Cape Reinga

Cape Reinga at the northern tip of New Zealand is the legendary departure point where the earthly spirit begins the journey back to Hawaiki.

Maori mythology tells us that Hawaiki is where the God Maui, who fished the North Island out the sea, lived. To get to Cape Reinga you need to travel along the tail of Maui’s fish. You can do this by road or along 90 Mile Beach. As the tide conditions must be right for beach travel, on a day trip it is usual to go one way on the beach and the other by road.

The safe driving time is from two and one half hours after high tide to two and one half hours before high tide. There are driver’s advice boards at the beach entrances at Waipapakauri and Te Paki. If you have a rental vehicle, you will probably find that your insurance does not cover beach travel.

Even if you have your own vehicle, you may prefer to take a bus. A number of operators run daily coach tours to the Cape. These tours start from Paihia, Kaikohe or Kaitaia. Your day will be 3 hours longer and more expensive if you start from Paihia as it takes an hour and a half to travel from Paihia to Kaitaia.

A Pahia based trip takes 11 hours. Beach travel obviously has its hazards. Vehicles should stay on the wet sand between low and high water marks and look out for runoff channels which appear on the beach after rain. Plankton build-up can occur to make the beach slippery. Quicksand is a hazard at the Te Paki stream; the northern exit or entry point to the beach. It is unwise to stop while travelling along this stream. 90 Mile Beach 90 Mile Beach is actually nearer 90 kilometres in length. The distance travelled on the beach on the Cape Reinga trip is about 60 kilometres. It is an official highway, regularly used by some locals as well as the daily tour buses.

The sand dunes to the east as you travel down the beach have been stabilised by planting Marram grass. Lupins were grown to add nitrogen and then pine trees were planted. There is now a major plantation, the Aupouri Forest, behind the dunes.

On the beach, beneath the sand there are three types of molluscs (shellfish), once a diet staple for local Maori. Tuatua and pipi are relatively plentiful and at the low tide, people arrive with buckets to gather them. The third type of shellfish, the king-size toheroa is no longer plentiful. In the seventies gathering them was totally banned. Occasionally however an open season of two weeks is declared. You must use your hands to burrow for shellfish. Trowels or other digging implements are not allowed.

Cape Reinga by Jayne Maria Sprott

In February every year, a surfcasting competition called ‘The Snapper Classic ‘ lasting five days, is held on the beach. The heaviest snapper each day nets the angler $3000 while the heaviest overall wins $50,000. In addition, there are spot prizes of vehicles and overseas travel.

Another annual event is the Te Houtaewa Challenge. Contestants run the length of 90 Mile Beach (Ultra Marathon). There is also a half Marathon and a walking Marathon.

In 1931, the Auckland Automobile Racing Association purchased 10 acres of foreshore land and built a workshop and garage to accommodate Wizard Smith’s car “The Enterprise”. Smith attempted to break several land speed records on 90 mile beach in 1932. After his departure, the garage housed Kingsford Smith’s aeroplane. A pioneering aviator, Kingsford Smith used the beach as his takeoff point to fly the first airmail service to and from Australia.

Alongside the Te Paki stream, there are giant sand dunes. Tour coaches stop here and provide toboggans so their passengers can slide down.

From the Cape car park you can visit the lighthouse (1941) and view the Cape itself. There is also a walk from there down to Te Werahi Beach Two and half kilometres south of Cape Reinga a turn-off to the east takes you on a gravel road to a beautiful beach called Tapotupotu Bay. This is a good place to stop for lunch or even longer if you would like to camp. Coach tours provide food and drinks as part of the trip fare. On the return journey, you may want to stop at the Wagener Museum at Houhora. You may also find a visit to the Ancient Kauri Kingdom rewarding. Here you can see furniture and artefacts manufactured from locally recovered swamp kauri, 30,000 to 50,000 years old.

Image Credits: Derek Smith and Maclean Barker Photographers, NZPlaces and Benjamin Allcock