Things are Great on the Barrier! This morning we went to the Labour Weekend market. What a different experience from our first market here, the Easter market, which I wrote about over six months ago. In April it felt strange to be at a big market and know almost no one. Today we had a lot of greetings, even a hug or two, and plenty of catch-up conversations. So that felt good! So good that we spent over $100 on local plants, produce, jam, honey, soap and some nifty reusable food wraps made of fabric, beeswax and jojoba oil. After seven months here, we've turned a corner in our decision making about staying here or not. Can you guess?! Yes, we’d love to stay, without even exploring Northland and following up contacts there, as we used to think we would. Unlike Northland now and GBI’s past history, GBI is quite safe from environmental destruction. We don’t think we’d be so happy in Northland. We don’t want to be impacted directly or indirectly by all the resource extraction. We had more than enough in Golden Bay and still carry within us the trauma of the 2011 disaster, and of course it’s simply disheartening, to put it mildly. We found out about swamp kauri exporting and the ruin of remaining wetlands in Northland, and forestry standards have become even more lax since 2011. The standards were reviewed soon after the disaster in Golden Bay, and the Greens thought it could be an opportunity to secure more stringent standards, but – surprise, surprise! – it went the other way. Also GE trees, spray drift, offshore drilling, and exploration for fracking are all going on up north. Whatever destruction is happening elsewhere is happening there. GBI is a haven from all that, including pretty much guaranteed no more cell towers (at least that’s in the current Island plan). We can’t think of anything we don’t like – maybe windy at times? Or if you need to take care of anything that you can’t here, like getting your vision checked or some special therapy, it’s a mission and an expense to go to “town”, as Auckland is referred to. But that’s what makes GBI what it is! It’s not exactly a hotbed of culture, but you can’t have it both ways, and anyway, these days we’re happy to just hang out together and stay home when we’re not out and about for swimming or whatever else. In fact, that’s the whole idea of being here — just to be together in our remaining years. That means we have to figure out where we’ll be! The owner of our rental is being nice and flexible, and we can stay on after our lease ends in March, so we can stay very happily here while we seek out other longer-term opportunities. If you’re wondering just how large Great Barrier Island is, I can now tell you that the distance by different combinations of road and track between the two main wharves – one at each end of the island’s main road, at Tryphena in the south and Port Fitzroy in the north, is exactly the length of a marathon. I know this because of the annual Wharf to Wharf Marathon that took place a few weeks ago. About 150 on- and off-islanders walked, ran or mountain biked the whole route or half of it, solo or in teams, with times for the full marathon ranging from two and a half hours for the fastest cyclist to seven and a half hours for the slowest walker. The route was described as "rugged native bush, kauri, nikau, manuka, fern and some of the most unspoilt native forest left in New Zealand, with sections on gravel roads, 4WD tracks, trails, roads and a lot of up and down.” On our way to swimming we stopped a while at the top of Sugarloaf hill, a point between an up and a down, and handed pieces of 85% cacao to passing runners and walkers. More our speed these days is the 30-minute return walkway to Windy Canyon that starts from the main road to North Barrier. For those who can’t do full-blown walking or tramping, it’s a great way to get a taste of the beautiful bush, the central mountains and some of the rock outcrops and pinnacles. This track is known for its hundreds of steps! It could have been named “Winded Canyon”! Here’s a sample of the bush and the stairways, and the view of Whangapoua Estuary from the top. The September full moon rising, reflected in the sea and in a pond that often forms on Kaitoke Beach after rain. Some of the crew from Envirokiwi, local folk who do all sorts of work for environmental protection and enhancement. www.envirokiwi.co.nz They’re laying traps for Argentine ants at the end of Oceanview Road. Keeping these invasive ants knocked back is an annual job. At one time Oceanview Road was infested with them, but we were in blissful ignorance about them until the team showed up and explained the project. This year none were found near houses, only in the surrounding area. The world’s only Argentine-ant sniffing dog comes over on the ferry with his trainer to help track down the ants! The Barrier Bulletin is published biweekly. You can pick it up for a dollar at the shops in Claris, Tryphena or Port Pitzroy. Unlike the GB Weekly, it’s informal, unpretentious and unbiased. There’s no word limit to the letters and less mud slung in them.
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