Kaipātiki Explorer

Kauri Point Domain & Soldiers Bay Reserve

Kauri Point Domain offers a great view out over the upper harbour at the end of the min track. For dog owners there is plenty of room for dogs to play, either up on the grassy area at the point, or down on the beach. 

An easy walk underneath pine trees takes you out to a shallow beach at Fitzpatrick Bay. There are plenty of small side tracks for the more adventurous to explore, either up into the pines, or out through the mangroves and saltmarsh heading to Island Bay Road.

There are kauri up in the bush, so please keep away from them and keep to the tracks. A longer secondary track rises steeply from the southern end of the beach and can be followed all the way back to the entrance.

There is a large grassed area by the beach which makes it a perfect place to walk to, have a swim and a picnic lunch afterwards.

Soldiers Bay is a unique biodiversity area – from estuarine saltmarsh to a freshwater swamp forest, then to a terrestrial podocarp forest. There is also valued birdlife in the reserve, especially in and around the wetlands, so please keep your dogs to the tracks.