Walks for the keen in Wanganui

The unformed and largely unused public roads in the Whanganui region give residents amazing opportunities to explore, Basil Hooper says.
He's a member of Wanganui Tramping Club and on the Federated Mountain Clubs executive and has helped provide a Chronicle series of six walks within 50km of Wanganui.
Two are close to the city, four are further out and one is longer. All are possible day or half-day trips for moderately fit people.
Mr Hooper is a full-time Waitotara farmer and has had a thing about walking access all his life.
It's become stronger in the past decade. "I want our citizens to visit our public lands, and be aware of them.
"I'd like to see our local people enjoying their area, and knowing it's theirs."
He said there were not enough public walking possibilities near the River City, which was crazy given the amount of publicly owned land and the numerous unformed public roads.
Wanganui's i-SITE information centre has a brochure on the Westmere Walkway, and information on the Atene Viewpoint/Skyline Track in a Whanganui River Road booklet.
There are leaflets about some historic city and cemetery walks, and most people know about the walkways around Virginia Lake and the city's bridges, and the walk to Castlecliff along the river's west bank from the Cobham Bridge.
Less known is a short walk in lowland kahikatea forest at Gordon Park Scenic Reserve.
The Wanganui coastline also offers kilometres of beach walking - but people heading north up the beach toward Taranaki are warned to check tide tables first, and stay clear of eroding cliffs.
 
WESTMERE LAKE:
It's an easy 40-minute walk around the tranquil Westmere Lake, with exotic forest and regenerating natives, and a wealth of bird life.
It's a great place for older children to run free, and bird watchers might like to sling a set of field glasses around their necks before they set out.
If they are patient and quiet they may see dabchick, shoveler ducks, grey teal, New Zealand scaup and sulphur crested cockatoos as well as the usual black swans, shags, kingfishers and mallards.
There are also the usual land birds - tui, kereru, shining cuckoo and fantail.
The walk starts on Rapanui Rd, about a kilometre from its intersection with SH3 on the Taranaki side of St John's Hill. It's clearly signposted, and there is room to park.
There has been a track around the lake for a long time, but it has been impressively upgraded during the last year and a half, mainly through the volunteer work of Mike Sigley.
He has been clearing weeds, and Wanganui District Council is clearing willow. Native trees have been planted, and more are to follow. The surface is mostly mown grass, with new bridges over boggy bits at the lake edge.