Travel Reference
In-Depth Information
maybe to the spectacular blood-red sunrises and sunsets. Excavations in the area provide
evidence that, as early as the 13th century, tribes of Polynesian origin migrated to the island
to hunt moa. However, Maori settlements were thin and scattered, because the people were
unable to grow kumara (sweet potato), the staple food of settlements to the north. They did
make annual migrations to the outer islands to seek muttonbird (titi), a favourite food, and to
the main island to search for eel, shellfish and certain birds.
The first European visitor was Captain Cook, who sailed around the eastern, southern and
western coasts in 1770 but couldn't figure out if it was an island or a peninsula. Deciding it
was attached to the South Island, he called it South Cape. In 1809 the sealing vessel
Pegas-
us
circumnavigated Rakiura and named it after its first officer, William Stewart. Stewart
charted large sections of the coast during a sealing trip in 1809, and drafted the first detailed
map of the island.
Sealing ended by the late 1820s, to be replaced temporarily by whaling, but the small
whaling bases on the island were never profitable. Other early industries were timber
milling, fish curing and shipbuilding. A short-lived gold rush towards the end of the 19th
century brought a sufficient influx of miners to warrant building a hotel and a post office.
The only enterprise that has endured is fishing. Initially those doing the fishing were few
in number, but when a steamer service from Bluff began in 1885 the industry expanded, res-
ulting in the construction of cleaning sheds on Ruapuke Island and a refrigerating plant in
the North Arm of Port Pegasus.
Today, tourism and, to a much lesser extent, fishing are the occupations of most of the is-
land's 400 or so residents.
Environment
Birds previously hunted, or at least take, for granted, by humans are now conserved and
treasured, and NZ's 'third island' is establishing itself as a bird haven of international re-
pute. With an absence of mustelids (ferrets, stoats and weasels) and with large areas of intact
forest, Stewart Island has one of the largest and most diverse bird populations of any area in
NZ, and offers more opportunities to spot kiwi in the wild. The Rakiura tokoeka (local
brown kiwi) population is estimated to be around 20,000.
A great place to see lots of birds in one place is Ulva Island/Te Wharawhara, a quick
water-taxi ride from Oban. Established as a bird sanctuary in 1922, it remains one of
Rakiura's wildest corners - 'a rare taste of how NZ once was and perhaps could be again',
according to DOC. As the result of an extensive eradication program, the island was de-
