Thursday Update #11

Breakfast Pool area planting

A big thank you to the team of locals who turned up on Wednesday to plant this area, an area of approx 2.5 hectares.  The team was assisted by a willing team of community workers.

The  next photo shows the area to be planted as presented in our application for funds from the Waikato Catchment Ecological Enhancement Trust to whom we are grateful for the funding of our planting project.

Plants being set out in preparation for planting. The grass coverage of the area is favourable for planting and in itself is wonderful cover for the land in times of flood. I have heard it referred to as raincoat vegetation as it allows the water to flow over the land without affecting the earth.

The key to planting is the leadership given by Marja ter Haar who has organised the project. Marja has been responsible for getting community workers to assist and for the locals who assisted. Paea Veitayaki from the Corrections Department supervises community workers and Advocates committee member Marja ter Haar.

Not all of the plants were planted and we will plant the remaining plants next Wednesday. We start at 9.30am from the stopbank by the Birches (Major Jones)swing bridge.

Very pleasing was the sizeable anonymous donation given by a local person impressed by the planting effort to go towards the cost of the work. The gesture was much appreciated.

Fishing Report

I fished the Tongariro again this Wednesday after a break of two weeks’ – fishing in the Andaman Sea. The weather yesterday was cold. The thermometer struggled to reach 4 degrees and the wind was fierce. There was only one vehicle in the Bain carpark at 4.00pm and I caught the fish, pictured, within 5 minutes. It seemed a strong fish by the fight it gave. It weighed 1.35kg and was 50cm long. A hen, it was a bit thin and the flesh, when opened, was white. It would have been a second time spawner.  The only anglers I saw when I returned to the carpark remarked that they had seen few anglers or fish, and had themselves caught only one fish since Sunday. Not surprising. Sunday was the start of the very cold weather which closed the Desert Road.

I tried again this afternoon without success and although there were more anglers around, I saw none carrying fish.

Visit to Rangipo Dam

Tomorrow a group of the committee will meet with Genesis and visit the Rngipo Dam with the intention of understanding the sediment problem. I will report on the vist next Update.

The graph below shows the river returning to normal after the series of small floods earlier in the winter. These floods were unusual in that our winter tends to be dry. The two day graph available by clicking on the River Flow URL in the right hand column of this page shows either eratic flows with minor variations or a faulty recorder.

Tongariro at Turangi – River-flow

Eric Wilson

Secretary/Treasurer