56-636: The Okura Bush Scenic Reserve is a protected forested area on the Hibiscus Coast in the Auckland Region , New Zealand. It is the location of the Okura Bush Track. The Okura Bush Scenic Reserve is located to the north of the Okura River , on the opposite shore from the village of Ōkura . Dacre Point is a headland at the mouth of the river, at the very eastern point of the reserve. The reserve borders
112-589: A crib in the southern half of the South Island, is a small, often modest holiday home or beach house in New Zealand. Baches are an iconic part of the country's history and culture. In the middle of the 20th century, they symbolized the beach holiday lifestyle that was becoming more accessible to the middle class. Baches began to gain popularity in the 1950s as roads improved and the increasing availability of cars allowed for middle-class beach holidays, often to
168-555: A defensive pā , Rarowhara, at the eastern headland of the Weiti River . Outside of Rarowhara, pā were established across the wider area, including a ring of protective pā surrounding the Waiwera hot spring , Dacre Point, Alice Eaves Scenic Reserve , Rakauananga Pā at Hobbs Bay, Coalminers Bay, Big Manly Beach and Little Manly Beach. The Hibiscus Coast was the location of an important shark fishery, located between Kawau Island and
224-593: A high ranking Ngāti Paoa woman, seasonally stayed at Whangaparāoa with his Ngāti Paoa relatives. The Hibiscus Coast area was visited by explorer Jules Dumont d'Urville in 1827 aboard the Astrolabe . d'Urville decided to name Karepiro Bay Tofino Bay after the Spanish navigator and mathematician Vicente Tofiño de San Miguel , and the Whangaparāoa Peninsula 'Buache'. The first known European to step ashore onto
280-629: A house adjacent to the Waiwera Hot Pools , publicising the hot pools as a tourist destination from 1848 onwards. In 1864, the Waiwera hot springs hotel was constructed, and by 1878 ferry services operated between Auckland and the hotel. Outside of the Wade, Ranulph Dacre acquired Weiti Station, a timber mill at modern Okura Bush Scenic Reserve in 1846, and the Polkinghorme family settled at Whangaparāoa in
336-637: A mix of old growth and regenerating forest. The northern shore of the Okura River was traditionally known as Otaimaro, and was an extensive Māori settlement. In 1848, Henry Dacre and his father Captain Ranulph Dacre purchased the lands surrounding the river, creating the Weiti Station. Their house, the Dacre Cottage, was built circa 1855 from locally made bricks. The reserve was established in 1991, under
392-903: A new motorway between the Auckland Northern Motorway and the Whangaparāoa Peninsula , crossing the Weiti River at Stillwater and connecting the township to the Auckland motorways network. The road is projected to open in 2026. Future areas that are zoned for development on the Hibiscus Coast include the Highgate Business Park and Weiti Lands, the area between Okura Bush Scenic Reserve and Stillwater . Hibiscus Coast covers 49.38 km (19.07 sq mi) and had an estimated population of 69,070 as of June 2024, with
448-508: A new motorway to Whangaparāoa, crossing the Weiti River. The Hibiscus Coast is an area of the northern Auckland Region , located between the Waiwera River to the north and the Ōkura River to the south, adjacent to the Hauraki Gulf . The area includes the Whangaparāoa Peninsula and Tiritiri Matangi Island , found 3.4 kilometres (2.1 mi) east of the peninsula. Major communities on
504-724: A population density of 1,399 people per km . Hibiscus Coast had a population of 54,924 at the 2018 New Zealand census , an increase of 10,818 people (24.5%) since the 2013 census , and an increase of 16,914 people (44.5%) since the 2006 census . There were 20,334 households, comprising 26,517 males and 28,416 females, giving a sex ratio of 0.93 males per female, with 10,320 people (18.8%) aged under 15 years, 8,667 (15.8%) aged 15 to 29, 24,294 (44.2%) aged 30 to 64, and 11,637 (21.2%) aged 65 or older. Ethnicities were 86.0% European/ Pākehā , 7.8% Māori , 2.4% Pasifika , 10.7% Asian , and 2.3% other ethnicities. People may identify with more than one ethnicity. The percentage of people born overseas
560-532: A population of 69,070 (June 2024), making it the 10th most populous urban area in New Zealand, and the second most populous in the Auckland Region, behind Auckland itself. As an urban area delineated by Statistics New Zealand , the Hibiscus Coast consists of Hatfields Beach , Orewa , Silverdale and Whangaparāoa Peninsula . The Auckland Council 's Hibiscus Coast subdivision of the Hibiscus and Bays includes
