Ideas for catchment walks…. and bikes continued…
Here’s some ideas for a short walk and a family bike ride to appreciate the rivers and environment in our wonderful catchment.
Biking from Peninsula Bridge to Pokororo Swing Bridge
By Dana Carter, Communications Support, MCC
In the last newsletter, we encouraged people to walk or bike the Peninsula Bridge to Pokororo Swing Bridge part of the Great Taste Trail, adding that the MCC team used the track to have their “walk and talk” meeting. Last weekend, my daughter and I biked that section. Despite it being a big soggy, it was a wonderful trip and I’d certainly recommend it to families to do with their children. It is a very manageable track that doesn’t take long and has lots of interesting points along the way.
Here’s a video so you can get a feel for the experience a bit better. It’s a lovely smooth track with lots of native plantings alongside it, the river right there, and bends and bridges and interesting sites. We really enjoyed going over the Pokororo Swing Bridge and seeing the very large, brown and fast flowing Motueka River.
The sign that has been installed by the bridge is really informative, telling of how the Motueka awa was an important food source for Māori who have lived there, that the awa and its plain were an extensive and bountiful mahinga kai, and that floods replenished and fertilised the catchment. The sign also talks of local purakau, linking this to pounamu still being found in the Motueka river today, along with pakohe (argillite), and to the river valley being a historical route for Māori through to the West Coast (Te Tai Poutini).
We saw a number of other walkers and cyclists along the track which was great to see. On the way back, we stopped for a homemade cinnamon wheel at the new MCC picnic table which was very comfortable!
We talked about over the summer coming with my other daughter and my husband to finish at the Peninsula Bridge beach for a picnic and swim. We also talked about going to check out the Baton cycle bridge too so see what’s that’s like and having a rest at Lublow’s Leap.
What a treasure in our catchment, and a great way to enjoy the river environment.
Riuwaka Resurgence
Walk time: 10 minutes each way
Grade: Easy
No dogs allowed.
Description
The north branch of the Riuwaka River pours out of the cave-riddled marble of Tākaka Hill in this beautiful area of Kahurangi National Park. Damp forest, clear cold water, tranquil deep pools, and moss-covered and water-worn marble rock create a fairyland quality to this walk.
A short path leads under a waharoa (carved entranceway) through the forest to where the river emerges. There is wheelchair access as far as Crystal Pool (5 min). There are two main spots to stop – the Crystal Pool where people often jump off into the water, which is a constant 8 degrees C all year. Then the upper pool right at the emergence of the Riuwaka River.
Te Puna o Riuwaka is of particular cultural significance to the people of Te Atiawa and Ngati Rārua, who recognise it as wahi tapu, a sacred place. It is recommended that people do not swim at the upper most pool as this spot is particularly sacred.
Getting there
The Riuwaka Resurgence is 11 km from Riwaka township and 16 km from Motueka.
From Riwaka, travel north-west on SH60 toward Tākaka.
Just before the climb over the Tākaka Hill, the road splits in two, with the signposted road to the Resurgence off to the left.
Travel 7 km along this gently winding, but easy, flat road, to the park beside the start of the track.