Ponganui Rd, Brien Rd, and Waikaretu-Wairamarama Rd form a 30km inland gravel route down the Te Akau Coast which would make a great loop with Klondyke Road and the Raglan to Port Waikato route.
Starting a few km South of the eastern end of Klondyke Road Ponganui Road runs parallel to Klondyke Road before turning South as the route turns into Brien Road. At the South end of Brien Road turn right onto Wairamarama-Onewhero Road then a few km later veer right where the road forks into Waikaretu-Wairamarama Road.
This route gives lots of variation of corners, nice scenery of rock outcrops from hills (think Middle Earth Rohan), distant views of the Tasman Sea, Mt Pirongia and even Mt Te Aroha at times. Watch out for animals, there can be plenty of Sheep, Cattle, Goats, Turkeys etc loose on these roads.
Contributed by: @Sharn Amon
Track type: Gravel Road
Track composition: Smooth, Loose, Undulating
Slippery when wet?: No
Suitable for bikes > 650cc Beginner
Suitable for bikes < 650cc Beginner
River crossings? No
On the way back from Port Waikato via Nikau Caves cafe, turned off Waikaretu to try out Richardson Rd, then Dixon Rd. Both are fairly short, but could be used to make an extension to an inland route down towards Raglan. Richardson is only about 30% gravel, and that part fairly straight and flat with smooth surface. Dixon Rd is much nicer, almost all gravel with sweeping bends and excellent surface. At southern end near Waimia Valley Rd there appears to be some active logging, so may be big trucks.
Riding west to east we found big vistas, full of limestone cliffs and scale. Goats, sheep, peacocks, everything except other traffic on the road.
Parts of the route ran along ridges and cuttings, and there were several places where the road had fallen away. The council has fixed some by installing a single orange cone before each collapse. Others need to be watched out for. In places, the road gets down to two tracks with grass growing in the middle.
If you are looking to spray some gravel around, this is not the best place, but if you are looking for a taste of adventure close to Auckland, this route is hard to beat.