616-649: Is an open sanctuary, and the largest island off the Hibiscus Coast. Tiritiri Matangi is located a short distance off the end of the Whangaparāoa Peninsula adjacent to the Shakespear Regional Park . Mahurangi Island is a smaller Island which sits off the mouth of the Waiwera River , the island forms part of the Wenderholm Regional Park . The smallest island on the Hibiscus Coast is Kotanui Island (Frenchman's Cap), which sits between Matakatia and Gulf Harbour Marina . Prior to European settlement,
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#1733123197571672-513: Is complemented with an adjacent beach shop with original products from that time. While older baches tend to be fibrolite lean-to structures, modern kit-set buildings are becoming popular among bach owners. Some figures estimate that more than 50,000 baches exist around New Zealand (population 5.3 million people). Early baches rarely enjoyed amenities like connections to the water and electricity grid or indoor toilets. They were simply furnished, often with secondhand furniture. In more recent times
728-583: Is near the end of the Whangaparaoa Peninsula, which is quite close to the wildlife reserve Tiritiri Matangi Island . Ferries transport people to the island from the harbour and back on a regular basis. From 1877 until 1974, the area was administered by the Waitemata County , a large rural county north and west of the city of Auckland. In 1974 the county was dissolved, becoming part of Rodney County , them from 1989 to 2010 Rodney District . Orewa
784-407: Is used for outbuildings. Sizeable populations of Welsh miners relocated to New Zealand during mining booms. They are almost always small structures, usually made of cheap or recycled material like fibrolite ( asbestos cement sheet ), corrugated iron, or used timber. They were influenced by the backwoods cabins and sheds of the early settlers and farmers. Other baches used a caravan as the core of
840-454: The 58th (Rutlandshire) Regiment of Foot . This became the family residence of Channel Islands migrants, the de Jersey Gruts, in 1868, after the family struggled to establish a farm at Birkenhead . Orewa House was the de Jersey Grut home for three generations, becoming a commercial guest house in 1906. As kauri gum deposits became rarer, land at Orewa was developed into orchards, where apples, pears, grapes and citrus fruit were grown for
896-527: The Auckland Region . Maki conquered and unified many of the Tāmaki Māori tribes as Te Kawerau ā Maki , including those of the North Shore and Hibiscus Coast. After Maki's death, his sons settled different areas of his lands, creating new hapū , including the wider Hibiscus Coast hapū of Ngāti Manuhiri , Ngāti Maraeariki, Ngāti Poataniwha and Ngāti Kahu. Maki's younger son Maraeariki primarily settled at
952-523: The Long Bay-Okura Marine Reserve , which is located along the Okura River estuary, Karepiro Bay and the Hauraki Gulf coast to the east and south. Okura Bush Scenic Reserve is a part of the Okura Bush and Shell Barriers biodiversity focus area, notable as a transitionary area between forest and estuary. The reserve features a large grove of pūriri trees. Other areas predominantly feature
1008-453: The 13th century, with many of the first Māori occupants identifying as Ngā Oho . The wider area between the Ōrewa River and Mahurangi River was traditionally known as Mahurangi, named after a pā located at the mouth of the Waiwera River . Archaeological sites in the area are most densely found at Karepiro Bay , the Ōrewa River estuary and Shakespear Regional Park , at the end of the Whangaparāoa Peninsula . The Ōrewa River estuary
1064-575: The 1850s, establishing a short-lived cheese factory. By the mid-1850s, the majority of accessible native forest had been logged across the region, and the Hibiscus Coast was subdivided into farming lots. Six years after the construction of New Zealand's first lighthouse , the Tiritiri Matangi Lighthouse was built in 1864. It remains New Zealand's oldest working lighthouse. In 1856 Captain Isaac Rhodes Cooper built Orewa House with
1120-525: The 1870s. The Hibiscus Coast was a part of the Mahurangi Block, forest sold to the Crown in 1841. Kauri loggers and itinerant kauri gum diggers were among the first Europeans to come to the area. The township of Silverdale , then known as The Wade, was established as a logging town along the Weiti River, and the Waiwera Hot Pools became a popular tourist attraction in the latter 19th century. Orewa and
1176-639: The Aotoetoe portage travelled north between the Kaukapakapa River and the Ōrewa River. Additionally, the Waiau portage bisected the Whangaparāoa Peninsula between Tindalls Beach and Matakatia , and it is likely that another portage existed on the peninsula to the west, connecting Red Beach to the Weiti River. Likely in the 17th century, the warrior Maki migrated from the Kāwhia Harbour to his ancestral home in
