Harakeke Mountain Bike Park is situated on Pauri Road, 10km south of Wanganui city centre. It is contained within the commercial forest owned by Ernslaw One Ltd on Ngati Apa land.
The forest creates its own microclimate, protecting one from wind and rain, making it an ideal venue for all seasons and weather conditions.
All planned tracks are now open for riding. It is possible to cycle 33km of single track, not counting the forestry roads. The park consists of two distinct areas.
The newly planted forest has a 20km network of single track graded from easy to advanced. Tracks are well marked and colour coded. Tracks closest to the carpark are the easiest, with those furthest away being most difficult. All tracks link back to a network of forestry roads, enabling cyclists to extend or cut short their ride depending on circumstances. Loop tracks are used from the perimeter tracks to access the branch road ends. Tracks within the new forest predominantly follow an east-west course, with branch roads off a central road following a north-south course.
Most tracks can be ridden in either direction but some tracks are only allowed to be ridden in one direction. This is for safety reasons and are clearly signposted. Large maps are situated at the entrance and at the far end of central road.
The tracks ridden in the following sequence is known as the Katipo Trail:
Carpark - Pauri (yellow) - Pauri Express (green) - Dipper (blue) - Pauri Link (yellow) - Central road (white) - 29-er (pink) - Ridge (red) - Rozy's Folly (purple) - Carpark. The trail is numbered consecutively from 1-48 and is 22km long.
Jamie's Jungle Trail was built near the carpark to specifically cater for the young. The track is compacted shell rock making for a smooth ride.
The trail has a number of resident wild animals who'll soon be joined by more members of the animal kingdom. Other tracks are following this trend, with Happy Feet taking up residence on Happy Feet loop near the fence.
The mature forest has a 12km loop (total 13km) of well-established track accessed via three gates, with Rozy's Folly leading to gate 1, west/east ridge to gate 2 and Lakes Rd to gate 3. The track is well signposted, with eight areas identified and marked where it is possible to follow the complete (long) loop or take a short cut. The track is fast and rolling in nature.
Cattle are grazing in this area until October, so please take care around them.
The Wanganui Mountain Bike Club (WMTBC) has an access agreement with Ernslaw One Ltd which requires riders to be members of the club in order to protect Ernslaw One Ltd through insurance held by WMTBC.
Club membership costs $20 for individuals, $35 for families and $15 for youth. Members receive a washable microfibre "manky" - map on a hanky - which contains maps of Harakeke and Hylton MTB parks and is ideal for cleaning glasses, and smartphone and computer screens. It retails for $10 and is available from various outlets, including the Bikeshed, Cyclesport, NZ Great Gifts, Central City Pharmacy, Eyes on Victoria and i-site.
The WMTBC hosts guided rides for all-comers on the last Sunday of the month at 10am. More information is available on www.wanganuimountainbike club.co.nz for more information.