Photos

Summertime…

Welcome to MANGAWHAI "The Place of Te Whai , where the streams meet"

Yesterday my husband and I drove 106 kms north to Mangawhai to visit our son and daughter-in-law who have rented a “bach” for a few weeks holiday up here. The day was beautiful, and here is the beach that is normally quite a surfies’ dream beach, only there’s no surf today. I hope to post some of the photos of this day over the next week.

Mangawhai is a quiet little beach resort, nestled between the coast and beautiful rolling farmland, about an hour and a half north of Auckland, and just under an hour south of Whangarei on the Eastern side of Northland.

Mangawhai has undergone dramatic changes throughout its history:
The Ngati-Whatua Maori tribe , who were the original settlers of Mangawhai, were annihilated in a battle with Hongi Hika and the Ngapuhi tribe from the north in 1825 . This was the first major Maori tribal battle decided through the use of muskets.

It is only in very recent years that a few Maori have moved back into the area after the Tapu was lifted as a consequence of that famous battle. There is today a small monument marking the area on the Mangawhai Kaiwaka road.

European settlement began around 1838 with the harbour being used as a timber port. Mangawhai was a thriving place of Kauri gum diggers and Kauri cutters.

The square-rigged schooner R-Tucker-Thompson was built and launched in Mangawhai in 1987. From there sheep, cattle, and dairy farming took hold, and in more recent years horticulture has become a part of the farming scene. One of the largest avocado orchards in the country is situated in Mangawhai.

New Zealand is one of the first countries to meet 2006, so Happy New Year to you all, and see you next year . . .