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#17331231975711232-601: The Auckland Council. Marking the inner boundary of the Hibiscus Coast is Auckland's Northern Motorway ( State Highway One ). The motorway was extended to Orewa at the end of the 1990s. In early 2009, a further motorway extension connected the motorway to Puhoi, creating the Northern Gateway Toll Road and replacing that section of State Highway 17 . Bach (New Zealand) A bach (sometimes spelled "batch" pronounced / ˈ b æ tʃ / ), also called
1288-419: The Auckland market. By the turn of the 20th century, dairy farming had become a viable and profitable business in New Zealand. This led to escalating land prices on the Hibiscus Coast and more intensive land use, and by the 1920s orchards were replaced by dairy farms. A long jetty was constructed at Waiwera in 1905, quickly becoming dilapidated due to the wharf's length making it difficult to maintain. In 1911,
1344-756: The Hibiscus Coast include Orewa , the Whangaparāoa Peninsula , Silverdale , and the villages of Stillwater , Hatfields Beach and Waiwera . The area is home to six rivers, estuaries and streams: the Waiwera Estuary , to the north, Ōtānerua Stream , Nukumea Stream , Ōrewa River , Weiti River, and Ōkura River to the south. Beaches in the region are predominantly sandy, with gentle slopes. Many of these are wide and provide excellent opportunities for sunbathing, swimming, and water sports. Red Beach and Orewa are some of Auckland's best beginner surf beaches, whilst other Hibiscus Coast beaches are more suitable for swimming and families. Tiritiri Matangi Island
1400-699: The Hibiscus Coast was a missionary in 1833, and early timber merchants were attracted to the Weiti River catchment by the late 1830s. Following the signing of the Treaty of Waitangi in 1840, the Crown made the first purchases of the Mahurangi and Omaha blocks on 13 April 1841, which included the Hibiscus Coast. While some iwi and hapū with customary interests had been engaged, such as Ngāti Paoa and Ngāi Tai ki Tāmaki, others, including Te Kawerau ā Maki, Ngāti Manuhiri and Ngāti Rango, were not involved with transactions. This led to Ngāti Manuhiri being alienated from land on
1456-451: The Hibiscus Coast. Timber felling increased along the Weiti River catchment in the 1840s, and a settlement called the Wade (modern-day Silverdale ) was established at the navigable heads of the Weiti River around the year 1853, becoming the commercial centre for the area. The first known permanent settler along the Weiti River was John Robey Cole Hatfield, who settled in 1844. By 1853, there were likely between 200 and 300 people living at
1512-470: The Nautilus was completed at Orewa. The only high rise building on the Hibiscus Coast, it is home to over 300 people, and in 2009 faced issues for being a leaky building. Silverdale rapidly expanded in the early 2000s. In 2018, the Waiwera Hot Pools closed for renovations; however it never reopened. In 2023, the derelict water park was demolished. In late 2022, construction began on O Mahurangi Penlink ,
1568-497: The Wade. Maurice and Ellen Kelly, who operated a timber milling business, opened the Wade Hotel, which became the social centre for the town. The hotel was of ill repute among early settlers to New Zealand, known for cockfighting , dog fighting , and had a reputation for criminality. Silverdale School was established as the first school on the Hibiscus Coast in 1869 (then known as Wade School). In 1844, Robert Graham constructed
1624-522: The Whangaparāoa Peninsula became popular tourist destinations in the 1920s, when holiday baches were constructed in the area. During World War II , a New Zealand Army base was constructed at the end of the peninsula. The area rapidly developed in the 1950s and 1960s, in part due to the opening of the Auckland Harbour Bridge , and town centres were constructed in Orewa and Whangaparāoa. The 1960s saw
1680-439: The Whangaparāoa Peninsula, which was contested between iwi of the wider region. By the mid-1700s, Marutūāhu tribes from the Hauraki Gulf , especially Ngāti Pāoa , sought to control the important resource. Ngāti Pāoa established a pā on Tiritiri Matangi Island , for use during shark fishing expeditions. War between Ngāti Pāoa and Ngāti Kahu lasted until the 1790s. After a peace accord held at Mihirau at Wenderholm Regional Park
1736-468: The area in 1964. By the end of the 1960s, the peninsula had approximately 2,000 permanent residents, with the population swelling to over 25,000 during the summer. In 1965, the Auckland Regional Authority established Wenderholm Regional Park , the first newly established regional park in Auckland, directly adjacent to the Hibiscus Coast. This was followed by Shakespear Regional Park, at
