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Archives For 30/11/1999

Jobs at DOC: Cherie Hemsley, Biodiversity Ranger

Department of Conservation —  03/08/2012

Come behind the scenes and into the jobs, the challenges, the highlights, and the personalities of the people who work at the Department of Conservation (DOC).

Today we profile Biodiversity Ranger, Cherie Hemsley.

At work…

What kind of things do you do in your role?

Weed control, possum control, rat control, dotterel work, and quarantine checks.

What is the best part about your job?

Everything!!! The places on the island that we get to go to and locations that, unless you were working for the department, you don’t get to go to.

What is the hardest part about your job?

Not having enough hours in the day to do everything.

What led you to your role in DOC?

I love the bush.

What was your highlight from the month just gone?

Working on getting sign-off to drive our Stabi Crafts.

Cherie and daughter Betty at the beach – Mason Bay

The rule of 3…

Three loves

  1. My daughter Betty
  2. My partner Simon
  3. Stewart Island

Three pet peeves

  1. Mess (when peeps don’t clean up after themselves)
  2. Laziness
  3. Too much time indoors

Cherie and partner Simon

Three foods 

  1. Whitetail
  2. Salmon
  3. Trumpeter

Three favourite places in New Zealand

  1. Mason Bay
  2. Port Pegasus
  3. Codfish Island (I know they are all Stewart Island and around, but that’s why I live here)

Favourite movie, album, book

  1. Movie: Stand By Me
  2. Album: The Best of Otis Redding
  3. Book: Whitethorn by Bryce Courtney

Cherie’s daughter Betty and partner Simon

Deep and meaningful…

What piece of advice would you tell your 18 year old self?

Start saving 10% of your wages now!

Who or what inspires you and why?

My daughter because she is AMAZING!

When you were a kid, what did you want to be when you grew up?

A vet.

And now, if you weren’t working at DOC, what would you want to be?

Working in the bush somewhere—study’n botany maybe?

What sustainability tip would you like to pass on?

Hmmmmmmm, grow your own veggies.

Which green behaviour would you like to adopt this year—at home? At work?

Grow my own veggies with more success this year than last year.

If you could be any New Zealand native species for a day, what would you be and why?

Harlequin gecko because we know so little about them.

What piece of advice or message would you want to give to New Zealanders when it comes to conservation?

Just spend a bit of time in the bush and at our huts, then see how you feel. It might make you think twice about priorities in life.

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Jobs at DOC: Ivy Willmott, DOC Visitor Centre/i-Site Ranger

 —  06/07/2012

Every Friday Jobs at DOC takes you behind the scenes and into the jobs, the challenges, the highlights, and the personalities of the people who work at the Department of Conservation.

Today we profile DOC Visitor Centre/i-Site Ranger Ivy Willmott.

A good day at work

Name: Ivy Willmott.

Position: Ranger, DOC Visitor Centre/i-SITE. 

At work…


What kind of things do you do in your role?

Being one of the front line laydees of goodness and joy at the Franz Josef Visitor Center and i-SITE, I answer phones, radios and lots and lots of questions every day. I chat about everything from the weather, DOC projects, campsites, tramping, day hikes, Great Walks, hunting, fishing, the glaciers, travel, New Zealand, Franz, Fox, eating, drinking, jumping out of planes, riding horses… the list is endless!

We are constantly learning—thank goodness for the awesome DOC website with the answers to nearly any DOC-related question.

I help book people onto whatever activity they want to do, find and book accommodation all over New Zealand, sort out travel plans… basically help folks have the best holiday/trip possible. I LOVE IT!!!


What is the best part about your job?

Helping people smile and enjoy their day and remove the stress that many folks seem to find on holiday! Crazy Moogs!

Every day is a happy day!

Watching the wave of relief wash over folks as bookings are made, travel plans are sorted, and watching the good holiday juju work it’s way back onto their faces as they trot off to enjoy this beautiful country.

Followed swiftly by getting to sample all the amazing activities on offer in the area in the name of research… Yeeaaaaaooooooow! AWESOME! You gotta know it to sell it!

Franz Josef Glacier hike


What is the hardest part about your job?

Trying to convince people you have no control over the West Coast weather. Rude people, impatient people, and trying to keep the ability to smile over it all. Not being able to wear bright colours! Ha, nah, it’s all sweet… not much to not be happy about here!


What led you to your role in DOC?

I’m originally from Scotland with a career as a Theatre Stage Manager. Nine years of fun and mischief worldwide led me to New Zealand, where I have been for eight years. Working with environmental community groups in the resource recovery field for the last three years, but having a yearning for the West Coast, led me to Franz Josef.

