Whangarei's Kiwi North

 

NORTHLAND

Family Fun at Whangārei’s Kiwi North Museum & Heritage Park

• WORDS: HEATHER WHELAN
• PHOTOGRAPHY: HEATHER WHELAN

• PUBLISHED: NOVEMBER 22, 2021

Heather Whelan found there’s fun to be had for all ages at Whangārei’s Museum and Heritage Park, Kiwi North.

Just two hours north of Auckland lies Kiwi North, a 62-acre park that’s an excellent stop for travellers of all ages. Kiwi North’s mission is the preservation and conservation of natural and social history; if you’re an NZMCA member visiting Whangārei with littlies during the school holidays, or on the third Sunday of the month, you’ll be able to park up at a Park Over Property (POP) in the midst of the excitement of a live day.

If you’re more interested in a peaceful walk, then you can explore tracks in the 25 hectares of bush and farmland that make up the park. And if history is your thing then there’s plenty to discover in the museum and the nearby heritage buildings.

Kiwi and More

Kiwi North is home to Northland’s only nocturnal house. On our visit, we had visitors who were keen to see our national bird. Don’t be afraid to ask questions: Joey and Kevin at the reception desk have a wealth of knowledge and information about the kiwi, not only those in the kiwi house but also the ones that have been released into the adjacent Pukenui Forest. Before reaching the kiwi enclosure we spent a few minutes searching for different species of native gecko, cleverly camouflaged amongst sticks and twigs behind glass insets in the wall. There’s also a tuatara, who sat immobile and unblinking beside rocks, as his ancestors have been doing for the last 250 million years.

The kiwi house itself is kept in darkness during the day, so visitors can observe the birds in their nocturnal environment. When our eyes adjusted to the gloom we saw two kiwi foraging in their enclosure, using their long beaks like drills as they searched for food.

Moa and Muskets

The Whangārei Museum is housed in the same building as the Kiwi House. Founded around 1890, there are over 80,000 items in its collection. We were fascinated to see skeletons of moa that had been discovered in a local cave, having lain there for more than 2000 years. There were also giant moa bones that had been found along the coast.

Nearby, two 300-year-old kauri waka were displayed. The larger canoe is a waka taua (war canoe) while the smaller one was made for river travel. There were also bone, stone and wooden artefacts, examples of Māori taonga. We were fascinated by displays related to gum digging, surveying and early settler life as well as military paraphernalia. We could have lingered longer but outdoor activities exerted their pull.

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KAURI GUM EXHIBITS

MOA SKELETON IN THE MUSEUM

Trains Big and Small

Kiwi North is a train lover’s paradise; there’s something about a train ride that appealed to the child in us, as well as the excited children that gathered at the station. The Whangārei Steam and Model Railway Club at Kiwi North, and operate trains on special live days and holidays. We bought a ticket for ‘Johnny’, a diesel train, and checked out the model railway housed in the station building while we waited.

Soon we were rattling along the tracks to Millington Bush station, at the end of the line. En route we passed the mini train, built by the Whangārei Model Engineering Club. 

TRAIN RIDES AT KIWI NORTH

A VOLUNTEER WORKS ON THE MODEL RAILWAY

Clubs Galore

From Millington Bush Station we took a short bush walk that took us to the Clarke family graveyard. The Clarke family owned the property, and farmed it for almost 90 years, until its purchase by the museum in 1972. History buffs will enjoy visiting the colonial Glorat, the Clarke’s family homestead, built in 1885 by Dr Alexander Clarke, a Scots-born former ship’s doctor who brought his wife and three sons to New Zealand in 1884. Modifications can be seen where the homestead had been designed with a surgery, open on a Wednesday from 11am until noon for performing and inspecting vaccinations.

As we walked back beside the railway track we visited some of Kiwi North’s many clubs. At the Rock and Gemstone Club we found crystals for sale, while children worked on craft projects. The Vintage Machinery Club has an array of tractors and farm machinery. Other clubs include the Amateur Radio Club, the Vintage Car Club and the Northland Astronomical Society.

THE CLARKE FAMILY GRAVEYARD

VINTAGE FARM MACHINERY

Built Heritage

Very little change was made to Glorat from the early 1900s to the 1970s, when it was taken over by the museum, making it a fascinating place to investigate. Glorat is currently closed for conservation, but Kiwi North’s excellent website has a link for a virtual tour. 

Scattered between the museum and Glorat you’ll find a unique collection of colonial buildings, illustrating Northland history from the 1850s. The Oruaiti Chapel dates from 1859 and is thought to be the smallest hexagonal chapel in New Zealand. It was built from a single kauri log, while the door lock was crafted from a piece of oak brought to New Zealand by a local settler. The pretty building is now used for weddings.