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1792-550: The basic bach has been replaced by the modern "holiday house", which is more substantial, more expensive (reflecting increases in affluence, and vastly increased coastal land values) and usually professionally built (due to stricter building codes). Another important change has been the subdivision of coastal land, bringing increasing numbers of residents and visitors, along with traffic, cafes, mobile phone coverage, craft shops, and other conveniences, to what were originally empty beaches and bush-filled gullies. Some bach-dotted beaches of
1848-453: The building safely. Following the start of World War II , the threat of Japanese invasion saw the headland of the Whangaparāoa Peninsula chosen as one of two Auckland defence sites. Coastal defences were subsequently established in what was then the Shakespear family farm. Eleven pillboxes , and a number of other army barracks were built on the land. By 1961, the batteries and much of
1904-401: The early 1960s, when a group of Whangaparāoa and Orewa businessmen looked for an inclusive name for the developing Whangaparāoa/Orewa area. The group chose hibiscus , a non-native flower, due to its associations with beach and holiday atmospheres. Hibiscus was also used as the name of one of the minereal baths at the Waiwera Hot Pools in the early 20th century. The Hibiscus Coast Association
1960-478: The eastern headland of the Whangaparāoa Peninsula, in 1967. By the 1980s, large-scale housing developments were being constructed along the Whangaparāoa Peninsula. In 1990, the Centrestage Theatre was constructed in Orewa. On 20 December 1999, the Auckland Northern Motorway was extended to Silverdale. This created a major link for the area back to the city. In 2004, a 12-storey apartment complex called
2016-462: The entire Whangaparāoa Peninsula having a shared identity. By the 1930s, coastal steamers were no longer the major form of transportation due to improved roading infrastructure. During the night of the 27 September 1939, a fire broke out in the Waiwera Hotel, seeing the building burnt to the ground. The fire was reportedly visible from Auckland City. The hotel's two only guests were able to escape
2072-569: The head of the Ōrewa River, and his hapū Ngāti Maraeariki grew to occupy lands between Whangaparāoa and Ōmaha . Maraeariki's children Te Utu and Kahu settled along the Whangaparāoa Peninsula. Ngāti Poataniwha formed marriage links with Ngāi Tai descendants of Taihaua and Waiohua , while Ngāti Kahu, who descend from Maraeariki's daughter Kahu, formed links with both Ngāi Tai descendants of Taihaua and Ngāti Whātua o Kaipara . Ngāti Kahu focused settlement at Te Haruhi Bay at modern Shakespear Regional Park , due to its desirble location, and held
2128-485: The inland Hibiscus Coast area was densely forested, dominated by kauri , and the upper Ōrewa River catchment was a wetland. By the mid-19th century, the Whangaparāoa Peninsula was no longer forested, and was dominated by mānuka scrub and swamplands. The Hibiscus Coast has a warm temperate oceanic climate (Cfb) on the Köppen Climate Classification System. The name Hibiscus Coast dates from
2184-549: The name Okura Estuary Scenic Reserve. In 2014, the Friends of Okura Bush was established, as an organisation dedicated to the survival and protection of the forest. In 2018, the walkway was temporary closed in order to combat the threat of kauri dieback , and as of 2023 remains closed. Hibiscus Coast The Hibiscus Coast is a populated area on a stretch of the Hauraki Gulf coast in New Zealand 's Auckland Region . It has
2240-468: The name Whangaparāoa to describe the new town centre, favoured over the runner up name Glen Arkle. The Hibiscus Coast experienced a building and population boom in the 1960s, due to the opening of the Auckland Harbour Bridge . Orewa and western Whangaparāoa rapidly urbanised between 1964 and 1975, with the eastern Whangaparāoa peninsula developing in the late 1980s. In 1957, the Orewa Skating Rink
2296-522: The neighbouring communities of Waiwera and Stillwater , and Milldale in Rodney , is also described as a part of the Hibiscus Coast. Tāmaki Māori settled the Hibiscus Coast area from at least the 13th century, utilising the resources of the Weiti River , Ōrewa River and Whangaparāoa Bay, where an important shark fishery was located. After the Kawerau warrior Maki unified many of the Tāmaki Māori people of
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2352-519: The northern and western Auckland Region, his children and grandchildren established hapū including Ngāti Kahu, Ngāti Maraeariki and Ngāti Manuhiri . Ngāti Kahu and Ngāti Pāoa from the Hauraki Gulf fought for control over the Whangaparāoa Bay shark fishery in the 18th century. After fleeing the area in the 1820s due to the Musket Wars , Ngāti Kahu returned to the Hibiscus Coast, living here until
