About | Mercer Bay Beach
Though the Mercer Bay Loop is a fantastic walk for the family, not many dare to come down to the Mercer Bay Beach, or even know about it. It’s quite the climb but well worth it. You might want to leave the kids at home for this one but it can be an excellent adventure for those that love a bit of climbing, not scared of heights, has a good level of fitness and would love a good challenge. It surely isn’t the easiest beach to get to in Auckland. And definitely not for the faint-hearted.
You’ll start by parking up at the end of Log Race Road, you can add in the Mercer Bay Loop with this to enjoy the clifftop views but if you really just want to head down to the beach and have already done the loop walk with the kids, then head straight down to the walkway closest to the toilets, and overlooking the beach below.
When you get to a fork in the road, go left, down Coman’s Track. Walk for about 5 minutes, then you’ll need to be on the lookout for a track going right, down the cliff. There’s no sign and you could walk straight past it if you didn’t know about it so keep a lookout for it.
Now it’s time to be careful, take your time as you go down the cliff. It’s steep and dangerous so make sure you’ve got a good grip of anything you can hold onto.
When you make it to the bottom check out the caves (and go at low tide so you can do so). They are pretty cool! Explore the rocks and you’ll find starfish and good-sized crabs.
Take old but good walking shoes, some water and snacks. There’s gorse and cutty grass going down and crumbly dirt.
Have fun, but stay safe!
Nearby
Location
At the end of Log Race Road.
Photos
When you see this sign, go left, down Comans Track, but don’t keep following it. The track is quite hidden and there’s no signs telling you it’s there but have a look out for a track on your right, heading down towards the beach below.
It’s a really steep and dangerous track and should only be attempted by those that are confident. It just keeps going straight down. It can be a scary descent.
The ropes are really helpful.
But once you’ve made it down, you’ll have this whole beach to enjoy, and most likely to yourself. Go have a wander!
A deep tidal pool, perfect for jumping into.
A dark, gloomy cave filled with water.
To find the big cave, walk towards the sea, go right, around the cliff. This needs to be at low tide to access the cave.
Another cave. This one is huge. It’s fallen in at the top, and you can hear the birds singing come echoing down. Perfect.
Walking back up was a lot easier than coming down. Really glad that we’d finally been able to go on this adventure together.
