This secluded beach has white sand, clear water and is an absolute favourite amongst locals. Walk…read morealong the coast from the larger, more populated Takapuna Beach past historic scoria reefs and petrified log holes and within 15 minutes you will find yourself at this hidden haven. Don't forget to pick up a coffee or an award winning liquorice ice cream from Takapuna Beach Cafe before you start. Fun Fact: If you are walking your dogs during low tide be sure to let them have a dip or drink in the fresh water rock pool towards the Southern end of the beach. The water trickles down from Lake Pupuke and the dogs just love it!

Thorne Bay is simply amazing. Forget the busy main beach at Takapuna, if it is seclusion you are…read moreafter then take the time to find your way to this beautiful bay. You can access Thorne Bay via Minnehaha Avenue, then there is a bit of a walk across some rock pools but the trek is worth it. Thorne Bay has white sand with lots of tiny pretty shells and if possible grab yourself a spot under one of the trees for some shade. When I went I was surprised at how far the tide came up, so if possible pick a time when it is low. The bay is also very rocky and so that combined with the tide means it isn't child friendly, which is nice because there aren't a lot of kids there. I had a beautiful time when I went early this year. Yes the weather was great too but just being in this small paradise you feel like you're not even in Auckland. If you haven't been you must go, you won't want to go to a mainstream beach again.

Another favourite with the dogs, Sylvan Park is located on the Northern side of Lake Pupuke and is…read moreless well-known than the South side, where the Pump house is. This suits both me and the dogs just fine. We are more than happy to roam the grassy embankment, play catch and discover new bush trails alone. Enter the park behind the tennis courts on Dodson Ave. Head down the RHS of the back courts and you will find yourself on a trail. Go right and you will end up at the back of Milford Primary (15 - 20mins), where there is a boat ramp if you want to go for a dip (too much swan poop for me - be each their own). Head left and you end up in an opening, which if you keep following round turns into the main part of the park. Here you will find toilets, BBQs and Madloop Windsurfing School. Whilst Sylvan Park ain't huge, it's a great daytime option during summer when our four legged friends are banned from the beaches!

Fantastic little inner city escape with lake beside it and away from the hustle of the city!read more

Oh the memories…read more.. When I first finished high school, I spent the better part of a summer leaning to windsurf at Madloop. I was off to Summer Camp that year to be a windsurfing instructor so thought it best I learnt what I was doing. Madloop are based at Lake Pupuke, near the Slyvan Park entrance - look out for the brightly coloured trailer and van at the lake's edge. They have a whole heap of rigs and are able to cater from beginner to advanced (for rentals), children to adults. They also have wetsuits so just turn up in your bathers and your good to go. Al, who runs the school is awesome. He has years of experience and is great with kids and adults alike. He normally has about 3-4 staff helping him out, who in my experience are pretty awesome too. But what's great about learning to windsurf at Madloop is you always feel safe - the staff are great at judging the conditions and after all, you are in a lake so there's no risk of being washed out to sea. Learning to windsurf is not cheap ($45/hours) but they do have a summer deal at the moment where you can get six lessons for the price of five. To book, get in touch via the website. It's heaps of fun..trust me!

Mad loop operates on the sheltered (well mostly) waters of Lake Pupuke. Al has taught four of my…read morefamily - cousins- to windsurf over a holiday break and I can highly recommend his team to get the kids motivated and up and sailing. The gear is good especially the wetsuits which are pretty essential. If windsurfing is not your thing Al has branched out into Hobie cats as well for a more leisurely and probably drier experience

OMG what a discovery. I was excited to see that we were going on a tramp to a waterfall when I was…read morerecently at camp with my daughter and what an amazing place it turned out to be. I know there's a lot of secret little places in the Piha/Karekare area and this is one of them. Although I've since discovered that most people I've talked to already know about it. Oh well. If you drive to the end of Glenesk Road in Piha the tramp is clearly signposted. The walk is fairly steep in places and takes about 45 minutes (many more with many many children in tow) each way. I thought I was fairly fit and coped really well at the time but my legs felt like jelly at the end and I literally couldn't walk properly for several days - something to do with the steps coming down and the way they affect your calf muscles. Anyway, whatever, it's SO worth it. Remember this though: go right at the fork and come back on the other side (doing an anticlockwise loop). Trust me if we had done the reverse I'm not sure I would have made it out. If you go in the morning as we did the water in the pool will be freezing cold - I truly thought I was having a heart attack. Later in the day the sun comes over the cliff-face which I imagine would warm it up a bit. There's also an amazing rock canyon just down from the swimming hole that can be abseiled into. Just having a peek down there blows your mind, it's very cool. This is one of those idyllic Auckland spots that just has to be seen to be believed and the walk through the bush is so peaceful, even as you are killing your legs.