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A similar little building nearby was once the turret of the Mander family villa. It was here that author Jane Mander wrote articles for her father Francis Mander’s newspaper, The Northern Advocate. Jane’s most famous novel, The Story of a New Zealand River, was published in 1920. The Whangārei Women’s Jail is another of Kiwi North’s little buildings. Around 1900 it stood in the centre of town, beside a larger men’s jail and the police sergeant’s house.

Children are fascinated by the school building, originally Riponui Pah School, built in 1898. Local students get to dress in period costumes and have a lesson as part of the educational experience provided for schools at Kiwi North. Another glimpse of life in days gone by is the Medical Museum, where visitors can admire (or cringe at) a collection of instruments and equipment.

INSIDE JANE MANDER’S STUDY

SECURITY WAS DIFFERENT TO NOWADAYS AT THE WOMEN’S JAIL

Bird Recovery Centre

Tucked away beside the museum is the Whangārei Native Bird Recovery Centre. Since its inception in 1991, the centre has cared for tens of thousands of injured birds, from kiwi to albatross. Founded by Robert and Robyn Webb, the centre is run by volunteers who care for the injured birds. 

The day we visited there were two kingfishers recovering from damaged wings, and a poor one-eyed tui, who will remain living at the centre as it will be unable to survive in the wild. This tui may live as long as a predecessor called Woof Woof, a  tūī who could talk as well as sing and who lived to be 16 years of age.

Beside the aviaries there is a kiwi recovery area and incubation unit. Chicks are raised here before being released into the wild. 

AT THE BIRD RECOVERY CENTRE

KIWI SKELETON AND EGG AT THE BIRD RECOVERY CENTRE

More Information

• Kiwi North is at 500 State Highway 14, Maunu, Whangarei
• NZMCA members can book a site at Kiwi North via the app or at reception. Maximum three nights stay. Free showers and toilet facilities. $5 off entry to the Museum and Kiwi House when staying overnight.
• Useful websites: Kiwinorth.co.nz; nbr.org.nz

Hokianga Highlights

 This 

Mitimiti

• This article was published in Motorhomes Caravans & Destinations Magazine
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• NOVEMBER 2, 2021

Along this beautiful harbour you’ll find spectacular kauri, and communities that retain a special character, writes Heather Whelan.

Explorers from Polynesia arrived in the Hokianga Harbour, possibly as early as 925AD. The navigator Kupe came on the Matahoura canoe, and his crew settled in the harbour. Kupe eventually returned to his homeland – the harbour’s full Māori name means ‘the final departing place of Kupe’ – but others followed in his wake, including his grandson, Nukutawhiti.

The harbour extends 30km inland from its mouth at the Tasman Sea, stretching from Ōmāpere to Hōreke along its southern shores, and from Mangamuka Bridge to Kohukohu and other small communities on its northern banks. The settlements cling to the waterside – travel was by boat long before there were roads – and many of Hokianga’s roads are still narrow and unsealed.

Towering trees

The Hokianga district is in the far north, about four hours from Auckland and 1½ hours from Dargaville. We travelled from Dargaville along SH12, the Kauri Coast route, to the Waipoua Forest. This is the largest remaining tract of native forest in Northland, and normally the road through the forest is busy with sightseers. However, the lack of overseas visitors was obvious as the road was deserted, and we pulled over a couple of times to photograph the roadside trees. We passed the Darby and Joan trees, standing sentinel either side of the road, before pulling into the carpark at the start of walking tracks to some of the biggest kauri in the forest.

Logging and fire have decimated the ancient kauri that once crowded the forest, and it’s sad that now, when the remaining trees are treasured and protected, they are threatened by kauri dieback. Tracks to the Four Sisters and Yakas Kauri are closed to protect the trees, but the walk to Te Matua Ngahere is still open. Known as the Father of the Forest, Te Matua Ngahere is New Zealand’s second largest tree, and is between 2500 and 3000 years old.

TANE MAHUTA, NEW ZEALAND’S LARGEST LIVING KAURI.

After cleaning our shoes at the hygiene station, we wandered along the forest track, admiring all the trees. There were not only kauri but rimu, tōtara and other podocarp species, with neinei, keikei, ferns and mosses below. Thick rata vines clambered up host tree trunks. Suddenly, after rounding a bend, there was Te Matua Ngahere in front of us, massive and dwarfing the nearby bush. It’s almost impossible to show the size of these trees in photographs, but Te Matua Ngahere’s girth is 16.41 metres, and its total height is 29.9 metres.

Further along the road we stopped to visit the Lord of the Forest, Tane Mahuta. The walk to this giant is only a few minutes (it was 20 minutes each way to Te Matua Ngahere) and there were a few visitors here admiring the tree. We were beginning to get stiff necks after craning to look up at so many amazing trees, so took a small detour to another viewing platform that gave us a better idea of the tree’s size (nearly 18 metres to the first branches, and 4.4 metres in diameter). Tane Mahuta is younger than Te Matua Ngahere, around 2000 years old.

