High Quality Content by WIKIPEDIA articles! The Waitakere Ranges are a chain of hills generally running approximately 25 km (15.5 mi) from north to south, 25 km west of central Auckland, New Zealand. The maximum elevation within the ranges is 474 m (1555 ft). The ranges and surrounding areas were traditionally known to local M ori as Te Wao Nui a Tiriwa (The Great Forest of Tiriwa).The ranges fall within the municipality of Waitakere City.The western coastline of the ranges consists of cliffs exceeding 300 m (984 ft), interspersed infrequently with beaches. The rugged upstanding topography is formed from erosion resistant ancient volcanic conglomerate and lava flows laid down in eruptions 12 25 million years ago. The ranges are covered in native forest, most of which is in the process of regeneration since extensive logging and farming in the mid late 1800s and early 1900s.
