Walk 58, 6th Jan 2021
The Haigh Access Road entrance to the walk at was closed because of Kauri Dieback, so we began the walk at Stillwater. The tide was still going when we reached the beach and we had to remove our shoes and wade through the water – but the day was hot and our feet dried quickly.
We climbed through regenerating bush to a headland before dropping quite steeply to Karepiro Bay, to a restored historic cottage. Dacre Cottage was built in the 1850s by Henry Dacre, son of the retired sea captain Ranulf Dacre, who bought the Weiti block in 1848.
Unfortunately you can’t see inside the cottage because of vandals but there’s a photo of the interior in the link below.
The beach outside the cottage is a nesting site for endangered dotterills. Unfortunately the land next to Karepiro Bay is under development. We could hear the diggers from the cottage. I really fear for these birds, I know from experience from where I live at Snells Beach that the Auckland City council won’t stop development because of our shorebirds. I hope these new home owners don’t have cats. I love cats but not in fragile areas where endangered birds are nesting.
Walk: Auckland 3
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