Help us nail the finish... what's needed now
Exciting news
Waipu Cycleway Update!
The final link of the Waipū Cycleway—connecting the township all the way to Waipū Cove—is officially on the books! Work is planned from March to May 2026, with a project value of $1.45 million.
The new section will run along the eastern side of Cove Road, with about 300m of the western side widened and realigned to improve visibility and avoid impacting nearby homes. The path will be around 2.5m wide, made of a mix of concrete and gravel.
A lot of planning has gone into finding the safest and most practical route through the residential area, and it’s exciting to see this final stretch coming together. Great news for walkers, cyclists, and everyone who loves this community.
You can find more information on Council's website https://www.wdc.govt.nz/Council/Projects/Waipu-Cycleway
What's next?
To finish off our work we're working on concepts for signage and a couple of shelters. The signage will include wayfinding maps, information about the length of the trail and accessibility, along with some exciting stories about what makes this area of Waipu special. Over the next month our designer Emma will be finalising quotes to make and install them. Thanks to all the generous donors, we can keep paying the bills.
There will also be some working bees to tackle the awesome native plants that are being beaten back by kikuyu in the middle section from McLean Road to Cullen Rd. Look out for our advertisements and signs along the trail seeking volunteers for this. If you look closely at Flagstaff you can see the incredible difference made by Dez, Coralie, Marilyn and Chris, Christine and Mike who have removed privet, wild ginger, woolly nightshade, wilding pines, honeysuckle and other invasive weeds. Community planting days achieved the first plantings in 2020 and 2021- look how big those native plants are now!
We're so excited to be finishing this community project. What makes it all so worthwhile is seeing the number of walkers, runners and cyclists out there on the trail already. Isn't it great to have locals and visitors, including Te Araroa walkers safe and off the busy Cove Road. And a big shoutout to the Saturday fun runners and walkers, setting out at 8am from Waipu Cove to run the trail.
The final result is a trail for all the family to enjoy with wide spaces and stunning views to Bream Bay and Bream Head.
Our thanks to Paul Cowpland and Paul Jenkins for their awesome trail building. We are also very grateful to all the landowners who have agreed to easements over their land to enable this community asset to go ahead, and to Whangarei District Council for their contribution to survey and legal costs. A shout out also to the contributions from Dave Whittaker, Mountfield Quarry, and Fulton Hogan.
We estimate a further $10k is required to finish the trail signage and shelters. So please keep the generosity coming.
Thank you to those who made submissions to WDC to support our request for the annual plan to prioritise funding so we can get this trail finished.
Let's go Waipu.
The final link of the Waipū Cycleway—connecting the township all the way to Waipū Cove—is officially on the books! Work is planned from March to May 2026, with a project value of $1.45 million.
The new section will run along the eastern side of Cove Road, with about 300m of the western side widened and realigned to improve visibility and avoid impacting nearby homes. The path will be around 2.5m wide, made of a mix of concrete and gravel.
A lot of planning has gone into finding the safest and most practical route through the residential area, and it’s exciting to see this final stretch coming together. Great news for walkers, cyclists, and everyone who loves this community.
You can find more information on Council's website https://www.wdc.govt.nz/Council/Projects/Waipu-Cycleway
What's next?
To finish off our work we're working on concepts for signage and a couple of shelters. The signage will include wayfinding maps, information about the length of the trail and accessibility, along with some exciting stories about what makes this area of Waipu special. Over the next month our designer Emma will be finalising quotes to make and install them. Thanks to all the generous donors, we can keep paying the bills.
There will also be some working bees to tackle the awesome native plants that are being beaten back by kikuyu in the middle section from McLean Road to Cullen Rd. Look out for our advertisements and signs along the trail seeking volunteers for this. If you look closely at Flagstaff you can see the incredible difference made by Dez, Coralie, Marilyn and Chris, Christine and Mike who have removed privet, wild ginger, woolly nightshade, wilding pines, honeysuckle and other invasive weeds. Community planting days achieved the first plantings in 2020 and 2021- look how big those native plants are now!
We're so excited to be finishing this community project. What makes it all so worthwhile is seeing the number of walkers, runners and cyclists out there on the trail already. Isn't it great to have locals and visitors, including Te Araroa walkers safe and off the busy Cove Road. And a big shoutout to the Saturday fun runners and walkers, setting out at 8am from Waipu Cove to run the trail.
The final result is a trail for all the family to enjoy with wide spaces and stunning views to Bream Bay and Bream Head.
Our thanks to Paul Cowpland and Paul Jenkins for their awesome trail building. We are also very grateful to all the landowners who have agreed to easements over their land to enable this community asset to go ahead, and to Whangarei District Council for their contribution to survey and legal costs. A shout out also to the contributions from Dave Whittaker, Mountfield Quarry, and Fulton Hogan.
We estimate a further $10k is required to finish the trail signage and shelters. So please keep the generosity coming.
Thank you to those who made submissions to WDC to support our request for the annual plan to prioritise funding so we can get this trail finished.
Let's go Waipu.
Route options to link the trail
We explored the main route options to link Riverview Place with McLean Road and identified that the best route for a number of reasons (ecological values, cost, safety, private landowner concerns) is alongside Cove Rd, on the seaward side.
Consultation
Discussions with landowners along this route have been thoughtfully considered along with the views of Council and the community.
Pros and Cons
There were pros and cons for each route option. Much of the land on the edge of the river and estuary is public land and could be used for public access such as a walkway. However there are a number of reasons including the Department of Conservation Wildlife Refuge, rare bird nesting grounds, a dog exclusion zone, and exposure to storm events, to prefer the roadside option.
Share your adventures with the Waipu Cycleway
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