Cape Reinga and the Far North
NZDH Cape Reinga and the Far North chapter
Cape Reinga is a place of great spiritual significance to Maori. They believe it
is “the place of the leaping”, where the souls of the dead gather before they enter
the next world. According to Maori traditions the spirits of the departed leap from
an 800-year-old pohutukawa tree on the windswept cape to begin the voyage back to
their fi nal resting place in the ancestral homeland of Hawaiki.
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Day One
Cape Reinga and the Far North
The passage to the afterlife begins at Te-oneroa-o-tohe, known as Ninety Mile Beach.
Spirits travel the length of the beach carrying a regional token such as a fern
frond or manuka cutting. These offerings are placed on Te Arai Rock near the Bluff
and the journey continues inland at Twilight Beach towards Cape Reinga, and crosses
a stream. Those who choose not to drink from the stream return to the body, while
those who choose to quench their thirst continue on to the gnarled pohutukawa tree
and leap, descending through its tangled roots, to the sea bed. From here they travel
to Ohau Island, the largest of the Three Kings Islands, where they resurface and
bid Aotearoa (New Zealand) farewell before returning home. A clear day at Cape Reinga
offers powerful views. The Three Kings Islands, named by Abel Tasman in 1643, are
visible on the horizon while spectacular Cape Maria Van Diemen dominates the west.
To the east the long curve of Spirits Bay leads the eye to the dark smudge of the
North Cape. Directly ahead, the towering breakers of the Tasman Sea and the Pacific
Ocean collide in a maelstrom of churning waves and spume.
Several fine coastal walks depart from Cape Reinga. Cape Maria Van Diemen is reached
via the golden stretch of Te Werahi Beach, while to the east a track leads to Tapotupotu
Bay - a popular camping and picnicking spot - and on to Spirits Bay.
The site of the legendary money tree, where early settlers travelling north left
an offering to ward off evil spirits, is reached via a route further south.
A trip to the cape is not complete without travelling one-way via Ninety Mile Beach’s
sand highway, entering or exiting on Te Paki Stream. This magnificent beach arches
in an unbroken stretch of white sand for some 103 km (64 miles). The European name
is something of a misnomer, its length possibly having been originally recorded
in kilometres from Ahipara. Shells from the rare toheroa, a type of clam that grows
to 150 mm in length, are often found by beachcombers, while its smaller (and more
plentiful) cousin the tuatua is gathered by locals and minced to make delicious
tuatua fritters and nourishing soup. The beach is flanked by the Aupouri Forest,
and here wild horses roam. Some folks believe these fine-looking horses are the
progeny of thoroughbreds that escaped a ship wrecked off nearby Cape Maria Van Diemen.
On the east coast a white sand dune containing some of the world’s purest silica
marks the entrance to Parengarenga Harbour. Godwits gather here in early March and,
when the dune is almost black with their sheer numbers, they take off on their annual
migration to Siberia and Alaska.
The old gumdigging town of Houhora hosts a legendary annual hunt: locals compete
to catch one pig, one duck, one pheasant, one trevally and one snapper -all on the
same day! The Houhora Tavern housed inside an old woolshed is a good venue to meet
hardy northlanders, while the Subritsky Homestead, built in 1860 from local materials
and plastered with a powdered seashell paste, provides a fascinating glimpse into
the past.
At the Ancient Kauri Kingdom in Awanui, swamp kauri logs dating from 30,000 to 50,000
years ago are crafted into furniture and house-wares, while Paparore’s Gumdiggers
Park offers further insight into the world of gumdiggers with its authentic 100-year-old
gumfi eld and buried forest. Here the remains of two kauri forests, felled by unknown
catastrophic events between 42,000 and 150,000 years ago, are buried beneath gumdigger’s
holes.
The round trip to Cape Reinga can be completed on an independent day-trip from Paihia.
Alternatively a number of operators provide coach and 4wd tours ex-Paihia and as
rental cars are not permitted to be driven on Ninety Mile Beach we recommend taking
a tour. Most drive one-way via Ninety Mile Beach and return by road.
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