Ladder Bay is a park in Torbay on Auckland's North Shore, holding a 4.4 rating on Google. Parks are free, unbooked public ground, so the only real planning is knowing what each one offers and when to go. On the North Shore, the two things worth checking before you set out are the dog rules, which vary from park to park and tighten over summer, and parking, because the popular ones fill fast on fine weekends. Regulars favour early mornings, when the grass is quiet and the benches are free, and forgive a bit of mud through winter. For anyone in Torbay, Ladder Bay is a well-regarded patch of green on the doorstep — worth keeping in mind for a leg-stretch or a quiet half hour.