Spring Walks in Tawa: Bush Tracks and Parks Worth Lacing Up For

Spring has turned up in Tawa, mostly. The days are longer, the tui are loud, and the southerly only visits a few times a week now. It's the perfect excuse to get out on foot. Here's the thing a lot of people don't realise until they live here: Tawa is ringed with native bush, and most of it is a five-minute walk from someone's front door. These are some of our favourites, from easy-as to properly puffing.

Ara Tawa: the flat one everyone uses

If you want a walk that suits pushchairs, scooters, bikes and grandparents all at once, start here. Ara Tawa, the Tawa Valley Pathway, is a shared walking and cycling path that follows the rail corridor and the Porirua Stream. According to Wellington City Council, it begins at the main bridge in Willowbank Reserve, and it heads north towards Kenepuru Station, linking up streets, the shops, train stations, schools and parks along the way. It was built by the council together with a local community group, the Tawa Valley Pathway Walkway Committee, which is very Tawa.

Grasslees Reserve: the stop halfway

Ara Tawa runs right through Grasslees Reserve, so it's the natural place to pause. It's flat with sealed paths, and there's plenty to keep everyone busy:

• A timber playground with a mouse wheel, slide and swings, plus a giant swing for adults (go on, nobody's watching)

• A half basketball court and a wheeled area for bikes, scooters and roller skates, with the skate park next door behind Tawa Pool

• Two electric barbecues, picnic spots and public toilets

• A fenced dog exercise area, though dogs need to be on a lead on the shared path and aren't allowed in the playground

• The Brian Webb Memorial Rose Garden, which should be worth a look once the roses get going

There's a bit of history here too. The reserve has a memorial to ethnographer Elsdon Best, who was born at the original Grasslees farm in 1856, and the council says the bridge over the Porirua Stream linking the park's two halves went in as part of a 2014 upgrade.

Redwood Bush: the big tawa

Want to know where Tawa got its name? Head into Redwood Bush. The council lists the walk at about 2.5km and roughly an hour, starting near the play area on Brasenose Place, with old-growth tawa and podocarp forest along the way. According to the Friends of Tawa Bush Reserves, the huge tawa in the gully are reputed to be the biggest in Tawa. Look out for pukatea with buttress roots, filmy ferns and northern rata too.

Fair warning: the Brasenose end has steep sections and about 260 steps. If you've got a pushchair, the Achilles Close to Peterhouse Street section is the gentler option. You can add a detour up to the ridge above Brasenose Place for views over northern Wellington, then pop across Peterhouse Street into Larsen Crescent Reserve to see its mature mataī.

Short bush fixes for busy weeks

No time for an hour-long mission? These smaller reserves, all looked after by the Friends of Tawa Bush Reserves, give you a proper dose of green in 20 minutes or less:

• St Anne's Reserve: about one hectare of bush with no steps, entered from St Annes Square or Greyfriars Crescent. Five to ten minutes each way.

• Charles Duncan Reserve, Linden: an easy 10 to 20 minute loop from Fyvie Avenue, with a bench looking out over southern Tawa. The volunteers planted about 2,000 native trees here.

• Wilf Mexted Reserve: a 15 to 20 minute loop from Woodman Drive with a lookout seat. It's said to be the only Tawa reserve with mature nikau palms.

• Larsen Crescent Reserve: five or ten minutes among big mataī and tawa. The boardwalks are slippery when wet, so take it easy.

Te Ngahere-o-Tawa: for the views

Up on the western hills, Te Ngahere-o-Tawa (Forest of Tawa) covers 36 hectares, and the council bought it in 2017. It's pine forest with native regeneration coming through, and it's the one to pick if you want panoramic views over Tawa. Allow 25 to 35 minutes between Kiwi Crescent and Spicer Road. The zig-zag lower track is manageable with a pushchair, and parking on Kiwi Crescent is limited, so walking there is half the fun anyway.

A quick word for the volunteers

None of this happens by accident. The Friends of Tawa Bush Reserves do weed clearance, planting, track work and pest control across these reserves, and they monitor bait stations and traps regularly. If you enjoy the birdsong, that's partly down to them. A reminder from them too: dogs on a lead in the bush reserves, and pick up after them.

Living close to the green stuff

Being a short walk from bush, a playground or the stream path is one of the things that makes Tawa such a good place to live, and it's worth knowing about whether you're buying or selling. If you're thinking about selling, wondering what your place might be worth, or keen to buy close to a favourite track, we're always happy to chat. Get in touch at teamnickandlilli@loweandco.nz, or pop your details into our buyer matching form at https://www.teamnickandlilli.com/buyermatching and we'll let you know when something suitable comes up.

Happy walking.

Sources: Wellington City Council (Ara Tawa, Willowbank Reserve, Grasslees Reserve and Redwood Bush walk pages); Friends of Tawa Bush Reserves (Tawa Bush Reserves & Walks); Open Trails NZ (Ara Tawa). Track details can change, so check the council website for closures before you head out.

— Team Nick & Lilli

ANDCO REALTY LIMITED - LICENSED UNDER REAA 2008