Goldie Bush Scenic Reserve
Geography
The Goldie Bush Scenic Reserve is a wooded area of West Auckland, south-east of Muriwai and north of the Waitākere Ranges. The reserve forms much of the Mokoroa Stream valley catchment, which flows southwest towards the Waitākere River near Te Henga / Bethells Beach. Most of the reserve is located within the Waitākere Ranges local board area. The sections north-west of the Mokoroa Stream are a part of the Rodney local board area.
Much of the forest is dominated by kanuka and mamangi trees.
History
The scenic reserve is within the traditional rohe of Te Kawerau ā Maki. The area was known as Te Taiapa, referring to a fortified pā overlooking the Mokoroa Stream, known for being defended by wooden palisades (taiapa), and not by typical defensive ditches. Another name used for the area is Te Patunga ō Te Mokoroa ("the place where Te Mokoroa was killed"), referring to the traditional story where the ancestor Taiaoroa killed Te Mokoroa, a taniwha who lived in the pool at the base of the Mokoroa Falls.
The land was purchased by the mayor of Auckland, David Goldie, around the year 1900, and established a mill on the property. The mill was later relocated closer to the falls, and after the Kauri Timber Company acquired cutting rights in 1920, and the Mokoroa River catchments were dammed, in order to transport logs to the Waitākere River and Te Henga / Bethells Beach, from which they were transported by tramway to the Waitakere railway station. By the time of Goldie's death in 1926, almost no kauri remained on the property at all. After his death, the property was gifted to the Auckland City Council, who developed the area into a scenic reserve.
Since becoming a scenic reserve, kauri trees were re-established in the park. Due to the effects of kauri dieback, the reserve was closed in 2018 in order to stop the spread of disease, and as of 2022 remains closed, as work is completed to develop walking tracks to slow the spread of disease.
References
- ^ Janssen, Peter (January 2021). Greater Auckland Walks. New Holland Publishers. p. 198-199. ISBN 978-1-86966-516-6. Wikidata Q118136068.
- ^ "Goldie Bush Scenic Reserve". New Zealand Gazetteer. Land Information New Zealand. Retrieved 8 September 2022.
- ^ Cameron, Ewen; Hayward, Bruce; Murdoch, Graeme (2008). A Field Guide to Auckland: Exploring the Region's Natural and Historical Heritage (rev. ed.). Random House New Zealand. p. 159. ISBN 978-1-86962-1513.
- ^ "Te Kawerau ā Maki Deed of Settlement Schedule" (PDF). New Zealand Government. 22 February 2014. Retrieved 29 January 2021.
- ^ "Kauri Dieback Project Works, Year 2 Contract 1 – Auckland, Goldies Bush". Department of Conservation (Te Papa Atawhai). Retrieved 22 March 2020.
- ^ Tokalau, Torika (19 March 2018). "Goldie Bush track temporarily closed in support of rāhui". Stuff. Retrieved 8 September 2022.
- ^ "Goldie Bush Walkway". Department of Conservation (Te Papa Atawhai). Retrieved 8 September 2022.
- ^ "Mokoroa Falls Track". Department of Conservation (Te Papa Atawhai). Retrieved 22 March 2020.