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It is a beautiful place. If you come by road from the
south through Dargaville you travel through the ancient
kauri forest of Waipoua, a stunning reminder of the
depth and dignity of Northland’s native bush.
Hokianga was named after the celebrated Polynesian
navigator Kupe, the founding father of Maori lore and
leaver of legends and landscapes bearing names.
The harbour starts at Arai Te Uru, ancestral mother
of eleven sons, each a valley leading to the tidal stream,
a gathering of rivers merging as a sweep of currents
and flows of colour and form.
Over time, the Tangata Whenua, the ‘people of
the land’, shaped the surrounding hills with pa
sites and gardens creating a vast homeland reaching
into the mountainous heart of Northland.
It was a haven fiercely protected yet shared amongst
generations of Maori for centuries until the first Europeans
were welcomed for barter and trade in the early 1800’s.
It is a long time since fleets of waka stirred the
water; the sailing ships are well and truly gone; but
the Hokianga ferry still makes her graceful way across
the tides, showing off
the handsome harbour for all to see.
These days, along the waterfronts and hidden in the
hills, small towns and communities offer the traveller
insights into the quieter side of life.
It is a glimpse of something precious; a living past,
splendid in a wilderness of great beauty.
Lindsay Charman - www.outlines.co.nz
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