Air Chats Autumn 2023

On ya BIKE!

OVERINDULGED WITH THE CHRISTMAS CHEER AND NEED TO GET SOME EXERCISE, but not quite ready to run a marathon or take up Zumba? Looking to escape the hustle and bustle with the family but want to relax and recharge rather than run yourself ragged on an overseas jaunt? Then fear not, we have the answer: head out east to Whakatāne for full-on family cycling fun that will get you back on your bike and out and about in some stunning scenery – without the need to be a lycra-clad adrenalin junkie or to pack for a week.

Ah Whakatāne; it has long been known as a classic Kiwi getaway destination, blessed with plenty of sunshine and the stunning Ōhope Beach. What is less well-known is that this small but perfectly formed eastern Bay of Plenty town is also blessed with some great cycling trails.

“Whakatāne really has some hidden gems,” says long-time cyclist and resident Richard Hamer, “and they are perfect for families and casual cyclists. Cool urban around town trails and a really nice ride over the hill to Ōhope that you’ll often have all to yourself: it’s far from the maddening crowds and just you and the birds for most of it.”

Richard has been a cycling advocate for several years, as well as acting as a cycle guide, so is more than familiar with the various trails on offer.

“A lot of work has been put into the cycle trails in Whakatāne, both by our local district council and some really passionate locals, and the improved trails have meant a lot more people are getting on bikes either for recreation or transportation.”

One of the most popular of these is the Riverside Trail that runs – surprise, surprise – alongside the Whakatāne River, between the Whakatāne Bridge (the main entrance into the town) and the river mouth, popularly known as The Heads. This 8.6km trail is a great early morning or late afternoon ride and as it passes the town’s CBD there is the opportunity of a coffee, a bite to eator glass of something stronger.

“The Riverside Trail is fully paved,” says Richard, “and you are alongside the river the whole way, so it’s really scenic. It passes the town’s rose gardens and a marsh too if you are a keen bird watcher, and it’s all flat so great for kids.”

The trail also passes close to the spectacular Mataatua Wharenui – The House That Came Home - and Te Ana o Muriwai (Muriwai’s Cave), one of the most sacred and historically significant sites in the Whakatāne region.

If you ride the trail from east to west you will end up at the Whakatāne Bridge and from there you can embark on another ride, the Urban Nature Trail. “This trail takes in the river, the inanga (whitebait) spawning ponds, and the Awatapu lagoon shared pathway,” Richard says. “Parts of this trail are gravel, but it is still a flat and easy ride, and a huge amount of restoration work is being done around the lagoon to make it a nice scenic ride. The lagoon was created by the diversion of the Whakatāne River in the 1970s as a means of flood protection, and for many years it languished unloved and stagnant. Home to kōtuku (white heron) and weweia (dabchicks) it is now being slowly rehabilitated with pest control and plantings.”

If you’ve done the around town trails and are looking for a more energetic two-wheeled adventure, then the Town to Sea Trail gets you up into the hills surrounding the town via sealed and unsealed roads that lead to the glorious Ōhope Beach. At 16km this trail is more of a workout, but well worth it. “The Town to Sea Trail is a great way to see some native bush and ride some really quiet back roads,” says Richard. “The main road between Whakatāne and Ōhope has some pretty steep grades, but the cycle trail goes along Maraetotara and Burma Roads so is much less steep and it’s a good way to get over to the beach.”

The Town to the Sea Trail is best enjoyed as a day trip looping back to where you started – with the welcome reward of lunch or a tipple in one of Ōhope’s cafés and maybe a swim to boot – but transport can be arranged if the kids are tired –and bike rentals are available in Whakatāne and at the Ōhope Wharf so you can start from either end.

“And if you want to get in some serious trail work in addition to the family oriented one in the township, then Whakatāne is a great base to work from,” says Richard. “The Redwoods in Rotorua is just an hour up the road, and the Tirohanga Dunes Trail and Motū Trails in Ōpōtiki are really spectacular.”

So go on, get off the couch, and get on a bike in the eastern Bay.