Rails to Tales

After a chilly night, we ate breakfast and bid farewell to the historic Waipara Sleeper Cars.  We were off to explore the Waipara valley Greening Waipara wineries.  We reviewed our native plants and learned about the wine of the region.

Then it was back to Lincoln to catch the last few minutes of the Saturday Market and get some lunch.  After a break to unpack our bags, we had a friendly game of Cricket with the Huhu Grubs taking on the Hugh Wilson Warriors. Unfortunately, we will ever know the outcome of the game as an hour-and-a-half in, the game was called on account of weather.  A southerly change came up quickly and brought too much cold, rain, and wind, but the tales might be told of the mighty Huhu dominating the Warriors 42-33, or the Warriors coming back to crush the Huhu if it were not for the weather.  hmmmm...

Rest Up!  A few more adventures to come, m&m : )                                               

Kaikoura

Our first stop on our way to Kaikoura was Pegasus Town, one of the largest green developments in the Canterbury region with around 1300-1500 homes.  

The development is about six years old, but is likely 20 years from being completely finished.  The builders and homeowners are able to plant natives within individual lots at their own discretion, but all houses within the development must meet sustainable energy efficiency specifications.  Some more green features include swales for drainage and high-density housing  (small lots are placed close together with larger areas of shared open green space among houses).  

The development neighbors the Tuhaitara Coastal Park, in which the developers have made efforts to begin restoring native vegetation in some areas.

Our next stop was for teatime at Pukeko Junction.

       Several hours later, we arrived in Kaikoura!  (Kai meaning land, koura meaning crayfish- land of the crayfish!) We first stopped for lunch at a local beach and then headed to the New Zealand fur seal sanctuary and enjoyed a closer look of lounging, playing, and barking seals!  

      The fur seals were once abundant throughout the country and have been under full government protection from hunting since 1946.  The current population is roughly 100,000 seals, however, that is estimated to be only 10-20% of the original population prior to the increase in hunting in the mid 1700’s.

        After admiring the seals from the viewing platform, we took a short drive to a mystery hike.  

        We walked about 10-15 minutes before reaching the hidden jewel- the Ohau Stream Seal Pups.  

      A hidden waterfall sanctuary acts as a nursery for up to 200 seal pups every winter, giving these young, gregarious animals a chance to develop important social and motor skills.  They return down the stream every few days for their mother’s milk until they reach about a year in age and leave the safety of the waterfall for good.  Sadly, we couldn’t spend the entire day watching the little pups chase each other in their gorgeous home and made our way back down the path to the van.

     We had just enough time for a quick souvenir-shopping trip in Kaikoura before we left to attend the Powhiri, or formal greeting, at Takahanga Marae.   The house and grounds are sacred and after a brief overview of the Powhiri process outside the grounds, we entered the Marae and the welcome ceremony began.  The welcome was conducting almost entirely in Maori, and includes first a welcome to the ancestors of both the hosts and the Manuhiri (visitors), before welcoming the guests.  Each group sang a song; the Takahanga sang a traditional Maori song that was beautiful and filled the building with a rich harmony.  (we sang Stand by Me, by Ben E. King, and did our best J ).  After a few closing words, we did the Hongi, which is a Maori traditional greeting in which each person presses their nose and forehead against one another.

      Once the formal ceremony was over, we enjoyed tea and pastries before returning to the meetinghouse for a more in depth discussion and introduction to the Takahanga Marae.  This discussion including a history of the intricately carved decorative panels covering the walls and ceilings of the Marae that depict the history of the Iwi (tribe) and its connections to the region, Maori gods, and neighboring tribes.  Sadly, no photography is permitted inside the Marae and my words can’t do the ceremony or the building’s artwork justice- but it was a truly magical experience.  After the introduction and history of the Takahanga Marae, we went to dinner at Tiki Takeway, which has been voted the best fish and chips shop on the South Island, and the second best shop in all of New Zealand. We then returned to the Marae and got settled in for the night.

