Department of Conservation weighs up Cathedral Cove options

The Department of Conservation (DOC) has announced the options it is exploring to reinstate walking access to Cathedral Cove in the Coromandel.

The track was closed in February 2023 after extreme weather events caused a myriad of slips.

DOC Hauraki Waikato Taranaki regional director Tinaka Mearns said the land across the reserve had continued to move since the initial storms.

"The continued land movement has made it challenging to identify a simple walking solution at a level of risk acceptable for the type of casual visitor who generally goes there."

For walking access to the beach, three options were under consideration.

One is a short-term fix, which would include construction of new steps and a boardwalk to reinstate a section of the existing track, while the two others would be long-term repairs involving installation of new infrastructure.

Mearns said the two long-term options would also require significant investment and the possible installation of a cantilevered staircase and steps to the beach.

As a result, those options would take longer to design, procure and complete, she said.

Other options explored were reinstating the Hahei short walk, stabilisation of the current Grange Road entrance and looking at a short-term walk over private farmland.