By Moana Smith-Dunlop, Community Relations Ranger, Whakatane
Te Urewera, centre of the universe, now has the most beautiful hut in the universe too, thanks to the DOC-Dulux partnership.
Makomako hut after a DOC/Dulux makeover
Not to be outdone by our Tauranga cohorts, our DOC/Dulux ‘paint a hut’ party also had a film crew — DOC’s talented Community Outreach Coordinator from Otago, Claudia Babirat. Makomako Hut was sooo stunning she just had to come and enjoy the atmosphere and film the astonishing efficiency of our Visitor Assets and Community Relations teams!
Our team was made up of Jade Connelly (Visitor Assets power ranger and team leader), three volunteers (Gavin Muir, Waitangi Tait and Hikurangi Rurehe), and DOCies Moana Smith-Dunlop (Community Relations Ranger) and Earl Rewi (Programme Manager Visitor and Historic Assets).
Left: Hiks and Wai painting the deck. Right: Gavin and Wai starting the inside.
Makomako Hut lives below Maungapohatu in the Te Urewera National Park, and along the famous six foot track. While we were there, there was obvious sign of deer in the area, and the hut clearing looked almost good enough to be a golfing green. With a forecast of three days of sun we launched into the painting with a ferocity that stunned our intrepid film maker.
Roof and front door: Porari
Outside walls: Tinkertown
Deck, windows and chimney: a beautiful shade of Masterton
By the end of day one, all our supplies and people had arrived at the hut and we’d completed the outside preparation and the first coat on the outside walls and roof. With the sun setting it was time to down tools, light the fire and get dinner going.
Day two saw the outside walls and roof finished, the first swathes of Masterton on the deck, the windows and chimney done, and the start and finish of the inside. By the end of day two all we had to do was a few touch ups on the outside.
Day three dawned clear, cold and full of promise that the end was near. So with that in mind, eating all the leftover food from the previous night’s dinner became our first task, as did teaching our southern friend the finer points of the northern lingo ‘chuurrr’. That done, we finished off the painting, cleaned up, packed up, kicked back and waited for the chopper to arrive to take us home.
Left: Moana, Jade, Gavin, Claudia, Waitangi, Hikurangi and Earl at the conclusion of the painting. Right: Makomako Hut sign.
A mammoth effort by the team! Go team Te Urewera! We could not have got through all the work without the efforts of our hard working vollies.
By Claudia Babirat, Community Outreach Coordinator, Otago
I have just been reminded of how proud I am to work for DOC—and in conservation.
That’s because I had the unique opportunity to travel the length of the country to film a variety of community conservation projects. My travels took me to almost every region in New Zealand.
Setting up shots in the sunny Bay of Islands
Not only was I inspired by the conservation projects I filmed, but I also met an incredibly diverse bunch of amazing New Zealanders—DOC staff, business people, young ambassadors, tireless volunteers, community leaders, philanthropists, conservation-minded farmers and forestry workers, and a variety of passionate organisational partners.
These people shared their working life with me, and some also welcomed me into their homes—people like Gareth and Jo Morgan (thanks for the scooter ride, Jo), Guy Trainor from Kaiteriteri MTB park who tested my skills on the Corkscrew, the lovely Kate Akers of Landcare Trust (you are wunderbar), the tireless Fleur Corbett and Helen Ough Dealy from DOC in the Bay of Islands, and my good friend Ruth Barton in Auckland.
The video features interviews with a range of different groups and individuals, like farmer Dan Steele
The video showcases DOC’s vision for the future—more people involved in community-owned conservation projects.
This is a run-down of the inspirational projects I filmed:
Dulux has just announced a new three-year partnership with DOC—you may have seen the TV advert. In short, Dulux is supplying DOC with paint to spruce up huts and other structures around the country. I interviewed Murray Gray, Dulux’s trade store General Manager. He’s a down-to-earth guy—loves the backcountry and hunting, and helped paint Tarn Ridge Hut that features in the ad.
Just after lunch I filmed Wayne O’Donnell of Greater Wellington Regional Council. Wayne is part of Nature Central, a partnership between three regional councils and DOC, who aim to work together to make better use of resources, and work on joint projects including education and training initiatives.
