Chatham Islands Holiday
Some 500 miles to the east of New Zealand lie the Chatham Islands. Iris & I have always wanted to visit and this year we’ve managed to spend a week there.
So this is the second post in the series
Our 2nd Day September 27th,
The gale was still blowing hard, but longer fine periods, and the showers lighter. We joined with Andrew and Pam for a guided tour of the North East part of the Island. Chathams Hotel do a complete service, and Paige was our guide.
The pins and text to the right identify points we visited
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Our Second Days Exploration.
Paige started off with a visit to where the fossilised sharks teeth are found on the shore of Te Whanga Lagoon. And as promised she could spot them. Me, not so well, although I did find a sliver of a tooth. In defense the wind ripples on the water did not aid the search. Paige lives close to the beach, and told us that after a suitable storm she’ll have a search, and has found over 100 on occasions.
From there we went to Admiral Gardens, nestled in a grove of pine trees planted in the ’80s they are both a garden and an art display. The gardens are the work of Lois & Val, and cover around 2 acres. The name comes from the Admiral butterflies which made an appearance when the garden was developed. Lois showed us around, and Iris was in her element … gardeners heaven.
From there we followed the road towards Kaingaroa … where we were the day before … but having a guide, and Paige is a great guide, with both the Island story, and also about her life there just added so much to the day. We turned south, past the old airfield site to the J.M.Barker (Hapupu) Historic Reserve. Access to the Reserve is only with a guide, and here Paige showed us some of the only remaining “rakau momori” (tree carvings) to be found on the Island. These carvings by Moriori depict ancestors and symbols of the ancient world. Sadly time, habitat destruction and tree growth means that what was once found over much of the Island is now found only in this reserve. On a more positive note, fencing and protection in the ’80’s means the forest is regenerating well.
Lunch was had at Ocean Mail Beach, and then west towards North Farm which is owned by Paige’s family. Andrew and Pam are farmers, and I grew up on a farm, so Paiges explanation of Chathams farming was particularly interesting. Fishing is part of their income stream, and we went to where they launch from. Not a harbour, or at least not as I would expect to see, really just a 100 metre channel between two reefs leading onto a gently sloping beach. Scary stuff if a roll gets up while you are at sea, and your only way home is onto a trailer on a surf beach.
And then back to Waitangi. The wind appeared to be easing, but with the plane still U/S tomorrow looked like being a fishing boat crossing from Owenga to Pitt Island
I arrived on Stewart Island in 1969 as Forest Ranger. Since then I've fished commercially both in Fiordland and around Stewart Island then skippered our charter yacht in the same waters, and also down into the Southern Ocean. More recently we now have "Sails Ashore" B&B, and I also guide our guests and others on Ulva Island, introducing them to the natural world of Stewart island