Te Koutu Lake, or ‘Lake Te Koo Utu” is located in the town of Cambridge. The name of the lake loosely translates as ‘to scoop up water.’ The trees and gardens were established in the 1880s. There are two tracks, the upper track leads to a rotunda, recreation area and conservatory while the lower track goes around the lake.
The lake was formed indirectly from the last major eruption of Lake Taupo around 1800 years ago, when tonnes of debris swept down the Waikato River and blocked off many side streams. Here, water backed up behind the debris dam and formed this small lake.
In the 1880s the Cambridge Domain Board took responsibility for the area. Gradually they converted the gorse and manuka covered land into a park filled with chestnuts, elms and gum trees. Carp and catfish were let loose in the lake and white swans were released too but failed to establish.
It’s a good place to break the journey between Auckland and Rotorua. The best times to visit would be May when the trees are turning red and golden, our walk on April 9th was a bit early for that. The other time is summer when the water lilies are out.
These are two beautiful parks in New Plymouth connected to one another. Brooklands park has a rich history. There are historic trees, a 2000 year old Puriri and a very old Ginko tree.
There’s a colonial hospital building from the 1840s, a chimney from a homestead burned down in the Taranaki Land Wars of the 1860s, a zoo, and the Brooklands bowl where people go for outdoor concerts.
Pukekura park has the tearooms, fountains, waterfall and three picturesque lakes framed by trees, gardens and red bridges.
The Gables was a hospital built by George Grey in 1840s. He hoped Maori would use the facility.Brooklands chimney from Brooklands homestead, burned down in the Land wars of 1860s
Walk: Taranaki 7
Hospitals
After the signing of the Treaty of Waitangi, Māori leaders petitioned government for hospitals. Funding for Māori hospitals was allocated in 1846 and the first hospitals were commissioned. The first public hospital in New Zealand opened in Wellington in 1847. Māori use of hospitals was evident from the outset.
The Gables (above) is the sole survivor of four public hospitals built in the period.
Historyof the land
New Plymouth and Taranaki have a history of conflict. While we hear all about Te Whiti and Parihaka, and the nonviolent protest against land confiscation and colonial domination in the 1860s and 1880s, we never about the massacre at Tataraimaka. Tataraimaka was taken possession of in the early 1860s by right of conquest from the Europeans, who were all driven off.
I think Parihaka is great, it ended non violently and without injury except for a foot which was accidentally stood on. I talked about it with a Ngati Awa man a couple of years ago. He wasn’t aware of the European refugees from Taranaki who’d been driven off their farms and wound up in Nelson. We need history from both sides.
The following was taken from a letter by the Rev. Samuel Ironside and reprinted in the Taranaki Herald 27 June 1863;
In 1838 the whole district in question, embracing 100 miles of coastland, was depopulated. There were not more than twenty to thirty souls left there. The Waikato tribes and those further north, had overrun the place ; hundreds of the people had been killed and eaten, hundreds more had been carried into slavery by their victors, hundreds more had been driven into exile towards Cook’s Strait and Queen Charlotte’s Sound. The above twenty or thirty were all that were left in occupation.
The chiefs all signed the deed of sale. Among the parties to the sale was Wiremu Kingi who turned violent and rebellious. He was then called E Witi. They were all too glad to sell the land, and get payment for it, as they dare not return to occupy it for fear of Waikato.
Waikato
When the Waikatos heard of the sale of land which they claimed by right of conquest, they threatened vengeance against the remnant of Taranakis, and a war party of several hundreds started off to exterminate them. The missionaries including Ironside succeeded in preventing bloodshed; but the Waikato chiefs then and there asserted and maintained their rights of ownership of the conquered territory. His Excellency Captain Hobson, then Governor, in satisfaction of their claim, gave Potatau (afterwards Potatau I) £400.
So abundant payment had been made for the disputed lands — first, by the New Zealand Company to the original owners, and afterwards by the New Zealand Company to the Waikato chiefs.
In the years 1843-44, Mr Spain, then Queen’s Commissioner, after careful and patient investigation, determined that the district of Taranaki had been fairly purchased and accordingly awarded to the province the whole block extending north and south of the town, including both Waitara and Tataraimaka.
New Plymouth
The settlers came, and New Plymouth was built.
But the natives, exiled by war, returned home by degrees, now that Europeans were there as a protection; and the Waikato chiefs allowed many of their Taranaki slaves to return. These persons began to clamour and dispute, a thing they dared not before. Ample reserves, suitably situated, had been made for the native residents but the Taranaki natives were dissatisfied, and threatened to drive all the settlers from their holdings.
