Half an hour south of Gisborne, I drove to Muriwai, in the shadow of Young Nick’s Head.
This is the starting point for a rail adventure to remember with Gisborne Railbikes.
This totally novel, distinctive cycle experience uses non-operating railway lines that previously connected Gisborne with Wairoa, before KiwiRail pulled the plug on services in 2012.
After years of planning, negotiations and designs, operator Geoff Main secured a lease on the track from KiwiRail and launched his positively unique cycling adventure six years ago.
These purpose-built railbikes are joined together with steel bars, enabling you to rock the rails with your buddy — and it’s impossible to fall off. You don’t even need to steer or balance the railbike thanks to its guide wheels that will keep you firmly on track. All you have to do is pedal — and because they’re e-bikes, it’s a doddle.
I joined Main for a guided ride on the Beach Loop, which is a 32km return circuit, tootling south from Muriwai, skimming the coastline, flanked by scenic bush-clad valleys and interspersed with growing fields.
The route ends close to the Wharerata Rd lookout, where a monstrous slip at Whareongaonga, caused by flooding three years ago, severed the mothballed railway line on its path to Wairoa.
You’ll love the rich variety of scenery on this ride. Best of all is the 1.5km railway tunnel, which takes a good seven minutes in the chilled darkness to traverse.
Be sure to add a Gisborne Railbike Adventure to your Tairāwhiti check-list (www.railbikes.nz)
Of all the arboreta of the southern hemisphere, Eastwoodhill Arboretum is believed to boast the largest collection of trees of the temperate climate zone of the northern hemisphere. Currently, 170 species at Eastwoodhill are on the world endangered species list.
This arboreal ark is a stirring safe haven for threatened and endangered trees. Over 25,000 species of exotic and native trees, shrubs and climber plants unfurl their majesty across its grounds. Prized specimens include blue atlas cedars, coastal redwoods, Michoacan pines, scarlet oaks and the highly endangered Serbian spruce which hails from Bosnia.
The arboretum features a variety of spaces, from the formal gardens at Homestead Garden to the Cathedral — formed by the grand cross-shaped lay-out of Eucalyptus. It’s a popular wedding spot.
There’s also a native reserve, and my guide remarked that Eastwoodhill brims with kererū. They get so drunk binging on berries they will often be seen dangling upside-down from the branches.
Eastwoodhill hits its prime in autumn, with all its oaks, maples, liquidambars, ash and ginkgo trees ablaze in autumnal glory.
Pointing the car north, I zipped up the sun-drenched, wave-lashed coastline to storied Tolaga Bay. Tipuna Tours is an iwi-owned eco-tourism operator offering exceptional cultural and historic guided tours.
I met up with Jock and Victor Walker, who casually led me on a riveting walkabout, spilling forth with stories and history with salt-of-the-earth charm.
After admiring the remarkable 660m length of the Tolaga Bay Wharf, a century-old landmark, we set off on a fabulous hike on the Cooks Cove Walkway.
Crowning Cooks Cove Lookout is Te Pourewa, the Carved Beacon of Light. This striking landmark was installed to mark the 250th Anniversary of Cook’s landing. Jock pointed out the relentless work under way to recloak the lookout in native plantings.
The carving represents the first gift accorded to Europeans by Māori and had been off-shore since 1769. Initially it was handed over to the Natural History Museum, before later being gifted to the Tubingen University Museum in Germany.
As part of the 250th anniversary in 2019, this prized taonga came home as part of an on-loan exhibition at Tairāwhiti Museum in Gisborne. Victor remarked that Te Aitanga ā Hauiti has formed a close and enduring bond with the museum with regular visits.
Ever dreamed of wading with stingrays? I was feeling somewhat pensive about this assignment, but I soon discovered why Dive Tatapouri’s wild stingray tours are such a smash hit.
Dean and Chris Savage established and have nurtured this acclaimed New Zealand eco-experience on the shallow reef at Tatapouri Bay for 24 years. After being kitted out in waders and bamboo walking sticks, and learning how to shuffle our feet so as not to step on a stingray, our group ventured out into the knee-deep waters for an indelible reef ecology tour.
An aquatic rolling scrum soon played out as a fearless cormorant dived between a school of kingfish. The supporting cast of marine life were all interloping on our feeding session with the serene big boys of the bay, half a dozen placid short-tail stingrays who were gliding around us as we hand fed them chunks of barracouta or manga fish in the water.
Why not linger for the night at blindingly beautiful Tatapouri Bay, caressed by the golden sands of the beach and the opera of the ocean?
The holiday park has a cluster of perfectly formed Zen Cabins, absolute oceanfront self-contained luxury accommodation.
Watching a famed East Coast sunrise from this perch is my idea of paradise. In the early evening, strong westerly winds turned the sea into an angry tempest, churning, frothing and crashing ashore with quite the attitude.
Goggle-eyed, I gazing in awe at nature’s might from my enormous window, just metres from the high tide line.
After taking my fill of the water show, I drifted off into a deep sleep, lulled by the unrelenting, all-powerful rhythm of Tangaroa.
