A Northern Stop.

It was a quiet Saturday morning in May when I happened upon a sunny valley at Oue, on State Highway 12 between Waimamaku and Omapere in the Southern Hokianga in the Far North of the North Island. I was on my way to Herekino when I spied this small marae on the side of the road.

It’s Whakamaharatanga Marae, home to the Ngati Hine, Patu Pinake, Kainga Mataa, Parewhero hapu of the Te Rarawa iwi. I sat on the grassy verge for some time, soaking up the sun and listening to sounds and voices coming from the cluster of little houses that snuggle up beside the marae. I was hoping someone would come out for a chat but in the end, I never saw a soul. That was so often the case on my travels around New Zealand in April and May. I guess I was always on the road too early for most people; but I always enjoyed my stops nonetheless – brief glimpses into little communities that in many cases, seemed forgotten by time. www.terarawa.co.nz

Back in the Hokianga

I was heading for the little village of Kohukohu to catch the ferry across to Rawene on the edge of the Hokianga Harbour in the Far North, when I saw the sign for Pikiparia Marae. I swung off the mangrove-bordered main road into Smith Deviation Road about a kilometre north of Kohukohu village. Pikiparia is home to the Te Ihutai, one of the Te Rarawa hapu; and the small cluster of marae buildings are tucked beneath low hills overlooking mangrove swamps. There was a small urupa (cemetery) on the hill above (to the left in the above photo). I didn’t linger because there was no one about for me to chat to and I had a ferry to catch to Rawene but I did regret that this was just another interesting marae that I had had to leave without discovering more about its interesting history.

A Northern Gateway

The Waharoa or Gateway to Te Uri o Hina Marae at Pukepoto, near Kaitaia that I featured here on the blog a few days ago. Either scroll down, or click on Te Uri o Hina in the label line below to read more about this marae in a beautiful Northland setting

One Sunny Day in the North

It was a gorgeous morning on May 1st the day I drew to a stop outside Te Uri o Hina Marae at Pukepoto, on the road from Kaitaia to Ahipara in the far north of the North Island. It’s one of twenty-three marae in the Rohe o Te Rarawa, which covers a large area from Hokianga Harbour inland to Mangamuka, up to Awanui and part way up Ninety Mile Beach. Te Rarawa is one of the six Muriwhenua tribes – Ngati Kuri, Ngai Takoto, Te Patu, Ngati Kahu, Te Aupouri and Te Rarawa - who populate the Far North.

What most intrigued me here was the carving above the door of the wharehui, Hohou Te Rongo, which you can see in part in one of the images here (complete with resting swallow) and in its entirety on the wharehui in the top set of images. There is one remarkably similar to it in Auckland Museum, dated from 1400. The museum carving was thought to be a door lintel but experts now believe it may have been a roof decoration. It was found at Lake Tangonge, near Kaitaia, in the heart of Te Rarawa territory.