Heartland Hokianga

Local iwi are telling their own stories in their own way and taking charge of the tourism ventures that are revitalizing this part of Northland.

Words by Amokura Panoho  Photographs by Serena Stevenson

WHEN LOCAL GUIDE Tawhiri Riwai tells visitors to the Hokianga their participation is appreciated, he really means it. His silhouette with luminous volumes of dark hair appears almost ethereal when seen against the ancient Waipoua forest that surrounds the majestic 1400-year-old kauri, Tane Mahuta. With this environment as his backdrop, Riwai daily introduces tourists to a spiritual awakening. Starting each Footprints Waipoua tour with a karakia (prayer), he shows his guests the different elements of the forest most would never have noticed. And when he sings a waiata amidst the trees, the words “I am a seed born of the greatest” resonate in the heart and his listeners can quite easily be reduced to tears.

More than 250,000 visitors come to the forest each year and the newly established Maori Tourism Venture has the only concession available from the Department of Conservation to provide guided tours. “If anyone is going to tell our stories, it should be us,” proclaims Tawhiri as he proudly demonstrates his knowledge of the eco-system and the traditional relationship to the ngahere (forest) his Hokianga people have retained throughout the centuries. “‘Ahakoa he iti he pounamu, despite being small you are of great value.’ These are the words of my ancestors and it was with those beliefs they treated the forest as a living being with its own spirituality.”

During the trek through the forest, Tawhiri shares his knowledge as if he is weaving a basket, making each little tale part of a greater story. The philosophy of Footprints Waipoua is to create an experience that visitors will talk about. “We want manuhiri (visitors) to our forest to get a better understanding of how important it is to appreciate the little things, without which there would be no big things. Tane Mahuta has a whole eco-system living on and around his frame, but if you haven’t seen a kauri seedling at three years, then you are not likely to appreciate his timelessness, only his size.”

This intimate relationship with their environment is shared by the guides at tourism partner Hokianga Crossings. “The forest wakes up at night,” says Bill Matiu, one of the guides who takes twilight tours to visit Tane Mahuta and other ancient trees within Waipoua Forest. Standing at the bow of the Hokianga Crossings’ specially built charter boat, he hints at what the tourist would miss if undertaking only the day trip to the forest. At that moment he is acting in another guiding capacity, helping passengers from the Opononi wharf on to the boat for their cruise around the Hokianga Harbour.

Print

12next ›last »