Seaside and sandhills

Leaving the forest behind, SH12 passes through farmland before dropping down to the entrance of the harbour. Huge sand dunes dominate the landscape on the far shore, while sandy bays curve around the southern side. The twin seaside settlements of Ōmāpere and Ōpononi stretch along the shores of the harbour here, offering opportunities for fishing, kayaking, boating and swimming.

Ōpononi became famous in the mid-1950s when a bottlenose dolphin, dubbed Opo, began to play with swimmers at the beach. Unfortunately, Opo was found dead the day after she became protected by law, and was buried with full Māori rites beside the war memorial. There’s a bronze statue celebrating Opo, outside the Ōpononi Hotel.

SCULPTURE OF OPO THE DOLPHIN.

ŌPONONI WATERFRONT.

ONE OF ŌPONONI’S MURALS.

Hokianga heritage

Rāwene is along one of the many headlands that jut into the harbour. The little town is New Zealand’s third oldest European settlement and was first known as Herd’s Point, after land was purchased by Captain James Herd. Timber mills and shipyards were established and in 1884 the town was renamed Rāwene. Although it was once a bustling centre, it’s a quiet spot now. There are galleries and cafes, some on piles over the water, and lots of picturesque old buildings. 

We were delighted to discover that one of these, Clendon House, was open to the public. This old homestead was built in the 1860s for James Reddy Clendon and his family. Clendon was one of New Zealand’s earliest settlers and had witnessed the signing of the Treaty of Waitangi in 1840. He moved to Rāwene in 1861 as a magistrate and Commissioner of Customs, but his finances were poor. When he died in 1872 (aged 72) he left a young second wife, Jane Takatowai Cochrane, to bring up their eight children and pay off his debts. Clendon House stayed in the family until it was gifted to the Historic Places Trust in 1972.

What’s really fascinating about Clendon House is that all the furnishings and artefacts in the property belonged to the Clendon family: there’s James Clendon’s top hat and medicine chest, daughter Marion’s wedding gown, grandson Trevor’s military jacket. In the schoolroom the walls are papered with old newspapers (the earliest dated 1872), and maps and posters from the 19th and early 20th centuries. The family’s books, pictures, kitchen equipment and tableware are authentic. It’s like stepping back in time.

CLENDON HOUSE.

FAMILY MEMORABILIA, CLENDON HOUSE.

The North Hokianga

Time was in our thoughts too – we had a ferry to catch. To get to the northern side of the harbour, without taking a very long road journey, you have to go by boat. The Hokianga Vehicle Ferry is operated by Fullers and runs every hour. The crossing takes about 15 minutes and goes to the Narrows, near Kohukohu.

Kohukohu is another early European settlement. By 1830 the Hokianga Harbour was at the heart of New Zealand’s kauri industry. A timber mill was built in1879, and by 1906 there were 5000 men employed there. The end of the kauri saw Kohukohu decline as a settlement, especially after fires in 1922, 1954 and 1967 eventually destroyed the commercial heart of the town.

New Zealand’s oldest surviving stone bridge is in Kohukohu, built with sandstone used as ballast in ships coming from Australia. Visitors can discover the bridge and more than 30 other sites and buildings around the town. I’d picked up a Historic Village Walk brochure at the Hokianga i-Site in Ōpononi, and we checked out some of the pretty old houses near the waterfront and the surrounding streets, many built in the 1800s. Three pou nearby express the commitment of the local community to preserving the area’s cultural, political, historical and spiritual values.

Although it’s a small place, Kohukohu is home to many artists, writers and musicians. The town has several galleries, craft shops and cafes. The cafe beside the pub was freshly painted outside, Frida Kahlo style.

POU, KOHUKOHU.

Off the beaten track

Exploring west from Kohukohu, we followed a winding road with stunning views of the surrounding mountain ranges. Coming down into Panguru, we saw the unmistakable, iconic image of Dame Whina Cooper. Born in Hokianga in 1895, she’s probably best known for leading the land march from the far north to Parliament in 1975. There’s a memorial to her with information panels, outside the Waipuna Marae.

The tar seal ran out at Pangaru and we followed the gravelled West Coast Road to tiny Mitimiti. As we neared the coast we passed paddocks full of horses, and the only other vehicle we saw had two horses tied behind. Then, at the road’s end, we came to a beautiful, isolated west coast beach. Although there were tyre tracks in the sand, the only other people we saw were two fishermen. It’s one of the most remote beaches in New Zealand and well worth the journey. 

MEMORIAL TO DAME WHINA COOPER.

HOKIANGA HARBOUR ENTRANCE.

More Information

• There’s a holiday park at Rāwene and a motor camp at Kohukohu; also camping for NZMCA members in the area. There’s a campground by the visitor centre in the Waipoua Forest at 1 Waipoua River Road, but this was closed when we passed by.
• Hokianga i-SITE: 29 Hokianga Harbour Drive, Ōpononi.
• Clendon House hours: heritage.org.nz
• Waipoua Forest walks: doc.govt.nz