The Heritage Trail offers the most variety of landscape of all the tracks in Shakespear Regional Park.

From the Waterfall Gully car park, follow the yellow markers into the subtropical jungle. There you will find the park’s waterfall. In the waterfall’s pool, you will be able to see kokopu, a native fish. 

As you walk through the forest, looking up into the trees rewards you with native birds such as tui, kereru and pukeko. However, looking down into streams, you may see tuna (eels) and other native fish. 

You will emerge from the forest as you start to climb the hill towards the lookout. You will now be in farmland where your chances of seeing sheep grazing nearby is extremely high. There also isn’t much shade past this point so plan accordingly.

The highlight of the walks in the park is the lookout, which offers 360 degree panoramic views, including Hauraki Gulf, the Bay of Islands and Auckland. The distance between the end of the forest and the lookout is about 15 minutes.

You will also pass historic sites and a WWII gun emplacement. 

After the lookout, continue on the yellow track to return to the car park, or veer off and take the Lookout Track or Tiritiri Track instead.

Quick Facts about this walk

  • Location: Auckland, North Island, New Zealand
  • Time needed: 2 hour walk
  • Distance: 3.9 km
  • Difficulty: Medium
  • Bikes allowed: No
  • Route: Loop
  • Elevation: Uphill sections
  • Wet Feet: Unknown
  • Toilets: There is a toilet at the start of the walk.
  • Dogs: No
  • Mobile Coverage: Unknown
  • Last Updated: November, 2020

Summary points about this walk

Walk Highlights

This track offers panoramic views of the peninsula. It also takes you through native forest and by a waterfall.

Track Quality

This track is a combination of gravel, forest and farmland.

Hazards

Unknown

Transport

Take the NX1 bus north of Auckland unit Hibiscus Coast Station. Then take the 982 bus towards Gulf Harbour. Get off the bus at 2 Shakespear Rd. Walk along Whangaparāoa Rd until you reach Shakespear Regional Park.

Water

Unknown

Driving Instructions

Follow SH1 north for 26 km to the Silverdale off ramp. Go through Silverdale (2.3 km) then turn right on to Whangaparāoa Road. Continue on Whangaparaoa Rd for 12.3 km and follow the signs for Shakespear Regional Park to the end of the peninsula.

Shops & Restaurants Nearby

The closest shops and restaurants are in Gulf Harbour (4 minute drive or 30 minute bus ride).

Area & Trail History

The Whangaparaoa Peninsula was occupied by the Ngāti Kahu iwi for nearly a thousand years before the arrival of European settlers in the 1820s. The 800 hectares at the end of the peninsula belonged to the Shakespear family from 1883 to 1967, until the Auckland Regional Authority purchased the land. Part of the peninsula was also used by the army during the Second World War and is still maintained by the Ministry of Defence.

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The next building you come to after the motorhome and caravan park is the surf club. In the surf club there are public toilets, changing rooms and a tap for you to wash the sand of your feet before heading off for a coffee or ice-cream.