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Tutukaka Coast
Pacific Ocean Paradise Image Gallery
click image to enlargeTutukaka is the Dive Capital of New Zealand. A safe, natural harbour with a modern marina, cafe, restaurants and bar, dive shop, charter boats and accommodation.
Tutukaka is the gateway to the Poor Knights Islands 14 miles off the coast. These islands, a wildlife reserve above water and a marine reserve below, provide a unique range of flora, fauna and fishes in a dramatic setting and are regarded as one of the world's top five dive spots.Beyond Tutukaka is some of the most picturesque coastal scenery in the country; Matapouri, Woolleys Bay and Sandy Bay are popular beach and surf playgrounds.
Walking tracks take you to such gems as Whale Bay plus dozens of interesting nooks, crannies and lookout points among magnificent pohutukawa trees. At Sandy Bay the road turns inland, heading through bush fringed hills and valleys of highly productive farm land back to rejoin State Highway One at Hikurangi.
The first recorded European visit to the coast was an overnight stay in Tutukaka by the sailing ship Prince Regent in 1820. These sailors were entering the territory of the Ngatiwai people who populated the eastern seaboard from Rawhiti to Mahurangi, including the Tutukaka Coast. Ngatiwai are regarded as the children of the sea and their links to the coast now span 32 generations.
POOR KNIGHTS ISLANDS - Worth crossing the world for
click image to enlargeNature Reserve and Marine Reserve
In early times, the Poor Knights Islands were inhabited by Ngatiwai, with the geologically unique landscape providing a natural fortress environment. Today the Poor Knights are internationally known above and below water.
With sheer cliffs and marine caves, including the enormous Riko Riko Cave (rumoured to have harboured a Japanese Submarine during the Second World War), with many rare and endemic native plants and insects, with the forest floor providing refuge to one of the world's oldest living species, the tuatara. The Poor Knights are an internationally significant scientific reserve.
24km off the east coast of Northland, the Poor Knights Islands are the eroded remnants of a large volcano which erupted around 10 million years ago. Although connected to the mainland at times in the past they have been separated for at least 18,000 years. These islands have remained isolated from animals introduced to mainland New Zealand. Because of this, many native species now extinct or extremely rare on the mainland still find refuge on the Poor Knights: tuatara, many species of lizards, giant weta, flax snail and a giant centipede.
Rich birdlife inhcludes bellbird, kaka, kakariki, petrels, shearwaters, and little blue penguin. Distinctive plants include the Poor Knights lily, found only here and on the Hen and Chickens islands.
This unique ecosystem provides a glimpse of life in ancient New Zealand - it is a precious biological gem. It is also extremely fragile. The arrival of just one pregnant rat, possum, stoat or cat, the seeds of an aggressive weed, or the outbreak of fire could spell ecological disaster for the islands.
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