16-year-old Natasha Bishop is the talented young woman behind the simple yet very effective animated video ‘Arboraceous’, which won the Outlook for Someday 2012 competition.
Devon McLean (Chairperson of Project Crimson, and now Manager of Project Janszoon), and Wildlife Manager Pete Gaze were my hosts at Anchorage in Abel Tasman Park. Conservation in the park has been boosted by a $25 million project (over 30 years) launched by a Kiwi family who wish to remain anonymous (‘Janszoon’ was Abel Tasman’s middle name—not the name of the family).
On Sunday morning I filmed a working bee organized by Kaiteriteri MTB park Project Leader Guy Trainor. The group has built over 20 km of tracks in the back of popular holiday town Kaiteriteri, all through volunteer labour. Guy’s passion for the project is infectious.
Kaimai Catchment Forum members on the summit of Mt Te Aroha after a day of filming
In Tauranga I filmed a field trip organised by the formidable Kate Akers of NZ Landcare Trust. The bus trip consisted of a diverse group of people that make up the Kaimai Catchment Forum (including regional and district council members, Federated Farmers and kiwi fruit orchardists, iwi, conservation trust leaders, Forest and Bird reps, DOC and others). The day was all about sharing with others in situabout how each stakeholder aims to help protect and restore the Kaimai Catchment.
Project Island Song aims to strengthen the dawn chorus in the Bay of Islands, through rigorous restoration and predator control. At the heart of this project is a tremendous bunch of people. I spent a morning filming at Te Rawhiti marae, at the nearby wetlands with John Booth, and a whole day on Urupukapuka Island with volunteers. I was immensely inspired by DOC Community Relations Ranger Fleur Corbett, who spends a lot of her spare time (i.e. evenings and weekends) working on the project.
Claudia filming the Higginson whānau, who volunteer with Project Island Song
In the morning I joined a group of young Aucklanders and international tourists who were busy tending to young plants at the Mt Eden native plant nursery. Through their partnership with Auckland Regional Council, Conservation Volunteers NZ provides opportunities for urbanites and visitors to help look after regional parks, and have fun with like-minded people at the same time.
In the afternoon I met 15-year-old Nadine Tupp of Warkworth. Nadine recently took part in a MAD Marine course, which inspired her to take action. She now writes a blog that highlights some of the threats faced by our beautiful seas, and actions that everyday people can take to minimise these. Thanks to Helen Rowlands and Trish Irvine who made this all come together on very short notice.
Conservation Volunteers NZ wants everyone to get involved!
The above stories will sit alongside others that I’ve already filmed in Otago and Southland—including Orokonui Ecosanctuary, Mitre 10 Takahe Rescue, and the St Clair prion fence in Dunedin.
Thanks so much to the DOC Community Outreach Coordinator network who made me aware of all these amazing projects in the first place—and Siobhan File my partner in crime.
Watch the ‘Conservation partnerships in action’ video:
Margaret Metcalfe from the Manawatu Rangitikei Area Office writes about a novel approach being taken to paint a new backcountry toilet in the Ruahine ranges.
It is not often you would look forward to the experience of using a backcountry toilet. However, an interesting approach to finishing new visitor facilities in the Western Ruahine Forest Park will have people wanting to make the trip especially to check them out.
Painting the loo
Inspired by seeing public toilets painted with murals, Department of Conservation (DOC) Visitor Assets Manager Andrew Mercer thought he could bring a similar concept to the new outbuildings at Rangiwahia Hut. “I wanted the new toilet and woodshed to complement the landscape and to tell a conservation story,” he said, “and at the same time add another element to the visitor experience, something that might encourage people come up especially to see”. This is a very special location for its breathtaking views on to the Ruahine range and active bird life. And the murals reinforce these aspects.
Saying hello
A conversation with Mangaweka artist Julie Oliver sparked the project off. She jumped at the opportunity, saying it was just the challenge she needed to give herself a break from her usual style of painting fine detail in oils. It wasn’t until she was actually on site that she could finalise her ideas. The results are simply incredible! Seeing buildings emerge out of the natural landscape, complementing the backdrop of the ranges and sky, and featuring New Zealand native birds typical of the location. “It was so gratifying to be up there immersed in the landscape, listening to the birds and painting it all at the same time”.