In the early 1840s Captain FitzRoy, then Governor, partly in pursuance of the mischievous policy of puffing off the evil day, and partly to embarrass the New Zealand Company, that was not in high favour at home, arbitrarily set aside the award of the Queen’s Commissioner, gave back the land to the natives, and told every settler in the Waitara and neighbourhood that they remained there at their own peril — he could not and would not protect them from the natives.
The settlers were driven off their farms.
Captain FitzRoy was sacked and George Grey inherited the mess. He was instructed to take steps at once, by further payments, to acquire these lands for the province. Some of these lands were so acquired, by a further purchase; among them was Tataraimaka, where a massacre of officers and men of the 57th would later take place.
The pressure on the Maori to sell land
But the violent natives had found out their power, and ably have they used it. A large proportion of the natives were peaceable and friendly, and were anxious to sell some of their lands, in order to have European neighbours, and a profitable market close to their doors, for their pigs, potatoes, and corn. These have been overawed, and, to use an expressive, but appropriate term, bullied by the rebels, and thus prevented from exercising their rights of ownership.
As the Pākehā population of New Zealand increased during the 1850s, Māori faced growing pressure to sell their land.
In 1852 a league was formed by these overbearing natives, binding each other not to sell lands to the Government, and threatening death to any chief who should dare to do so. The peaceable natives refused to enter into this league, and have from time to time urged the Government to purchase, saying that the land was the fruitful source of quarrel among themselves, and for peace sake they wished to alienate. The league, however, have ever been strong enough to prevent Government from entertaining their proposals.
War
War broke out between the league and those who wanted to sell. Sometimes the farms of the settlers were made the battleground of the parties. The unoffending settlers were in continual anxiety and fear, and frequently suffered loss.
In 1859 Governor Gore Browne got involved. He had a large meeting of natives in the town of New Plymouth; declared that as British Governor he would protect all of them, in their rights; that he had no wish to purchase any of their lands about which they were quarrelling; that he would not buy any lands, the title of which was disputed; but that if any of them were anxious to sell and could prove their title, they certainly should sell; he would protect them.
Wiremu Kingi (E Witi) of the league blocked the sales. He said ‘that no Maori owned land, the land was owned by all the people to be used communally and individually and not to be possessed. Under Maori custom no land could be sold without the consent of all the people. As leader he must make a decision in accordance with the people’s demands.
The Governor had paid £100 as part purchase money, and surveyors were sent to lay the block out. The land leaguers resisted the survey, and appealed to the native king, Potatau, who espoused their cause.
By 1863 the former productive farms had became overrun with Scotch thistle and other noxious weeds because the natives were not being able to cultivate one-tenth of the land.
Tataraimaka
The Tataraimaka pā was left empty after the pā was sacked by a party of northern Māori during the Musket Wars, shortly before 1820. The Tataraimaka Block of land was purchased from Māori in 1847, and was the location where 200 men of the 65th Regiment were stationed during the First Taranaki War, from April to June 1860.
Martial law was declared and the settlement of Tataraimaka, twelve miles south of the town, was taken possession of by the natives, by right of conquest from the Europeans, who had all been driven off. Many settlers were murdered, some killed in war, a large number died through disease and exposure, and the district was held since 1860 by the rebel tribes.
Tataraimaka was returned to government control in early 1865.
Source: Appendix 1, The War in New Zealand, page 282 to 286.
Confiscating land to pay for the war in the 1860s was a really bad idea, but in 1878 an offer was made to return the confiscated land to Waikato Maori. The offer was refused.
This track leads to a beautiful little waterfall in urban Mount Albert. Unfortunately the path is still damaged from the double-whammy of Cyclones Hale in January 2023 and Gabriel in February 2023. We walked with friends who knew the place. Even so there was a tricky creek crossing near a washed-out bridge.
Our walk started at Phyllis Reserve and ended at Unitec.
Disappointingly some of the signs are vandalized making it difficult to learn about this hidden treasure. What I can make out from the sign about the trees is this; they’re a mix of native and exotic. The older, exotic trees are treated as part of the heritage of the creek and are only removed when they die or become a danger to the public.
The oak trees date from the period of farming on the land above the bank and being deciduous allow sunshine through the winter months.
The land on the eastern side of the creek belonged to the Auckland Lunatic Asylum. In 1973, 10.4 hectares of the Asylum farm was designated as the site for a technical institute. In 1993 the old Asylum building was sold to Carrington Polytechnic which became Unitec. The Mason Clinic, a mental health facility, is further down the creek.
The reserve is a habitat for our native copper skinks which are endemic to the North Island.
Before the start of the Waterview Connection, 204 native copper skinks were relocated from seven sites along the path of the roadworks. Monitoring conducted since the relocation has shown a healthy population of copper skinks surviving here.
