News In Brief

11 July, 2022

July Rebus trip details
Mangawhai Rebus will be visiting the Matakoe Kauri museum on Thursday July 21. This will be an all-day bus trip, leaving from The Club car park at 9.30am. Rebus members $30 (subsidised), visitors $40. Lunch will be available from the cafe at Matakoe, or bring your own. For more info call (09) 945 0546 or 022 337 4666. Visitors, let organisers know if you would like to come (bus numbers). Advance notice: The August meeting will be a trip to the Omaha Marae at Leigh.

Longboard comp over Matariki
More than 60 surfers from around the country entered the ninth annual Loggerheads surf comp held at at Baylys Beach near Dargaville on the Friday, and Mangawhai Heads on Saturday of the Matariki long weekend. Event organiser Tony Baker said Covid issues had meant the contest had been held in winter the last two years.

All four divisions saw great waves: Open Men, Open Women, Juniors (under 18) and Old Mal (for traditional, pre-1970 longboards). Fifteen-year-old Christchurch (and NZ rep) surfer Jack Tyro took out the Open Men's and Junior divisions, and was second in the Old Mal division behind Auckland surfer Matt Newdick. Whangarei surfer Wini Paul won the Women's Division.

Plans for the event’s 10th anniversary next year are already in the pipeline.

Planting along shared path
With the courtesy crossings for phase one now complete, the shared path team has had the spades and mulch out, getting the final shrubs and trees in the ground recently. All of the plants are native and include pohutukawa, nikau, kowhai, and harakeke. Many of the plants and trees have been sourced by local nurseries Rural Design and Kauri Park.

Also on the list was the area between Mangawhai Artists Inc Gallery and Leslie Street. United Civil contractors will be completing utility service work in that area and finishing off that section of the shared path. Council contractors are also waiting on a weather window to finish the remediation of the road along Molesworth Drive, followed by work on the aggregate shared paths that will meander through the Mangawhai Community Park.