Kaipara Harbour Part 1: Manukapua Island

[ABFoz]

I decided to visit Manukapua in the 3rd quarter of 2018 as part of my trips to visit land surrounding Kaipara harbour and this island is 1hr 20 mins away from where I live. I frequent the north as, at the moment, I do not want to worry about going out extra early just to avoid motorway traffic heading south.

Apologies as I do not usually document my trips extremely well as I usually go alone and prioritise my enjoyment, rather than video and photo captures.

Here is the entrance to the reserve. The road toward Manukapua is just gravel from the turnoff in Tapora. The first 7km is less maintained but the next kms are very well-graded.

I aired down to just 20psi just when I started to feel extra resistance from the sand. I crossed the tidal flat at 11:38 am when the tide was as its lowest and took photos from the south side of the island.

I got up the sand without any hassles but did not use momentum, at all. The car clawed its way to the top. I felt most confident on sand with these G015s.

I was the only vehicle playing in the dunes. The 4x4 trucks were just on the shore.

After going down from the dunes, I noticed a Hilux that was stuck in the exrtremely sticky part of the sand. Oner person was waving at me and when I approached him, I asked what he was trying to say and he said, “Go back, bro, you’ll get stuck!” I didn’t, but I offered them my shovel, anyway. I was prepared to offer them my recovery board even though it was brand new that time.

I went around that sticky part and took a photo of the track that I left.

Then, I headed to the edge to relax and eat my lunch.

I left the island after around 5 hours from entry as the tide started to rush in.


On the way back, I got my first wave coming from a Legacy driver. It wasn't the two finger wave but it's still OK with me. Cheers.


Coming soon... "The black SG5 heads west to wander around the lagoon and gets playful inside the tip of Woodhill."

 

[Kevin]

and prioritise my enjoyment, rather than video and photo captures.

Me too!

Nice trip

 

[Beachworm]

Very nice photography.

Are the poison pellets for the Aussie possums?

 

[ABFoz]

Thanks, @Kevin and @Beachworm.

Yes, the pellets are for rodents including possums and rats. Other reserves use 1080 which is somewhat controversial. The pellets are positioned strategically so they won't interfere with the species that they are trying to protect.

 

[jf1sf5]

Beautiful and soothing pictures of the SG on the beach.

I don't take many pictures or videos either....! Oh well !

 

[ABFoz]

I usually take photos of landscapes and wild animals on my trips. It's only when I joined ORS when I decided to somewhat take photos of the SG.

If I travel with camera lovers, they get to take photos or videos of the Forester but if I am alone, I do it all by myself. Cheers.

 

[ABFoz]

I needed to relax after a hardcore week so I decided to make a video of this trip.

I tried to shorten the videos as much as possible but I didn't want to cut the crossings. In case you get bored, you can skip to the following parts of the video:

• 1:08 | Crossing 1: To the island
• 3:22 | Into the dunes
• 3:57 | Crawling ascent to the top
• 4:27 | Test on mushy sand
• 6:00 | Stuck Hilux + shovel offer
• 6:16 | Crossing 2: To the main island

 

[jf1sf5]

Thats a nice video AB ! No fast sands there ? Back to Auckland, you sure had to give a good wash to take all the salt out.

 

[scalman]

what nice place to visit. Imagine if money not problem, i would just travel and just see all those places with car.... yh what if ..

 

[ABFoz]

Thats a nice video AB ! No fast sands there ? Back to Auckland, you sure had to give a good wash to take all the salt out.

We do. The west coast of Northland and Auckland are essentially public highways and have speed limits from 80kph to 110kph. In my last Kaipara trip toward Pouto Point, I travelled through the more compacted sand at around 70 to 100 kph, because some places require a lot of reading the ground due to sudden changes in sand density and the occurrence of larger obstacles. I may have some clips of this.

After this trip and after parking the vehicle, the reality of having to clean it kicked in immediately. I used my pressure washer to get the loose dirt/sand out and then treated the under-chassis with a vinegar-water solution before final washing with soap and soft washer.

what nice place to visit. Imagine if money not problem, i would just travel and just see all those places with car.... yh what if ..

It is, although our type of touring has its limits here, especially in the North Island. Our Department of Conservation is very strict with the use of anything near our forests and sacred sites. We don't have that much forests in the South Island and that's why it's an off-road tourer's paradise. Cheers.

 

[daklakfoto]

Looks like a fun place to cross the beach to an island.

So far I'm saying no to sea water nor wanna get near them.

Fun time and thanks for sharing