As well as having a good crew of mates that worked within the department, but mostly the awesome Kiwi team here on the coast and their enthusiasm for their work. The opportunity arose to join the wonderful Visitor Centre/i-SITE team and here I am… BooOm!!!

Quadbiking in Nelson, Happy Valley


What was your highlight from the month just gone?

Well, research this month was pretty spectacular. Going on two glacier heli trips was pretty amazing, hmmmmm, so was horse trekking on a crispy sunny spotless winter morning with breathtaking views over Mount Elie De Beaumont….

But what did take the biscuit was my first Area day. Getting to put faces to the names and voices I deal with daily. Getting to see what all the different groups have been up to for the past year. Awesome jobs all round, and that’s just our Area!

The rule of 3…

3 loves

  1. My dog Munter.
  2. Having dreams and ambitions and having them coming true.
  3. Good recyclers. 


3 pet peeves

  1. Litter on the roadside… actually litter anywhere it shouldn’t be.
  2. Rude people.
  3. Lateness.

3 foods

  1. Pizza.
  2. Rock and roll chick pea gravy and mash (recipe available on request!).
  3. Roast chicken and veg cooked in the camp oven on the beach at sunset!

3 favourite places in New Zealand

  1. Any of the wonderful South Island West Coast beaches…. The salty wind on your face, the sound of crashing waves, sunset, wine and good friends—heaven.
  2. The summit of Treble Cone after a big snow dump, bluebird day, good friends, chocolate and mulled wine. The snowy mountains and Lake Wanaka feeding the soul.
  3. I have to say, sitting up at Almer Hut having a picnic with the laydees on Boxing Day, looking down the Franz Josef Glacier and out to the Tasman sea was ridiculously special! 

Hmmmmm I feel a theme… nature, fine food, fine wine, and fine friends, and I’m a happy gal.

Snowboarding up Treble Cone summit


Favourite movie, album, book

  • Movie: Oooh a toss up between Big Fish and Cinema Paradiso.
  • Album: The Band – The Band.
  • Book: The Power of One.
     

Deep and meaningful…


What piece of advice would you tell your 18 year old self?

I would love to think sense has got the better of me and I would say ‘Do something that will make you money’. Ha, but nope, I think it would be ‘Follow your dream, don’t let anyone tell you you can’t do it, but maybe learn a skill like welding, or cheffing or hairdressing to help you out of those tight financial spots!’ Hmmmm…. also, ‘Don’t leave it until your mid 30s to try Brandy Alexander’s!’

Me and my juggling clubs


Who or what inspires you and why?

My mum…. Not only did she teach me the joys of self sufficiency, she always taught me to follow my heart; that no dream is too big, and it’s never too late to change. Always do what makes you happy. She definitely taught me to keep my cup half full.


When you were a kid, what did you want to be when you grew up?

A Stage Manager… from as soon as I knew that was actually a job!


And now, if you weren’t working at DOC, what would you want to be?

A bread baking, veggie growing, cheese making, goat milking, fine feast making mum.


What sustainability tip would you like to pass on?

Less is more! Reduce and reuse before you recycle, and if you have to buy something, buy a good make—more expensive, but will last a lot longer than most of the plastic nonsense about these days.

Picnic lunch up Almer Hut

Which green behaviour would you like to adopt this year—at home? At work?

I definitely want to get my veg patch cranking! I finally have a garden space to do this. Wooohooo….


If you could be any New Zealand native species for a day, what would you be and why?

Definitely a kereru. So plump and happy, hanging out getting drunk on rata berries all day, trying to fly my plump self about, and such beautiful colours!

What piece of advice or message would you want to give to New Zealanders when it comes to conservation?

Reduce, reuse then recycle. Stop driving when you don’t have to… and when you recycle…WASH and SQUASH!!!

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Jobs at DOC: Fiordland National Park Visitor Centre Ranger, Lyn Trewella

Department of Conservation —  13/04/2012

Every Friday Jobs at DOC will take you behind the scenes and into the jobs, the challenges, the highlights, and the personalities of the people who work at the Department of Conservation.

Today we profile Lyn Trewella Ranger (Visitor Information) Fiordland National Park Visitor Centre.

At work…

What kind of things do you do in your role?

I give advice about the Great Walks and local backcountry tracks; sell tickets and Great Walk passes; deal with the Centre’s retail displays and sales; help to open and close the centre; answer or field all manner of interesting questions from visitors from, “Where are the crocodiles?” to, “We just arrived. We want to walk”.

Green Lake, Southern Fiordland

What is the best part about your job?

