Home | Articles | Adventure | Regions | Accommodation | Publications | Contacts | Links

<< Previous  Next >>

4 Unwind At Tolaga Bay And Experience European History

Tolaga Bay is a small village with beaches suitable for swimming and fishing, but most impressive is the 660m pier that is used by anglers hoping to catch dinner. Believed to be the longest pier in the Southern Hemisphere, the wharf (a Category II historic place) has been falling apart since it was built in the late 1920s.The aggregate used in its construction consisted of beach gravel from Napier and beach sand from Tolaga. Salts in the resulting concrete attacked the reinforcing steel, which expanded and broke off. Building of the wharf began in late 1924 but it was not until November 22, 1929, that it opened and allowed large coastal vessels to berth. Locals have raised $150,000 over the last few years to restore the wharf to its former glory and the publicity generated from the ‘Save the Wharf’ campaign has helped make the wharf one of the most visited tourist attractions on the East Coast

Just a 5.5km walk from Tolaga Bay is Cook’s Cove, where Captain Cook stopped to re-supply and make repairs. The 2.5hr return walk begins at the southern end of Tolaga Bay and climbs through light bush and open grassland to the cliff tops that lead down into Cook’s Cove.

5 Sample the wine at New Zealand’s chardonnay capital

Gisborne is a busy port city sited on golden beaches in a wide sheltered bay. It was here that Captain Cook first landed in New Zealand in 1769. In the 300-odd-years since, the city has become New Zealand’s chardonnay capital. The city is also host to a number of charter fishing boats and with three rivers emptying into Poverty Bay, it’s also home to some of the best trout fishing in the country.

6 Tramp Lake Waikaremoana

One of New Zealand’s ‘Great Walks’, the 46km Lake Waikaremoana Track will take three days.

Set amid the 212,673ha Te Urewera National Park, the track follows the lake’s shore for most of its length and traverses a range of terrain with vegetation varying from the montane beech forest of the Panekire Bluffs to dense rainforest. Podocarp mixed broadleaf forest is dominant in many areas and bird life in the area is abundant.

Getting to Onepoto, where most people start the tramp, is along SH38 from Wairoa. The Onepoto end begins with a tough five-hour climb up and along Panekiri Bluff. If you plan on taking photos, this is the time to take them as the bluffs provide an excellent vantage point from which to view the lake. After spending the first night at Panekiri Hut, rise at dawn to watch the mist creep over the silent lake. The rest of the walk is virtually all downhill and level walking, with four other huts to choose from – each no more than three hours apart.

Water taxis and bus shuttles connect you with each end of the track, so you’ll need to arrange a pick-up time before you start the walk. Because it’s a Great Walk, booking is essential.

<< Previous  Next >>
 

Home | Articles | Adventure | Regions | Accommodation | Publications | Contacts | Links