Aerial view of damage to Mangawhai Cliffs Walkway after Cyclone Gabrielle in February 2023. Photo: Supplied / DOC
Two of Northland's favourite day walks have finally reopened after they were badly damaged by Cyclone Gabrielle in February 2023.
Mangawhai Cliffs Walkway and the track up Mount Manaia, at Whangārei Heads, have undergone 10 weeks of repairs by DOC, local iwi, and contractors.
DOC Whangārei operations manager Joel Lauterbach said the work included re-routing, structural supports and surface improvements, as well as mitigation for kauri die-back disease.
Lauterbach said the re-opened tracks looked great, and DOC was looking forward to welcoming visitors back to some of the region's most popular day walks.
Large sections of the Mangawhai Cliffs Walkway, a 9km return walk from Mangawhai heads to Bream Tail, were destroyed by slips.
The 4km return Mount Manaia Track starts on Whangārei Heads Road, above McLeod Bay, and climbs steeply to a 420-metre-high lookout point near the top of a dramatic volcanic peak.
The only other Northland walkway still closed due to cyclone damage is Te Paki Coastal Track between Cape Rēinga/Te Rerenga Wairua and Spirits Bay, where a long boardwalk across a lagoon was destroyed by the storm.
DOC staff and local iwi at the re-opening of the track up Mount Manaia, at Whangārei Heads. Photo: Supplied / DOC