Seeing the smile on the face of a customer when they return from the tramp you recommended to them.

What is the hardest part about your job?

Sitting inside when the sun is shining on the mountains outside.

What led you to your role in DOC?

In my DOC uniform

I came to New Zealand on a working holiday in October 2010 and after five weeks travelling, I ended up working at a backpackers outside Te Anau. The plan was to stay until the end of January and then head back to my job as an outdoor instructor in the UK… as you can see, I’m still here!

During my first season here I fell in love with Fiordland and decided to apply to extend my working holiday. As a keen tramper herself, my boss at the backpackers gave me time off to go exploring and by the winter I had walked most of the popular tracks in the Park. That experience led me into my current role here at DOC. If I can get another visa I’ll be here again next season.

What was your highlight from the month just gone?

Taking a jet boat trip down the Wairaurahiri River to the ocean.   

The rule of three…

Three loves

  1. A good book that lets you escape from reality
  2. New Zealand’s amazing backcountry huts—long may they remain in existence!
  3. A clear day in the mountains

Lake Manapouri - one of the Fiordland views I fell in love with

Three pet peeves

  1. People who leave litter. Especially in National Parks and DOC campsites GRRRRR!
  2. DOC bashing notes written in hut books. Do these people not realise how lucky they are to have such fantastic resources available to them!
  3. Bad drivers.

Three foods

  1. Whittakers chocolate
  2. Jacket potatoes
  3. Anything off a barbeque

Benching (levelling) the Kepler

Three favourite places in New Zealand

  1. The tracks around the Mount Arthur area near Nelson/Motueka
  2. Green Lake near Lake Monowai
  3. Gertrude Saddle

Favourite movie, album, book

  1. Movie: The Boat That Rocked—brilliant British film about pirate radio
  2. Album: Hmmm maybe Mumford and Sons, Sigh No More
  3. Book: Anything by Terry Pratchett

Deep and meaningful…

What piece of advice would you tell your 18 year old self?

Get on with it! Don’t be scared to take chances. Get out there, travel, and live life.

Who or what inspires you and why?

I admire people who love their lives and have worked hard to get to that place they love. The people here at DOC Te Anau are a pretty inspirational lot. Their dedication to conservation and New Zealand is incredible and you couldn’t ask for a better group of people about you if you need help or support.

When you were a kid, what did you want to be when you grew up?

I’ve never had a definite plan… at school there was an archaeology phase, an outdoor instructor phase, and a photography/art/design phase. 

And now, if you weren’t working at DOC, what would you want to be?

Camping on the Livingstone Range

I would’ve liked to guide on the tracks over here. I have to head home to the UK at some point and I’m investigating working as a countryside or national park ranger in the future.

What sustainability tip would you like to pass on?

Every little bit helps. Whether you recycle or compost or use solar power for your house—if everyone does something it’s got to help the bigger picture.

Which green behaviour would you like to adopt this year—at home? At work?

I haven’t been able to compost this summer so I’d like to be able to do that again.

If you could be any New Zealand native species for a day, what would you be and why?

I’d be a fantail or a South Island robin because they have such character.

What piece of advice or message would you want to give to New Zealanders when it comes to conservation?

Don’t take your amazing country for granted. New Zealanders are gifted with beautiful unspoilt wilderness areas, amazing backcountry tracks, and a fantastic hut network. In the future the unspoilt areas of this country are going to be even more of a selling point for tourism than they are now. New Zealanders should be vigilant to make sure that wilderness areas are not over developed and tracks and huts are not neglected or lost.

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Jobs at DOC: Akaroa Biodiversity Ranger, Derek Cox

Department of Conservation —  23/03/2012

Every Friday Jobs at DOC will take you behind the scenes and into the jobs, the challenges, the highlights, and the personalities of the people who work at the Department of Conservation.

Today we profile biodiversity ranger, Derek Cox.

Derek Cox, Ranger Biodiversity, Akaroa Field Base

At work…

Position: Ranger Biodiversity, Akaroa Field Base.

What kind of things do you do in your role?

My main role is the marine work around Banks Peninsula. So I get to go out and look after the Pōhatu Marine Reserve, Banks Peninsula Marine Mammal Sanctuary, and all the marine mammals that are resident or visit the area.

But that is only part of it. There are only two of us over on Banks Peninsula, and I am the only ranger living here, so I get involved in most of the work that goes on — from weed and pest control, to compliance, fire, and all the local issues that occur.

What is the best part about your job?

The variety of work — at all levels, from national to the local community.

What is the hardest part about your job?

