Distance : 94km

On Saturday my riding buddy and I decided to enjoy the fabulous weather we were still experiencing in Auckland this winter. We decided on short notice go out for a bike ride and give the bikes a proper workout after a week of standing idle. The weather was cloudy with no rain predicted and the temperature was hovering around 15° Celsius with a light breeze. This was perfect weather for motorcycle riding. As we were only leaving late morning we could only do a “half day” ride around the Auckland region.

We took off to the east of Auckland and towards the Pohutukawa Coast.

Discover Auckland says “The Pohutukawa Coast is one of the most stunning coastlines in the Auckland region. Take a drive and discover beautiful white-sand beaches, expansive regional parks and family-friendly activities.”

AucklandNZ says ”The Pohutukawa Coast is widely known as a spectacular driving route. Named after the beautiful flowering trees fringing its shoreline, the Pohutukawa Coast includes the seaside villages of Beachlands and Maraetai, and regional parks at Duders Beach and Omana. All along the coastline there are stunning views of Waiheke, Ponui and Pakihi islands in the Hauraki Gulf.”

We rode out to Clevedon which is lies about 40km east of Auckland. We took the Southern Motorway (State Highway 1) and the Otara off-ramp. Turned left onto East Tamaki Road and followed Ormiston & Sandstone Roads to Whitford.

 We stopped along the route a few times to take in the beautiful winter landscape and some photos.

 This photo was taken on Whitford Park Road - Whitford

The trip took us over an hour to reach Clevedon where we stopped off for a bite to eat and a coffee. Normally the trip to Clevedon would take around 40 minutes.

This photo was taken outside the Whitford Park Golf Club

These two photos were taken on West Road just outside of Clevedon. The autumn colours and landscape was stunning even though it was winter.

The clouds cleared as the day went on and the day was turning out spectacular with beautiful views and sites.

After lunch we set off for the 16km ride to Maraetai along the Pohutukawa Coast. We were stopping and starting as we were pulling over view the scenery and take even more photos. This is where the most photos were taken.

The road was good and not busy and the cloud cover took away the glare. We were also able to slow down a bit to gaze at the surroundings and smell the winter odours in the air.

 Once you reach Umupuia, also known as Duder's Beach the ride along the coast is breath taking all the way to Maraetai

 You are hugging the coastline all the way to Maraetai with views across the Hauraki Gulf

You arrive at the secluded Magazine Bay much too quickly where fishermen are casting off from the wharf hoping to catch the evening meal.         

 The view from Magazine Bay over the Hauraki Gulf watching lone kayakers navigate their way across the bay is relaxing and calming.

Within a few minutes we are in Maraetai on the beach watching the locals enjoying the winter sun and taking their dogs for walks. 

It feels almost unreal as we head back to Auckland. This is supposed to be winter in Auckland. And yes, I do agree with Discover Auckland, “The Pohutukawa Coast is one of the most stunning coastlines in the Auckland region.”

There is much more to see and experience on the Pohutukawa Coast than I shared in this post. This is a highly recommended shorter ride in the Auckland region.

For more information see :          www.pohutukawacoast.co.nz or www.aucklandnz.com/discover/pohutukawa-coast

View the route :https://goo.gl/maps/P6wuq