About | Ti Point Coastal Walkway
The Ti Point Coastal Walkway is an easy and family-friendly walk that makes its way around the coastline, offering beautiful ocean and harbour views.
Drive to the end of Ti Point Road where you’ll find yourself at the Ti Point wharf that overlooks several moored boats and the Whangateau Harbour. The track is mostly flat which makes it great for little legs (though there are tree roots to navigate). Following the coastline, the kids can go for a little explore down by the rocks pretty much anytime they want and makes this walk all the more entertaining.
Bring some food as there’s plenty of places to lay out and enjoy the view while munching on something. Or find a shaded picnic table under large pohutukawa trees a few hundred metres in from the start of the track. If you’re keen, you could even go in for a swim (though watch for rips coming in and out of the harbour), with several good sandy swimming spots along the way, or just enjoy a little splash around with the kids. Follow the track or hop along the rocks at low tide, it’s all good fun.
The last ten minutes of the walk will welcome you with an open grassy area full of wildflowers. Ancient pohutukawas tower above you, rocks are scattered throughout the grass, the ocean breeze coming in from your left. It feels like you’re walking in a dream.
When you come to the end, a signpost will promptly let you know it’s the end of the track. Drop your bag and let your mind rest. You have arrived. Let the kids skip along the rocks and gather up treasures that the ocean has left behind. Zip open your bag and bring out the snacks, it’s a great picnic spot, in amongst the wildflowers, trees and large basaltic lava blocks.
Older and more confident children and adults can explore the boulders, taking care of their step. This spot is favoured by fishermen and rock climbers who head a little further out to the cliff. Find crabs hidden between the rocks and higher up gives you a great vantage point of the area. Look out towards Omaha Bay or Tawharanui Beach, further you may find Little Barrier Island on a clear day.
If your little ones are not yet confident enough to climb across the boulders, not to worry, you can still check out the views by heading up the little hill behind them where you will be rewarded with amazing views out across Leigh. Hop across the stile at the fence for access to a great spot for fishing and rock climbing.
When you can pull yourself and the kids away, return the way you came.
Time: 2-hour return walk
Toilets: at the start of the track, by the wharf and parking area.
Dogs: dogs are allowed but must be kept on a leash at all times – little blue penguins nest along the coastline.
Parking: There is a small carpark at the end of Ti Point Road but this does fill up with fishermen, boaters, climbers and hikers all keen to get out there.
Nearby
Matheson Bay Reserve
Goats Island
Matakana Village Farmers Market (Saturday monrings)
Location
The Ti Point Coastal Walkway starts at the end of Ti Point Road.
Photos
Less than 5 minutes into the walk and the kids are already heading off the track and towards the coastline to hop along the rocks and make new discoveries. We stop there for a few minutes, watching as boats come in and out of the harbour and watching for any creatures under the water.
Backpacks back on, we head back on track, under the thicket of native trees spurring us on. We navigate tree roots and identify native trees we already know the name of. But it’s not long before the kids are asking for another little detour, skipping and prancing their way back down to the rocks below.
Fishermen like to fish along the coast here, but Ash is not too happy when he finds their trash left behind in tiny crevices and starts to pull them out.
There’s lots of awesome little stops along the way. A little bay to explore, coastline to discover and viewpoints to see.
We loved the abundance of wildflowers, combined with the thick and tall grass the kids enjoyed playing and hiding away in it.
Dropping the heavyweight of our backpacks we left our bags on the ground and continued on towards the boulders. The ocean and views were beautiful and we spent a while there exploring all of the different little crevices in between the rocks.
A very cute little walk, the kids thoroughly enjoyed every second of it!