The sheer variety of work, and trying to keep up and adjust to work programmes to cope with the changing demands on my time.

Necropsy of a 15 metre ship-struck fin whale

What led you to your role at DOC?

I started out training as a Land Survey Technician up in Auckland, then got a job doing survey work for the New Zealand Forest Service in Te Kuiti, initially for six months. 12 years later I was still there, doing a variety of work, when I was invited to apply for a job with the newly formed DOC.

From Te Kuiti I went to Tairua, on the East Coast of the Coromandel, working largely in visitor assets — looking after camp grounds and tracks, including the Cathedral Cove track system and marine reserve, and doing a variety of survey work right around the Waikato region. I did this for about 16 years before I transferred to Akaroa five years ago to do more marine based work.

Surveying the extension of the Windows Tunnel for the Karangahake Walkway

What was your highlight from the month just gone?

I upgraded part of the Hay Scenic Reserve walking track — we metalled a wet and boggy 60 metre part of the track and tidied up a few other areas of the track.

Hay Scenic Reserve is a small reserve in Pigeon Bay that has a really neat stand of lowland alluvial podocarp/broadleaf forest with a loop track running through it. DOC has been getting rid of the exoctic weeds and controlling the pest animals in the reserve for a while.

The rule of three…

Three loves

  1. My wife Alison
  2. My three children Rebekah, Matthew and Nathan, and what they have achieved and are achieving
  3. My job/home

Three pet peeves

  1. My wife having to work and board away from home during the week (but I guess it helps pay the bills)
  2. Rubbish on the road side
  3. Offenders in the marine reserve

    Surveying a boundary line, Whareorino Forest

Three foods

  1. Cheese
  2. Icecream
  3. My wife’s home baking

Three favourite places in New Zealand

  1. Home, overlooking Barry’s Bay
  2. Tairua
  3. Auckland Islands

    Sea kayaking around Great Mercury Island

Favourite movie, album and book

  1. Movie: The first Star Wars movie
  2. Album: Most easy listening music
  3. Book: Any book that has a good story to tell

Deep and meaningful…

What piece of advice would you tell your 18 year old self?

Enjoy life.

Who or what inspires you and why?

All the people I have worked with because they are managing to achieve so much. It’s not necessarily just the big projects, but also the small day-to-day gains that make a difference in the long term.

When you were a kid, what did you want to be when you gew up?

A land surveyor.

And now, if you weren’t working at DOC, what would you want to be?

A land surveyor.

What sustainability tip would you like to pass on?

Compost and recycle where and when you can.

Which green behaviour would you like to adopt this year—at home? At work?

Solar hot water for my home.

If you could be any New Zealand native species for a day, what would you be and why?

A New Zealand fur seal—at home in the water and lazing on the rocks in the sun.

What piece of advice or message would you want to give to New Zealanders when it comes to conservation?

Every little bit helps! Whether it is a small planting project, a couple of traps for pests, or clearing some weeds—cumulatively it all helps the vision of a great New Zealand to live in.

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Jobs at DOC: Little Barrier Island Ranger, Nichollette Brown

Department of Conservation —  02/03/2012

Every Friday Jobs at DOC will take you behind the scenes and into the jobs, the challenges, the highlights, and the personalities of the people who work at the Department of Conservation.

Today we profile Little Barrier Island Ranger, Nichollette Brown.

At work…

Position: Ranger, Little Barrier Island

What kind of things do you do in your role?

As Ranger on Hauturu/Little Barrier Island my role is pretty varied. My ‘office’ and home is a 2817 hectare island and nature reserve in the Hauraki Gulf. I share the role of kaitiaki with Richard Walle and his family; his wife, Leigh Joyce, and children, Liam (7) and Mahina (9). My main role involves running the island’s weed programme. 

This is me weeding for Madeira vine on the cliffs at Raoul Island

Due to the terrain, (steep!) the ground-based grid searching can get pretty exciting and if that doesn’t get the adrenaline pumping, flying in the helicopter strop for pampas spraying will! 

I also run the annual reptile monitoring programme which, since the rodent eradication in 2006, has shown a promising recovery. When I’m not involved in these programmes I assist Richard with the island maintenance and operation, the tuatara breeding programme and provide support to researchers and translocation projects. We also host volunteers and visitors to the island. 

What is the best part about your job?

Me in my get up for heli spraying pampas grass on Little Barrier Island. I'm hanging from a 70m strop beneath a helicopter

Waking up every morning to a dawn chorus lead by kōkako, and sharing the path home in the evening with kiwi, bats and the scratch of wētā punga in the trees. 

