CST is a locally inspired 16km MTB loop ride in beautiful Māngere Bridge, Auckland, New Zealand.

This fun technical ride features wonderful views of the Manukau Harbour, Puketutu Island and the 1000's of wader birds that roost on dedicated bird roosts closeby.

The ride consists of two 6km singletrack loops; the Ambury Loop close to Ambury Farm and the Lagoon Loop further east via 1km of coastal gravel road with those spectacular views. There are seats along the way to relax and take it all in.

Many riders enjoy the mainly level terrain but whilst flat it certainly is not smooth - this is a good skills and fitness trail with rocks, roots, berms and sometimes water crossings. Māngere Bridge locals are rapidly become the best MTB riders in the Solar System.

Time your CST ride for an hour before high tide to be rewarded with the visual delights of amazing arrays of birds flocking to roost such as the eastern bar-tailed godwit and lesser known birds which travel from Serbia and Alaska to feed and rest on purpose built bird roost islands.
Click here for more information on the various birds that visit this shoreline.

Trailforks is a good place for an interactive map and up-to-date information relating to trail conditions and closures. Note that you do not need to sign up to Trailforks to use these maps.
The full CST loop is broken down into 4 main trails as follows;

We also have our own map which is good for printing - click here for the latest version.

---

The Land

The CST trails run over soil that is mainly reclaimed from the shallows of the harbour between the foreshore and Puketutu Island back in the 1950's. This soil/mud was pushed onto the shoreline as they created over 500 hectares of consistent depth oxidation ponds for the 'new' Manukau Sewage Purification Works which opened in 1960.

The oxidation ponds were removed at the turn of the century as part of an upgrade of the Treatment Plant (see below).

The Bush

The bush that CST trails run through is a limited mix of native flora that was planted between 1998 and 2005 when Watercare upgraded the Treatment Plant. The oxidation ponds - no longer required due to the new technologies employed - were removed as the Southern Hemisphere's largest native restoration project at the time commenced - over 250,000 native plants!

Now more native is being planted in various "lightwells" scattered throughout Gnome Forest to introduce variety of height, diversity and more bird habitat. The Gnomes of CST are part of these planting projects and you can be too - contact us to join the CST Crew.

Strong winds and rainfall of 2023 have combined to create some natural lightwells throughout Gnome Forest.

---

The Trails

Back in 2007 CST was nothing more than a couple of hundred metres of singletrack by the Lagoon that complimented the cool gravel path ride from Ambury Farm all the way to the Otuataua Stonefields (The Watercare Coastal Cycleway).

By 2020 the local gnomes had created narrow transportaion paths for their thriving nicknack industry and it was about then that they realised these paths were being enjoyed as MTB singletrack by humans. Always friendly, the gnomes started building berms, step-downs and many features that the humans appeared to enjoy. Now the CST gnomes and mountaibikers live in wonderful harmony with the birds and the trees.

---

The Gnomes

Not a great deal is known about the elusive CST gnomes although local rider Elvis Zaskarelli seems to have befriended them, earning as much respect as a human could from a gnome. Elvis now makes various trail requests, bribing the gnomes with yummy snacks like mandarins and choco macaroons.

---

The J1X Effect

This little-known gnomic expression defines that phenomenon when you think CST cannot be real but are reminded that it is.This means you have been J1Xxed! - the best treatment is to pinch yourself, smile and keep riding!

Check out these videos filmed in CST.

Would you like to help out with CST? One never-ending task is keeping the tracks clear of dead twigs - a consequence of being a coastal trail. So if you come across stuff in the way be a good gnome and clear it for the next rider/gnome.

Also you might see a few rakes hanging around, feel free to clear the track - it is really awesome to ride after being cleared.

We sometimes even have human working bees at CST, if you would like to know about those, drop us a line.