Half Moon Bay Marina

Half Moon Bay Marina is situated on the Tamaki River close to Auckland City. A short walk takes you to a small shopping centre which includes good bars and el fresco restaurants that locals and visitors enjoy. Ferry services to and from Auckland City and Waiheke Island operate from here.Travelling by ferry is a great way to enjoy the scenery and view the area from a different perspective. Maps and details of transport options and tourist information are available at the Bus and Ferry Terminal at the end of the Marina. 

There is a pleasant walk to the closest beach - Little Bucklands. The pathway and boardwalk is located behind the boatsheds at the opposite end of the Marina to the Ferry and Bus terminal.

Allow for at least an hour to get there and back to the Marina. Restaurants at the Marina include Grangers and Ara-Tai to name a few.  https://www.hmbmarina.co.nz/i/files/shoppingcentredirectorymar17.pdf 

Half Moon Bay is a popular berth for privately owned boats and is home to the Bucklands Beach Yacht Club. http://www.hmbmarina.co.nz

Musick Point

Musick Point is situated at the end of the Bucklands Beach Peninsular. The road to the Point is through the Howick Golf Course, and it is best to move through the golf course quickly, watching out for golf balls and golfers.

Once through the course you can relax and enjoy the Reserve.  The parklike surrounds and lookouts on the cliff tops giving amazing almost 270 degree views across the Hauraki Gulf to various islands, the Coromandel Peninsular, the North Shore, the City, west to the Waitakere Range and further round to Manukau.  There is space here for picnics and children to run around away from the steep cliffs.

Musick Point was named in honour of Captain Edwin C. Musick, an aviation pioneer in flying boats who, in 1938, was lost at sea in Western Samoa. Musick Point is of historic interest having first been occupied by the Ngariki people centuries ago. Being at the entrance to the Waitemata Harbour this was always been an important site for warning and defence.

The white Art Deco building was used for radio communication by the New Zealand forces during wartime, and more recently by amateur radio enthusiasts. This building is not open to the public.  The area is planted with Pohutakawa trees.  In early summer these trees give a fantastic floral display of red flowers.

This Reserve end of the Point was returned to the local Iwi recently under Treaty of Waitangi reparations. The Point is locked at night so do check the opening and closing times at the entrance. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Musick_Point

Howick’s Heritage App is an interactive walking app that allows users to discover the area through a series of walks – the Main Street Stroll, Tamaki River Tour and the Bucklands Beach Loop.

The app provides information about the route, historic images, interactive maps and audio commentary about interesting sites along the way.

Download the app in the Apple Store or Google Play to get an introduction to the area’s history – all you need to do is search for “Howick’s Heritage”. 

More details under Trips : Walking & Cycling

The peninsula was occupied by Ngai Tai iwi until the start of the Musket Wars. In 1821 a large musket-armed Ngapuhi war party devastated eastern Auckland and by the 1830s many of the local Maori had been killed or enslaved. The peninsula shows evidence of being used for Maori crops of kumara and bracken fern. There are also hangi sites.

Europeans farmed the area from the 1850s and it was also a route for the Fencible soldiers based at Howick who were ferried across to Pt England. A brickworks was established at Little Bucklands Beach and operated from 1869 to 1878, along with a lime factory that crushed and burned shells at Eastern Beach.

The first major subdivision was established in 1916 with the auctioning of 126 sections on the western side of the peninsula.  

The peninsula came into its own in World War 2 with the construction of the Musick Pt radio station in 1942  to communicate with ships and aircraft across the Pacific. The station became the headquarters of the maritime coast station Auckland Radio ZLD, and of aviation radio ZLF.

The first large-scale sale of sections took place in 1947 to take advantage of returned servicemen and the baby boom. A yacht club was established as well as regular transport services.