It’s easy to become blasé about it all after a time until you get to share it with visiting researchers and volunteers who remind you what a beautiful and unique place Hauturu is. I think Marcus Lush (when he visited Little Barrier in his series North) put it perfectly: “(the ranger) clearly has the best job in the world…”
 
What is the hardest part about your job?

Being away from friends, family, and events on the mainland for long periods.
 
What led you to your role in DOC?

A lifetime exploring New Zealand’s bush, mountains and oceans; a postgraduate degree in ecology; and a love for conservation, and maintaining and improving our natural resources. Oh, and several years in the corporate world wondering why I was there!
 
What was your highlight from the month just gone?

So many! Generally, the excitement of never knowing what the day will bring. More specifically, the release of two captive bred tuatara, hanging 70 metres below a helicopter to spray pampas grass on the island’s cliffs, tramping from one side of the island to the other over two days, and meeting lots of interesting and dedicated people as part of the reptile monitoring programme. 

Back in September 2011 we welcomed 28 baby tuatara back to the island. They had been sent off as eggs the year before to Victoria University in Wellington for hatching

The rule of three…

Three loves

  1. The ocean
  2. A good story in which you can escape into, whether it’s a book or a movie
  3. Great home cooked food eaten in good company

    This is me in the island boat Hine Moana coming in to pick someone up off the rocks

Three pet peeves

  1. Animal cruelty
  2. Needless waste
  3. Littering

Three foods

  1. Chocolate
  2. Cheese
  3. Garlic

Three favourite places in New Zealand

  1. Hauturu (of course!)
  2. Arthur’s Pass National Park
  3. Aoraki/Mount Cook (Tasman Glacier)

    One of my recreational activities - mountaineering. This is a trip I did with friends to Mount Cook National Park, climbing out of Kelman Hut at Tasman Glacier. This might be the Hochstetter Dome summit

Favourite movie, album, book

  1. Movie: I’m a movie addict! It changes constantly. 
  2. Album: Currently anything by Trinity Roots, Age Pryor, or any Jack White collaboration.
  3. Book: The Torchlight List by Jim Flynn—an excellent summary of all the books you should have read and why.

Deep and meaningful…

What piece of advice would you tell your 18 year old self?

A quote by Goethe, “Whatever you can do or dream you can, begin it. Boldness has genius, power and magic in it.”

Who or what inspires you and why?

People passionate about a cause, loving the work they do, and being keen to educate others— infectious enthusiasm!

Completed Building Project—we rebuilt the Derrick shed on Raoul Island with the island mechanic Ash Mangnall. This is the opening ceremony. Apparently it got pretty hammered in a cyclone the following year but is still there!

When you were a kid, what did you want to be when you grew up?

A vet, or was it an astronaut? An artist, and I think there might have been a fire(wo)man period…

And now, if you weren’t working at DOC, what would you want to be?

A research scientist in Antarctica, or working in the natural history section of a museum (a nice mix of education, history, and research), or working with developing countries to educate and improve environmental practise, sustainability, and biodiversity.

What sustainability tip would you like to pass on?

Be aware of your impact on the earth—get online and calculate your ecological footprint. This measures the amount of resources you use and the waste you generate. It’s a great way to make yourself aware of where you can make changes to improve your sustainability and reduce your impact on the world. Currently the average human exceeds the Earth’s regenerative capacity by about 30%. The biggest gains can be made in reducing fossil fuel use—do you really need to drive or could you walk, cycle, or take public transport? Also, careful consideration of your energy provider e.g. supporting renewables, will make a big impact on your footprint. And finally: reduce, reuse, and recycle! 

Which green behaviour would you like to adopt this year—at home? At work?

Reduce, reuse, and recycle. The amount of packaging these days is obscene. Where possible I hope to grow my own veges, buy in bulk, and consider a product’s packaging and its ability to be recycled when purchasing. I will aim to mend and fix things rather than replace them—kind of a requirement anyway when living on an island! I’m also keen to make better use of library services rather than buying books and magazines.

If you could be any New Zealand native species for a day, what would you be and why?

It sounds like Sirocco has a pretty good life jet-setting round the country advocating for his species and for conservation!

What piece of advice or message would you want to give to New Zealanders when it comes to conservation?

Get out and enjoy our beautiful parks and wild areas. Make a multi day tramp the focus of your next holiday—staying  in DOC huts is a lot cheaper and more rewarding as a family than staying in a hotel in the city! Encourage children into tramping, climbing, and swimming—and educate them about our natural flora and fauna. Get involved in volunteer programmes—many of them take you to some amazing, remote places that most people don’t have access to.

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