Urban fringe
Loop
Undulating, small hills only
Native bush
Farm Road / 4WD Track
Easy Single Track
Moderate Single Track
Average Uphill Gradient: +5.5%
Average Downhill Gradient: -5.3%
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1:00
Slow
0:45
Moderate
0:30
Fast
This is a gentle beginners loop in Makara MTB park that's pretty sheltered when it's a howling northerly or raining. Very runnable with a little taste of technical towards the end.
Start heading up the 4WD track (Snake Charmer) for 100m until you hit the green Rimu trail (204) on your right. Follow this as it winds up then turn left at the intersection with Miro (207) (at about 0.6km). Keep left and follow Miro until it rejoins the 4WD.
Head up to the right and very shortly you'll see more trails off to your left. Take the green one Big Toms Wheelie (205) for 0.2k to the next 4WD intersection. From here, take the 4WD left and you'll shortly see the next green trail Magic Carpet (202) which will be right in front of you as the 4WD forks. Enjoy the undulating single track of Magic Carpet for 1.2k. You'll cross over another 4WD track about halfway along it, and towards the end you'll come to an intersection for the Skills Park.
Keep right here (marked easy route). You'll eventually pop back out on the 4WD track opposite where you exited Big Toms Wheelie earlier. Turn left and head up Snake Charmer (701) for around 0.9k. There are a few other 4WD tracks off to the left and right but keep heading up the main one following signs for the Summit if you're unsure.
At about the 3.4k mark, you'll come to a right turn where you'll see a red bike exit sign off to your left. Turn sharp right and you'll see the entrance to the blue trail Three Brothers (318) which you take to start the descent. After 0.5k, Three Brothers will spit you out onto a 4WD intersection. Head straight over and continue on Three Brothers (which heads up left, don't take the right Starfish fork).
At the next 4WD intersection, turn right and take the dark blue Pohatu (413) trail which leads off to the right of the 4WD (at the time of writing it's also marked with a red road cone). This ones great fun but is a bit more technical so take your time if you haven't run this one before. When this spits you out after 0.4k, you should recognise that you're back where you were earlier when you joined Big Toms Wheelie. Turn left on the 4WD track and go left back up green Miro (207), keeping right when it splits onto Rimu (204) then left when you hit the 4WD track for the last 100m to where you started.
Limited on-street parking. Make sure you keep the turning circle clear. If catching a bus, take the #2 from Wellington and walk up from the terminus at Karori West Normal School.
9 km
24 minutes
Unknown
No
Easy.
The tracks are all well-marked and there are boards at several places with maps of the entire park. I've indicated in the main description where there are forks to take, but as long as you know the names of the tracks you're looking for, you can't get too lost as you will always end up back at the bottom of the hill in Karori.
Generally good.
Long-sleeved thermal top, Seam-sealed waterproof jacket, Whistle, First aid kit, Extra food for emergencies, Cellphone, Headtorch and spare batteries.
None en-route. Take what you need.
The tracks are generally firm but some can be slippy after a lot of rain and there can be a few puddles in places.
Rimu, Miro and Snake-Charmer are 2-way tracks so look out for bikes and runners coming the other way. Even on the 1-way tracks, it's best not to use headphones so you can hear bikes behind you.
Trail Legend
Fastest Known Times (FKTs)
You and Mid Makara Magic
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Nice undulating trail. Had fun doing this at night - just listen out for mountain bikes.
September 30, 2021
Awesome wee trail that is super accessible and sheltered - can confirm as tested in a howling northerly and torrential downpour. Trails in great condition and make for really nice rhythm running with just enough gnarl in the last bit to keep it interesting. This will make a great post-work leg stretcher when time is short. Looking forward to running again when it’s familiar and dry!
September 10, 2021
These overlap with this trail to some degree. You may wish to combine them but please note that to qualify for FKTs on these runs you should record a separate activity for each.