-Mimi

Penguins, Sea Kayaking, and Sheep – Oh My!

We tried something different this year – sea kayaking in Flea Bay or Pohatu (near Akaroa). Pohatu means the “place of stones” because the Maori had to remove so many stones from this area in order to till the ground and grow kumara – or sweet potato http://www.teara.govt.nz/en/1966/kumara . The pakeha (or foreigner) name was Flea Bay – because when the settlers picked up the abundant penguins in the area – they were covered in fleas and these proceeded to cover their arms.

The company that took the group started a unique conservation reserve called Tutakahikura Scenic Bush Reserve and they take folks kayaking through the marine reserve. Shireen and her husband were both farmers and bought the property and when they saw the penguins disappearing around the peninsula, they decided to do something about it and started protecting the penguins (see http://www.pohatu.co.nz/About+Us.html ). We were greeted by Benoit and and Kevin, our (French) guides through the land and marine reserve.

Hopping into two vans – we headed the road over to Flea Bay. From the top, we had quite a view of Akaroa Harbour, which is actually the crater of an extinct volcano over 6 million years ago.

View of Akaroa Harbour

Ben explains the origins of Akaroa Harbour

The class near the top

Along the way, we looked at a weta hotel and saw a Bank’s Peninsula tree weta Hemideina ricta. http://ecan.govt.nz/publications/General/banks-peninsula-tree-weta-brochure.pdf   These lovely wetas became really large – in the absence of mice and other small mammals – sort of taking over their niche. 

Checking out a weta hotel

This is a giant weta form the North Island

Banks Peninsula tree weta in the hotel that we saw today

We dropped down into the bay and begun our preparations. We were instantly surrounded by some shaggy brown sheep – much to the delight of the class. We got to feed them!

Over here!

More?

After safety instructions and some instructions about the sea kayaks, we entered the water on a beautiful sunny day. The water was a nice turquoise blue and we began to look for white-flippered penguins Eudyptula albosignata http://www.penguin.org.nz/white-flippered-penquin.html and Hector’s dolphins Cephalorhynchus hectori. http://www.doc.govt.nz/nature/native-animals/marine-mammals/dolphins/hectors-dolphin/  Both species are rare and endangered.

First up though were New Zealand fur seals Arctocephalus forsteri basking on the rocks. As we paddled by, they were basking on the rocks. They lazily lifted up their heads as we paddled by. 

Out into the bay!

Grouping together as we head towards the penguin colonies

Tupelo giving it her all

Then, Kevin pointed out our first white-flippered peguin along the rocks. Amazing! These penguins are unique only to Banks Peninsula and at one time numbered in the tens of thousands but were reduced quite dramatically due to predators (e.g., rats, cats, dogs, and stoats).  The penguins dig/find burrows on shore and this is where they are vulnerable to introduced predators. There is an extensive predator control program in the area. Even grazing sheep help because they prevent the exotic grasses form seeding out – and this reduces the amount of food for rats and mice. Currently, it is estimated that there are about one thousand penguins nesting in the area. 

Cute penguins huddled on the rocks

As we got out towards the ocean, we saw Hector’s dolphins. These little guys (they grow 1.5 m in length) are highly endangered, affected by fishing nets and boat propellers. The Banks Peninsula marine mammal sanctuary in Canterbury was established in 1988 primarily to reduce set-net deaths of Hector’s dolphins in the area.

We returned to shore, dragged up the kayaks, and cleaned the gear. We were introduced (to our surprise) a pair of penguins nesting right by the boat shed. 

Hello there!

Ok guys - cover us back up!

We had lunch and headed back over the hill. next stop was tea time and then back to Lincoln. We leave for Kaikoura tomorrow and will have limited internet connection. So more in a few days! 

Cheers Dr. H

One last look at Flea Bay

The Hunt for the Somewhat Elusive yet Always Significant "Green Dot"

We were off to a running start with tea time on the go. Hot chocolates, Chai lattes, and Flat Whites went all around.