Ms Oliver took four days to complete the two buildings with a lot of help from her partner Tim. Using six basic colours from Dulux “Colours of New Zealand’ range she completed it all with brush and sponge to blend the colours. Some of the challenges included painting lines onto corrugated iron, keeping on her feet with uneven ground around the buildings and all the variables associated with weather conditions typical of a changeable mountain environment such as wind, rain, sun, ice and fog.
Dulux supplied the paint at no cost
Dulux supplied the paint at no cost as part of a three year “Protecting Our Places” partnership with DOC that will see recreation and historic assets all around the country painted and, as in this case, upgraded for public’s enjoyment.
Our recently announced Protecting Our Place partnership with Dulux got us thinking about how we can let more people know about the many easy to get to huts that DOC manages, so they can get out and enjoy them.
Easy access huts are a great way to experience huts for the first time without having to walk too far (some you can even drive to). They’re also for all ages and fitness levels, go check them out in our new hut breaks section of the DOC website.
It also got me reminiscing about taking my then five-year-old son on his first overnight stay in a hut. We went into Raukawa Hut near Wellington with a group of mums and kids.
My son, me and my partner taking a scroggin break
Rimutaka Forest Park is about 45 mins drive from Wellington city, so it was easy to leave after school on a sunny Friday afternoon. The walk in to the hut is about two hours – having the kids in tow added another half an hour. This included many necessary scroggin and chocolate stops, which kept everyone well fuelled.
My sister, nephew and son on the track in
I love the walk in to the river, as the track is easy under foot and you are sheltered from the sun by the beautiful forest over head. A bit of bird spotting went on and the kids had fun pretending they were on some kind of military mission, racing along the track.
Raukawa is in an awesome spot by the river, close to the end of the track. In summer the river is low and basically a really a large river bed with a few streams heading down the valley. It’s a different story after rain, so it’s always good to keep an eye on the weather forecast as the river level can change quite quickly.
Raukawa is up on the river bank amongst these trees
There are a couple of stream crossings before you get to the hut, the kids enjoyed running through and getting nice and wet!
Once at the hut we unpacked and the bunk bagging began – the kids had discovered how much fun the sleeping platforms were for rolling around in their sleeping bags.
As far as huts go, Raukawa is luxurious, with an internal flush toilet, wetback shower and gas for cooking.
Once settled in the kids disappeared off to start their military missions around the hut, fortifying it from the enemy.
Serious business planning missions down on the river bed
We also had a budding spider expert amongst us so, with book in tow, there was lots of spider identification going on, including a journey out after dark.
After a hearty dinner and a glass of wine for the mums (the bonus of a short walk in) it was down to the river to watch the stars. It was incredible with a clear night and no city lights. We all thought it was magical, especially those who had never been into the bush before.
After Milo and stories around the pot belly it was off to bed. We won’t talk about how loudly some people snore….
The next day we woke to a beautiful summer’s day and spent time exploring near the hut and visiting Jans Hut, which isn’t far away.
The afternoon was spent reading, relaxing and swimming in the river. The kids spent hours doing more missions, including damming up the river, playing in the shallow rapids, spider spotting and bird watching going on. That night we heard kiwi calling out across the valley which was pretty special and something not too many ‘kiwi kids’ get to experience.
Kids spend the afternoon swimming in the river
We had lots of tired bodies after our adventures, and were thankful for the wetback in the hut that allowed us (a very quick) hot shower at the end of a fantastic day.
Sunday morning was a little more leisurely as we knew we had to head back to our lives in the city. We cleaned the hut out, making sure we left it spic and span, repacked and set off. Luckily we still had plenty of scroggin to encourage the little legs along.
We were all a little sad we couldn’t spend more time out in the bush, away from TVs and computers. But the retelling of our adventures and planning of the next trip kept us going.
Raukawa hut nestled amongst the trees
So I would encourage anyone who hasn’t done it to get out and experience the huge network of huts DOC manages on your behalf. The staff out in the regions do an amazing job keeping the tracks maintained and the huts ship shape. Seeing the look on my son’s face as he stared up at the beautiful night sky with thousands of twinkling stars was priceless.
And if you’ve never done it before we have some handy tips about DOC huts with tips on what to take. One thing I might add is ear plugs.
