Travel Reference
In-Depth Information
Kawau Water Taxis
( 0800 111 616;
www.kawaucruises.co.nz
)
Daily ferries from Sandspit to Kawau
(adult/child return $55/31) and a water-taxi service (minimum charge $142.50). The Super
Cruise (adult/child $68/30, barbecue lunch $27/15) departs Sandspit at 10.30am and
circles the island, delivering the post to 75 different wharves.
TOP OF CHAPTER
Great Barrier Island
POP 860
Named Aotea (meaning cloud) by the Maori, and Great Barrier (due to its position at the
edge of the Hauraki Gulf) by Captain James Cook, this rugged and exceptionally beautiful
place falls in behind South, North and Stewart as NZ's fourth-largest island (285 sq km).
It closely resembles the Coromandel Peninsula to which it was once joined, and like the
Coromandel it was once a mining, logging and whaling centre. Those industries have long
gone and today two-thirds of the island is publicly owned and managed by DOC.
Great Barrier has unspoilt beaches, hot springs, old kauri dams, a forest sanctuary and a
network of tramping tracks. Because there are no possums on the island, the native bush is
lush.
Although only 88km from Auckland, Great Barrier seems a world - and a good many
years - away. The island has no supermarket, no electricity supply (only private solar,
wind and diesel generators) and no main drainage (only septic tanks). Many roads are un-
sealed and petrol costs are high. Mobile-phone reception is very limited and there are no
banks, ATMs or street lights.
From around mid-December to mid-January is the peak season, so make sure you book
transport, accommodation and activities well in advance.
Tryphena
is the main settlement, 4km from the ferry wharf at Shoal Bay. Strung out
along several kilometres of coastal road, it consists of a few dozen houses and a handful
of shops and accommodation places. From the wharf it's 3km to Mulberry Grove, and
then another 1km over the headland to Pa Beach and the Stonewall Store (
Click here
)
.
The airport is at
Claris
, 12km north of Tryphena, a small settlement with a general store,
bottle shop, laundrette, garage, pharmacy and cafe.
Whangaparapara
is an old timber town and the site of the island's 19th-century whaling
activities.
Port Fitzroy
is the other main harbour on the west coast, a one-hour drive from
Tryphena. These four main settlements have fuel available.