Very nice & sweet trail. Felt like I was at Rain Forest Cafe in America! :) would definitely come…read moreback for this hike again. Walking through nice green scenery while listening the the streams made my mine clear up a bit from stressful life back at home. Much needed vacation and throughly enjoyed my time at the Kitekite Trail & Falls!

In the area that used to be a quarry is now the Stonefields housing development …read more This is a really nice park to come to , when it's not blowing a gale as the wind really rips through here . There is plenty of bird life about ducks , pukekos . And on the day I was there a lovely display by some swallows dipping in above the lake area . I also got screamed at by a pukeko or purple swamp hen if your Australian . There is a sign about saying please don't feed the ducks bread as it rots in the water and makes them ill , so bring seed instead . Lots of native trees have been planted too Parking is avaliable on the street . And after you've seen and done the park area there is Charlie and George cafe in the Stonefields shopping area .

Bethells Lake is my favourite spot out in the West Coast beaches. A must-see for tourists and…read moreAuckland locals alike, the Lake is a great alternative to the rough surf at Piha and Bethells beach, but be warned it's a bit of a mission to get there! Located about 40 minutes outside of central Auckland, not including traffic, the drive can be a bit tedious, and once you arrive there is a good walk to the lake itself that will take a similar amount of time. So if you're going to go, make sure you leave early as - trust me - you don't want to be doing this walk in the middle of a summer's day, it's just too hot - especially if you take the route that goes over the sand dunes. Though much faster, the sand gets so hot you can literally burn the bottom of your feet - so be careful! There is another route to the lake that involves following a wee stream around the bottom of the dunes, and while this takes longer it's a really nice walk and the view of the dunes is quite amazing. Plus, you can wade in the water this way so that's always a bonus! Once at the lake, the long trip in will all seem worthwhile. It's a lovely place to spend the day picnicking, swimming and tanning with your friends and family. The water is fresh water so unlike swimming in the sea you don't feel all sticky and dirty, but it's a pretty funny situation - you're at the beach but you're not swimming in the sea. I think it's worth checking out Bethell's just for that! Tip: There's no shade, so make sure you stock up on the sunblock and/or take a big umbrella to set up. The sun out at Bethell's can be harsh!

Get ready for a walk. Wainamu Lake, or Bethells Lake as I've always known it, is this special…read morelittle private lake everyone should visit at least once. The walk itself isn't hard, but it will take you a decent hour and when it's hot and the sun is out, you'll feel like you are walking in the desert. But as soon as you see that beautiful lake in sight, it becomes worth it. Bethells Lake is surrounded by bush and it's a deep, dark, fresh water lake that is a great alternative to the salty beach. It's become pretty popular over the years so you'll be hard pressed to get it to yourself, but when you do, it's so special. My friends and I came here once and decided to swim across right to the buoy and back, and while two of did fine, my other friend found it a bit difficult! Take heaps of water for the trek because you will get hot. Love it.

I'm a fan of green spaces in cities, and this is a beautiful one. For a free activity exploring…read moreoutside, this is a must visit. There are walking paths directly off of the Auckland Zoo parking lot and entrance, so it's easy to visit the park at the same time. There are both open and forested spaces here, with meandering paths around the central lake. The main draw for me here was the birds, with endangered moorhens, plus swans, geese, and songbirds. Most are docile enough to get great up-close photos. I was there on a mostly cloudy day, but it was still a worthwhile place to explore. There are also many trees and flowers here, I'm sure in the springtime it's more colorful. There are picnic tables and benches everywhere, so it'd be a great place to relax away from the bustle of the city. Getting here by public transportation is easy with a train stop nearby. If you're visiting Auckland and looking for something free and natural to do, you could easily spend a few hours here.

The coolest of all parks in Auckland, in my opinion!…read more A lot of water, black swans, geese, and all other animals all around. Nice place to spend with kids.

One of my random interests is geology - looking at rocks in many cases is literally like looking…read moreback in time. The North Shore coast is littered with geological time capsules, and the Takapuna Reef is one of the most incredible. For this reason, I consider it worth a listing of its own, despite Takapuna Beach and Thorne Bay already being listed. The reef sort of sits in between the two beaches, and is a bit of an overlooked gem I feel - we're too intent on fun in the sun to stop for some rocks haha... Takapuna Reef is about as clear as geological time capsules get. The black rocks are lava from the eruption of the nearby Lake Pupuke. What's remarkable about the rocks are the holes and moulds you can see in the rocks - these were formed when the lava surged through a forest during the eruption. Basically, the lava washed the trees away and as the lava cooled it solidified around the tree trunks. As the trunks decomposed over time, they left holes which you can still see today. For this reason, geologists call the reef a 'fossil forest'. When you go down there you can see right where the trees would have been all those thousands of years ago. Really amazing we have such a well preserved bit of geological history so well preserved in Auckland.