. At the T junction at the end of Wakely road the track starts opposite you. It’s not obvious as there are 2 driveways next to each other, take the right hand driveway and the track carries on straight after about about 30 metres where the driveway veers left to a house.
There may be a chain across the track here, if so you may not be able to continue, I’ve never found it in place.
The track itself exists to service power lines and is usually narrow, rutted, steep in places, potholed, and overgrown with grass. If the grass is damp it can be very slippery and there are some very big drop offs on your left so be careful.
As you reach the bottom of the track you are faced with a short crash barrier beside Ngauranga Gorge/SH1, DO NOT ATTEMPT TO REJOIN THE ROAD HERE! Turn hard left at the crash barrier and there is a track that will take you parallel to the motorway under the rail bridge and into the Glover Street commercial area where you can safely rejoin the road.
Contributed by: @eddieb
Track type: Dirt Track
Track composition: Bumpy, Firm, Steep
Slippery when wet? Yes
Suitable for bikes <650cc? Intermediate
Suitable for bikes >650cc? Intermediate
River crossings? No
Did this on the way to work on Friday, first time off road. Thanks Edward.
http://youtu.be/rUgG9BwoYdo
Thanks for the video Vishan, it’s embedded in the page now.
Vishan, Check out Old Haywards Road/MacDougal Grove next time you are out at Haywards Hill, it’s short but another fun little hidden away track.
Ah yes I know the one, will give it a crack. Thanks!
What’s the reason for only riding from Newlands downhill? Is the oneway downhill traffic semi-regular, making it unsafe to ride uphill?
The main reasons are safety.
* Originally, access was limited from the motorway end (though passing it a few days ago I see you could turn into it now).
* You can’t legally access going north.
* Turn in from the motorway going south is also going to have safety hazards (speed of traffic behind).
* Finally, it’s used by mountain bikes, coming down quite fast – potential collision hazard.
When you exit it going down, you can ride to a safer area to merge in with motorway traffic.
Hey thanks for this track Edward .
I’ll give it a go on my DL650 .
Cheers , Jeremy @ Petone
I did the Ngauranga power line track today . Easy to find thanks to your directions – did it on my DL650 . The exit is a bit tight next to the motorway because workmen have left sandbags & road signage & the path is pretty overgrown . Easy ride , good views just watch out for the concrete culvert across the main track half way down .
Then went over to McDougal Grove / Old Haywards Rd next to find a locked gate on the metal entrance . So went to the other entrance further up the Haywards Hill Rd . Continued down an unsealed track till stopped by a concrete barrier all the way across road .
As I was exiting to get back onto the Haywards Rd I spotted a track leading down on my right thru native bush to a Forestry cleared hillside . Being Sunday with no vehicles around I followed this gravelly track which includes a decent hill climb , past power pylons until coming to the clearing site for the Forestry operations . Awesome views towards Silverstream & up through the Hutt Valley out to the Harbour Heads . Would recommend
I did this ride on my Can-Am 650XT Quad, along with my brother on his KTM 2 wheeler. Was fun and nice views. Way better going up than down though as you can hang out round the corners and get some speed up. We just left one of us at the top when the other was coming up so we could ride up without fear of anyone coming down at the same time.
I went today on that track and now there is a chain blocking the road and a notice from the city council saying that only contractors are allowed to use that road. Also there is a smaller notice saying No Motorbikes.
I used to use this road as an alternative of the congested motorway.
track is still closed ?
The chain is gone, but there are bollards that preclude access to anything with more than 2 wheels. The intent is to make it inaccessible for anything but walkers & MTBs.
Here is the proposal that started the change (from 2017). It was aimed at creating a viable alternate route for walkers & cyclist coming down from Newlands/ Johnsonville, in order to reduce cycling traffic coming down Ngauranga Gorge. The proposal (& subsequent spend) was generated as a result of council concerns regarding earlier accidents on the Gorge during peak commute times.
The track has changed designation from un-formed public road to formal shared walking & cycling path. As a result, it’s questionable as to whether motorcycles can legally use the track now.