Mahi Whenua Sanctuary Gardens
Just above the reserve is a thriving community garden. The site is home to more than 400 species of plants. It has been gardened for well over 100 years by Maori, Carrington Mental Hospital and Unitec staff and students.
In 2018 the community garden was saved and integrated as a valuable community green space into the Wairaka Precinct development.
Walk: Auckland 27
Wairaka Spring
Unitec has a spring which is a waahi tapu, a historic site associated with Wairaka of the Mataatua canoe dated all the way back to 950 AD. Which is interesting given that most signs showing the arrival of Polynesians to NZ earlier than 1350 AD have disappeared.
This has everything – history, a river walk and waterfalls. Also a cafe in the historic beekeepers house which is right next door to the oldest house in NZ, the Kemp House. The Kemp house was built in 1822 and the Stone Store was built in 1835. There’s a heritage orchard and cottage garden flowerbeds which the cafe uses. The garden has been in operation for over 200 years.
The Mission (Kemp House) was deliberately established next to Kororipo pa (see below), the home of Hongi Hika. Without his patronage and protection, the mission had little chance of survival. No doubt the people in the pa kept a good eye on the coming and goings of the Pakeha living there and reported back to Hongi.
The heritage park is enchanting, even down to the friendly goose who greeted me waggling his tail feathers. The river walk has a historic power station, rock formations and two waterfalls.
Wharepuke Falls, Kerikeri river walkRainbow Falls, Kerikeri river walkThe Honey House Cafe next to Kemp House, KerikeriRock formation, Kerikeri River WalkThe power station began operation in 1930.
Kerikeri Basin, the old Beekeepers House with Kemp House next door
This site was the pa of Hongi Hika, the paramount chief of the north. From here they could keep an eye on everyone, including the Pakeha at the mission across the inlet.
Walking around Kororipo Pa in the quiet of the Kerikeri Basin, I imagined what it was like in the past. In the early 19th century the Ngapuhi tribe controlled the Bay of Islands, the first point of contact for most Europeans visiting New Zealand.
Looking at the historic Mission (Kemp House) and Stone Store across the inlet, New Zealand’s oldest buildings, I wondered about the two cultures that had existed side by side. How did they do it?
Hamilton Gardens is a public garden which, for now, is free to enter. The 54-hectare park is based on the banks of the Waikato River. There are 18 themed gardensto wander through.
It’s definitely worth a return visit but car parking could be a problem, the car park was full when we arrived.
Te Parapara is New Zealand’s first traditional Maori garden. It showcases traditional practices, materials and ceremonies relating to food production and storage, drawn from the knowledge of local Maori which has been passed down the generations.
Zealandia is an urban sanctuary in the Karori suburb of Wellington, our capital. The bush surrounds a former reservoir. The reserve is home to our rarest birds and Tuatara, a native reptile. Zealandia has been so successful that Kaka, one of our native parrot species, has established itself outside of the pest proof fence. They stopped tagging them when the numbers grew to over 1000.
You can see Tuatara in their natural habitat. A guide gave us a talk on them as we sat and had our lunch. They’re most commonly found at the research area behind the fences.
The entry fee is well worth it. There’s also a cafe.
You can get to the sanctuary from the top of the Cable Car, there’s a free electric shuttle van which travels back and forth.
While we were waiting for the shuttle bus we took a walk in the Botanic Gardens.
Tuatara
Walk #109 Wellington Botanic Gardens, 14th November 2023
This walk started at the top of the cable car. We only had time to have a quick look at the Discovery Garden and Treehouse before heading back up the hill for the bus to Zealandia.
Kaikohe is named after Kohekohe trees, when Ngapuhi survivors at Pakinga Pa subsisted on Kohekohe berries after a raid by a Ngati Whatua war party.
At the back of the park there’s a memorial to Hone Heke Ngapua, a great-grand nephew of Hone Heke, the warrior who chopped down the flagpole at Russell. Ngapua backed the Kotahitanga movement which aimed at Maori separatism.
The lament of Hone Heke Pakaia, the warrior. When he sat disallusioned on Kaikohe Hill mourning his friends killed in the battle of Ruapekapeka, “the Bat’s Nest,” in Jan 1846.
The last walk for 2019, and the most interesting yet. There’s so much to see.
Local residents banded together and formed a beautiful garden park interspered with sculpture, some of which can be “played” on. What they’ve created out of a disused quarry is amazing.
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History: In 1864 the land was confiscated from the Maori in the land wars, and in 1911 it was turned into a quarry for the next 60+ years.
We met legendary local volunteer Jo Dawkins at work in the succulent garden. She explained that after hearing the council might reopen the quarry, the community decided they didn’t want the noise and heavy traffic and so they repurposed the land into a park and sculpture garden.
In 1993 the Te Puna Quarry Park Society was formed and in 2000 the park was officially opened.
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