Description

IMPORTANT: Please ensure you use all of the Council provided Kauri Dieback shoe wash stations you come across on the trail. Scrub then spray.
Please clean your shoes before running and after you are finished.

From the small carpark on Mountain Road, head down the Fairy Falls Track. This drops down for 1km, then heads up steeply along side Fairy Falls for the next 3km up many many sets of stairs. Along the way you will pass Goodfellow Track and Old Coach Road on the right. Ignore these and continue on, you will soon emerge on Scenic Drive at the larger Fair Falls Carpark.

Cross the road here, and turn left up Scenic drive for approximately 500m. You will get to Cutty Grass Track on the right hand side. Continue along Cutty Grass track (ignoring all other side tracks) until the end where you will end up on Anawhata Road (gravel road).

Cross the road to a small clearing where Centennial Track begins. This is one of the best tracks in the Waitakeres so head down this. It is all downhill so continue all the way to the bottom where you will cross a steam.

Cross the steam and continue on the other side up some steps. You will come to a junction with Piha Valley Track (you can cut through Piha Valley track to shorten this loop however you will miss Kitekite Falls), so continue uphill on Centennial Track.

You will get to a junction with Home Track, take a right here. Soon after another junction, turn off Home Track onto Winstone Track (straight ahead). Another junction soon afterwards with Connect Track. You can go straight here directly to the top of Kitekite falls, but thats not the way I went when I created this loop, so turn left here and stay on Winstone Track.

You will then get to a 4 way cross-road of Winstone and Kauri Grove. Turn right here on to Kauri Grove. You will now be on a part of the Hillary Trail and will soon get to the top of Kitekite Falls. Cross the river here and turn left onto Connect Track, then head down the hill.

You will get to another junction with a set of wooden stairs heading down to the right which is where Connect Track continues. However if you continue straight on here you will get to the bottom of Kitekite Falls which is spectacular and well worth the detour, especially on a hot day. Note if you do go this way you can continue on Kitekite Falls Track which is a loop that re-joins Connect Track further on, so either is a good option.

Whichever option you choose continue on down Kitekite Falls Track until you pop out of the bush at Glen Esk Road. There is a toilet spot and safe water to drink here in the carpark so a good place to refill and contemplate the climb back out of the Piha Valley thats still to go!

To continue on, from the end of Glen Esk, head back into the bush on Piha Valley Track. You will get to a junction with McKenzie Track on the left. Head up McKenzie track (this track gets steep!) You will eventually get to a clearing with 4 tracks off it (McKenzie, Quarry, Powerline and Maungaroa Ridge). For easy running, head up Powerline track until Anawhata Road. Turn right up Anawhata Road for roughly 1km where you will get to the end of Cutty Grass track that you came out before on the left.

Backtrack your earlier steps along Cutty Grass and Scenic Drive until you're back at the Fairy Falls carpark on Scenic Drive.
Cross the road and follow Fairy Falls track again until reaching the Kauri dieback spray station, but this time turn left up Old Coach Road Track. After 400m this pops out on Scenic drive again, so turn right and up the road 100m where Old Coach Road track heads back into the bush.

Follow the trail until Tawari Road (gravel road), here turn right and continue on Old Coach Road, which heads steeply downhill and you will soon arrive back at the carpark you began from.

Features of interest

Fairy Falls
Kitekite Falls

Make Up of Run

Technical Single Track: 30%

Moderate Single Track: 30%

Easy Single Track: 40%

Route Data