Thursday morning 12th found us driving on SH1 with neighbour Wendy to Otaki, which is a small town in the farming region about 15 minutes north of Waikanae.
The main aim of the expedition (for the girls) was to collect driftwood for the Poo Corner Garden, as Otaki Beach is rich in such treasures owing to the mouth of the nearby Otaki River, which we’d previous;y visited early in January (See my earlier blogs ‘Otaki Forks’ and ‘Back to Otaki Town’). I went along to visit the Farmlands Co-op, in search of availability and pricing options for bulk dog food, chicken feed, and possible materials for the proposed construction of a proper veggie garden and plant nursery.
I drew a blank as far as the construction materials were concerned, and then returned to the deserted beach where I’d left the treasure hunters. As luck usually has it, the girls found more driftwood than the wagon could carry, even with the loading seats all in the ‘down’ position.
A fairly large proportion of the Otaki population is of Maori culture, and the town is a centre for Maori learning with a large educational college, and street benches, shops and beach decor all reflect the Maori culture.
(Above): Large driftwood tree trunks which have been carved in much detail, much as the plentiful tattoos stand (informally) along the vegetated part of the coastline at Otaki Beach.
(Above): Wendy and Jeanette rest up a bit for some water after their scavenging expedition. In the background are typical little homes, which, as building structures are probably not worth that much, whilst the ground on which they are located are each worth a king’s ransom. The blue one on the right displays a large “Everton” sign in the front window. No guessing as to their favourite sport!
As Wendy was previously a resident in this town, she served as a guide for a tour around the residential and commercial areas of Otaki. We visited a large nursery (‘Strik’) owned by a Dutch family, supplying supermarkets and other seedling, flower and plant retailers.
I was surprised (and pleased) to discover a paint factory in River Road, Enviro Paints, who manufacture and distribute a comprehensive range of paints throughout New Zealand. Their website is professionally balanced and is very informative. Well done, guys.
As one enters the town from the south on SH1, one of the very first places you encounter is a quaint old restaurant/cafe. River Cottage Cafe (which was formerly known as ‘Brown Sugar’) is now run by Rebecca and Taaki Te Momo. Fully licensed, this café offers evening meals as well as daytime. There is a great outdoor garden in which to relax when the weather is fine. We stopped of for a coffee around their cosy fireplace, and then strolled around their outdoor section afterwards.
(Above): Part of the outdoor dining area in the River Cottage Cafe grounds. Being a Thursday morning, with cold-ish weather which was rather ‘iffy’, there were no takers to sit outside, most preferring the comfort from the log fire indoors.
(Above): The interior of a garage/shed which has been converted into an informal coffee ‘lounge’, with a play area for the kiddies.
(Above): Jeanette and Wendy discuss the effectively of a mirror window in the coffee lounge.
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