Pencarrow Ride. Photo / Lee Slater
Wellington has been in the news for all the wrong reasons when it comes to cycling lately, which says a lot about its urban riding and little about its recreational trails which are, quite frankly, stupendous.
I'll admit I'm totally biased. I've been mountain biking in Welly since the early 1990s, during which time the off-road trail network has gone gangbusters. There's Mākara Peak, Mt Victoria, Belmont, Wainuiomata, the Remutaka Cycle Trail and much more. For the last 20 years, I've lived on the edge of Polhill/Waimapihi Reserve, which has surely the best trails any capital city could boast within 10 minutes' ride of its CBD.
Wellington is actually pretty cycling obsessed, both on-road and off. You'd hardly know it from the official tourism website, which barely gives biking a mention. Local knowledge is king here, so here are a few insider tips.
This ain't no Amsterdam. Flat terrain is in short supply, easy riding largely confined to the heavily trafficked city centre and a couple of low-lying 'burbs. In the outer, hillier suburbs, narrow and winding roads present more challenges.
Many arterial routes such as the harbourside now have dedicated paths and cycle lanes. These combine with side-streets and (dare I say) footpaths for a doable but disjointed urban riding experience.
Meanwhile, up in the bushy greenbelt surrounding the city, seemingly endless stretches of single track offer recreational rides galore. They don't call Wellington a mountain-bike mecca for nothing.
The Regional Council produces the excellent Wellington City Cycle Map, which you can pick up around town including their office at 100 Cuba St. The City Council's Bike There website (bikethere.org.nz) provides sundry useful information including an interactive cycling map.
For an overview of mountain biking (and walking) trails, check out Wellington Regional Trails (wellingtonregionaltrails.com). For ride details, go direct to dedicated sites such as that of Mākara Peak or good old Trailforks.
Switched on Bikes (switchedonbikes.co.nz) runs popular self-guided and guided ebike sightseeing tours from Queens Wharf. The classic tour is around the bays, which heads off along the waterfront to Oriental Bay before continuing along the water's edge on a mix of cycle lanes, shared paths and dedicated pathways.
The route offers ever-changing harbour views on its way round to the Miramar Peninsula. It also takes in the freshly revamped Cobham Drive pathway, a big win for cyclists that also does better justice to the iconic wind sculptures dotted along its length.
There are lots of options once you get to the peninsula. The path of least resistance is to pop into Shelly Bay's Chocolate Fish cafe before heading back to town. If you've got time, however, we recommend following the coast all the way back town via Lyall Bay, Island Bay and Brooklyn.
Switched on Bikes makes this easy with ride maps and ebike hire. Their fleet also includes full-sus mountain bikes for heading into the hills.
The Pencarrow Coastal Trail combines sublime scenery, sea birds, salty air and a spectacular lighthouse. They say you can't beat Wellington on a good day. Well, this is as good as it gets.
Located in East Harbour Regional Park, around 40 minutes' drive from downtown Wellington, the trail starts at Burdan's Gate where Wildfinder bike hire (wildfinderpencarrow.co.nz) is open most days.
The 4WD trail out to Pencarrow Lighthouse is flat and well-graded but a fairly long haul at around 16km return so you'll be glad of an ebike, especially if it's windy. Whether southerly or northerly, you'll cop it.
On reaching Pencarrow Head the track bends around to two peculiar lakes formed by earthquake uplift, and on to the rusting wreck of the Paiaka, which is a good place to turn tail for home. Handsome Baring Head lies in the distance.
A short but sharp climb leads to the lighthouse, New Zealand's first when built in 1859. Widow Mary Jane Bennett, the country's first female lighthouse keeper, raised six children here. Talk about heroic.
In the high green hills on the western side of the harbour is Mākara Peak Mountain Bike Park, which you can reach by bus or a half-hour bike ride from downtown.
A true community effort, the 250-hectare park is as much about conservation as riding, with major pest eradication and replanting efforts since 1998 seeing bush and birdlife flourish. Its countless contributors include the City Council, a well-organised supporters club, and the legendary Kennett Brothers.
Mākara Peak boasts more than 40km of top-notch singletrack. There's a skills area and some easy stuff for novices, but overall the park is best suited to intermediate riders. We recommend a loop up Koru, Sally Alley and Three Brothers/Up Swing for a photo-op at the top, then back down via Peak Flow and Swigg or Starfish. Allow two hours.
Bike hire and ride advice is available from Mud Cycles, located 1km from the park entrance.
Experience the excitement of Wellington air! The Brooklyn Wind Turbine is the big kahuna of city lookouts, best reached on the trails of bird-filled Polhill/Waimapihi Reserve. Whether on foot or bike, simply head to the top of Aro St and follow the bright blue signposts for a return ride or walk taking 1–3 hours.
Mountain bikers get the best of this adventure thanks to the dedicated downhill trails Car Parts, Ikigai and Serendipity. So. Much. Fun. Either way, cap your adventure off with a pint at Garage Project's tap room, 91 Aro St.
It's all-out icecream wars in Welly at the moment, thanks to a new duck that's flown in and gotten the feathers flying. Lee and I rate Gelissimo Gelato the supremo, hands down. As a lad, owner Graham Joe worked in his parents' Hutt Valley greengrocery and lapped up hokey-pokey by the gallon. This is his destiny. There are two outlets on the waterfront, one alongside Te Papa and the other at Freyberg Beach.
Wellington sculpture. Forty years' work by the Wellington Sculpture Trust has populated the city's parks and streets with dozens of striking sculptures, many of which can be seen on the CBD waterfront cycle route and aforementioned Cobham Drive around the bays. Find out more at sculpture.org.nz.
It could get windy. Riders have been known to get blown clean off their bikes, and it certainly plays havoc with hair-dos. So, do as the locals do. Maintain an absolutely positive attitude and remind yourself that you're breathing some of the freshest city air on the planet.
Talk about a tale of two cities. In the best of times, the capital is blessed with superb mountain biking thanks to great natural assets and 30 years of community and council effort. At its worst, urban cycling is on struggle street but this is in part due to the same reasons its recreational riding is so good. Big hills. Compact flats. But you still can't beat Wellington on a good day, right?
For more New Zealand travel ideas and inspiration, go to newfinder.co.nz and newzealand.com
'We can make three days feel like a week,' one expert said.