Today we worked with Te Ara Kakariki Trust, this Trust focuses on the Canterbury Plains and has a goal to create a corridor from the mountains to the sea. The corridor will be formed by creating "Green dots" throughout the Plains, these "Green dots" are patches of native Flora that can serve as habitat for native birds, this will ideally allow the birds to reestablish throughout the Plains.

The first site we worked at was the Colgate Native Reserve which is a public property and also where we attacked the invasive Broom with a couple of spears and a lot of soul.

A few of our group got ambitious and went to nearby home to help weed, put down weed mats and transplant some Kahikatea who were in need of some TLC.

We were just getting started. 

A quick lunch and we were on our merry way to Eileen and Andy's "Green dot". Here we were tasked with the job of removing the native Sedge around the pond so it could later be transplanted and spread the native plant love.

Native Sedge (Pre-Student Removal)

The group hard at work

The Troublemakers

Because a eco-conscious student's work is never done we drove to our final restoration site. Here we prepared for the coming planting season in September and helped create a trail for volunteers and visitors to more easily walk through the future reserve.

Maris making strides at making steps

Here's a link to checkout more on Te Ara Kakariki!
 http://www.kakariki.org.nz

-Lauren 

Hinawai and Hugh Wilson – National Treasures

Today we are at Hinewai Reserve near Akaroa.  Managed by renown botanist, Hugh Wilson, this 3,000 acre reserve is a wonderful example of nature regenerating itself.  What was once gorse-infested farmland is now beach forest after just 20 or so years.  Much to the dismay of early critics, Hugh’s successful philosophy is that the gorse makes a good planting bed for natives and protects them from wind and predators with its spiny bark.  The natives grow up through the gorse and then shade it out and kill it.

Hugh draws and writes everything by hand.  Here is an overview of the reserve neatly drawn out by him.

What was an old wood shed on the property is now a Visitor's Center/Lodge where we will stay the night.

A ground weta welcomed Mimi to the Lodge : )

The view from the top of our hike down to Long Bay beach.  Note the yellow-flowering gorse in the photo, and the green beech forest on the hillside on the right (where the hike went through down to the beach).  Contrast with the patch of mowed-by-sheep farmland down by the beach.

With the big 600 year old Totara

Some of Hugh's illustrations of birds in Hinewai

Hugh, getting ready to go to work at the top of the hill where he is helping to manage additional property adding to the Hinewai Reserve area through another trust.  Hugh HATES cars and says the secret to staying young and healthy is to have nothing to do with them.  After I took this picture, he added five large wood stakes to the back of his bike before heading off up the hill.

We hiked from the top of Hinewai where we will stay tonight at the Visitor’s Center/Lodge (very rustic old wood shed, but comfy) down to Long Bay beach. Along the way we saw many native plants and birds.  At the bottom we got to see rare, native kakariki parrots that Hugh’s helper, Paul, has a special license to keep as pets, and hunted for Paua shell at Long Bay beach.  We also got to see a lot of sheep up close and personal as the farmer that lives at the edge of the beach just outside of the reserve was running sheep into another paddock where we were hiking - very exciting. 

Hard to imagine this hillside of natives bare farmland just 20 years ago

Native Kakariki

LOTS of sheep

Grace outstanding in a field with the sheep

Long Bay beach on a cool grey winter day

Amber found not only paua but also a sponge

Hanging out at Long Bay beach

In the late afternoon and back up at the Lodge, we played games, Hugh told us the history of Hinewai, and we enjoyed a yummy meal together.

Hugh tells us the story of Hinewai

Thank you Hugh!  We love Hinewai and you!

The gang and Mark will spend the night at the Visitor Center/Lodge at Hinewai.  They have 11 bunks there and a log burner to keep them (mostly) warm.  Stay Warm And Sweet Dreams Everyone, Meryl : )