When a veteran TA hiker* we met in the Raetea Forest in the first week of our TA journey told us the Kiwi way (i.e. the only way) to walk that track is to pick out the prettiest sections (and skip the rest), we took him by his word: broke off the TA or rather abandoned the notion of having to walk every single step of the way, got a rental, and driving down across the North Island, hiked and cycled only the sections we thought we’d enjoy.

Auckland’s North Shore Coastal Walk was one of them and easily made it into our all-time favourite city walks.

All that makes Auckland lovely (and none of the noise, traffic, and crowdedness associated with a bustling metropolis of 1.7 million) features prominently in this 23-kilometre walk that hugs the water’s edge between Long Bay and Devonport.

Oatmeal-coloured sandstone cliffs plunge into the surf below, where at low tide golden sandy beaches are revealed and sheltered coves framed by crimson pohutukawa trees. Bordering on the clifftop, with endless views across the sparkling waters of the Hauraki Gulf, you’ll find quiet residential neighbourhoods with leafy streets. On a Sunday morning, chairs and tables spill out onto the sidewalk from a tiny coffee shop and families rush off to rugby practice.

Much of this walk’s scenery was familiar to me from when my family first moved to New Zealand, and we rented a house on the clifftop in Devonport, opposite Rangitoto Island. Twenty-five years ago, clifftop properties were still affordable, and I remember mostly modest wooden homes with wraparound verandas set back a respectable distance from the escarpment.

Today’s housing market instead favours flamboyant mansions of concrete and tinted glass that cling precariously to the eroding cliff face. While much has changed and not necessarily for the better, exploring Auckland’s North Shore on foot gave me a newfound appreciation for the beautiful City of Sails.

The walk is not challenging, yet requires a fair bit of rock scrambling and stamina. Many trail sections are only accessible at low tide. Even then, be prepared to get your feet wet. From Devonport, ferries leave for the CBD every half-hour and every 15 minutes at peak times.

* TA is the abbreviation for Te Araroa, New Zealand’s 3000km long-distance trail that stretches the length of the country, from Cape Reinga at the top of the North Island to Bluff at the southernmost point of the South Island.