2408-475: The opening of two regional parks, Wenderholm Regional Park , adjacent to the Hibiscus Cost, and Shakespear Regional Park , at the eastern headland of the Whangaparāoa Peninsula. The Hibiscus Coast was connected to the Auckland Northern Motorway in the late 1990s, after which further residential development occurred on the coast, most notably at Silverdale. In 2023, construction began on O Mahurangi Penlink ,
2464-583: The other military equipment had been decommissioned. The base, remains active into the 21st century as part of the Royal New Zealand Navy as the RNZN Tamaki Training Centre. Orewa and the Whangaparāoa Peninsula were subdivided for suburban housing in the 1950s. The Orewa town centre was developed in 1953, which included a shopping precinct and Hillary Square, joined by a town centre at Whangaparāoa in 1957. Residents narrowly decided on
2520-432: The residents of the Wade decided to rename the settlement Silverdale, due to its poor reputation. Orewa became a popular destination for campers and holidayers in the 1920s, which led to the height of popularity of Orewa House, then owned by Alice and Edward Eaves. The first holiday baches were constructed on Whangaparāoa in the 1920s, at Red Beach and Manly . Small coastal communities developed around each bay, without
2576-455: The same beach every year. With yearly return trips being made, baches began to spring up in many family vacation spots. Bach was for some time thought to be short for bachelor pad , but they tended to be family holiday homes. An alternative theory for the origin of the word is that bach is the Welsh word for 'small' and 'little'. The phrase Tŷ Bach (outhouse; literally 'small house')
2632-632: The structure and built extensions onto it. Many cities were dismantling tram systems in the 1950s, and old trams were sometimes used as baches, most noticeably on the coast of the Coromandel Peninsula on the Firth of Thames , to which more than 100 trams were relocated. A reconstructed example of a typical bach from the 1950s can be found in the New Zealand Maritime Museum on Princes Wharf in central Auckland . The period-furnished bach
2688-576: The wider Northland and Auckland regions, and was often used as a resting point for people travelling between the Mahurangi Harbour and Waitematā Harbour . Portages , where waka could be hauled overland between waterways, connected the Hibiscus Coast area to the Kaipara Harbour in the west. The Weiti Portage crossed overland between the Kaukapakapa River and the Weiti River , while
2744-568: Was 35.1, compared with 27.1% nationally. Although some people chose not to answer the census's question about religious affiliation, 50.5% had no religion, 38.8% were Christian , 0.2% had Māori religious beliefs , 1.2% were Hindu , 0.4% were Muslim , 0.9% were Buddhist and 1.6% had other religions. Of those at least 15 years old, 10,122 (22.7%) people had a bachelor's or higher degree, and 6,435 (14.4%) people had no formal qualifications. 9,966 people (22.3%) earned over $ 70,000 compared to 17.2% nationally. The employment status of those at least 15
2800-445: Was an important sheltered harbour, which offered marine resources such as shellfish and flounder, and connections to inland walking routes. The Tainui migratory waka is known to have visited Whangaparāoa in the 14th century, and Tahawhakatiki, nephew of Tama-te-kapua of the Arawa waka settled at Whangaparāoa. The Whangaparāoa Peninsula was an important transportation node between
2856-474: Was broken, Ngāti Pāoa attacked Rarowhara Pā, which Ngāti Kahu successfully defended. During this period, Kawerau-descended hapū held exclusive land rights to the Hibiscus Coast area, while fishing rights were shared between Ngāti Kahu and Marutūāhu tribes. In September 1821 during the Musket Wars , a Ngāpuhi taua (war party) ventured south to avenge past losses against Ngāti Kahu in the 1790s. The Kawerau-descendant tribes were heavily defeated, and Rarowhara Pā
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#17331231975712912-491: Was constructed. The rink developed into an entertainment precinct for the Hibiscus Coast in the 1960s, including a minigolf range and concert space. The rink was demolished in 1983. In the mid-1960s, the Hibiscus Coast Association was established by local businessmen, looking to create a unified identity for the Orewa and Whangaparāoa areas. As a part of their efforts, more than 1,000 hibiscus trees were planted in
2968-578: Was established in the 1960s, and lobbied against other regions of New Zealand adopting the hibiscus as a symbol. The name was officially adopted in 1971, when the Whangaparaoa Riding of the Waitemata County was renamed the Hibiscus Coast Riding. Hibiscus Coast has been translated into Māori as Te Kūiti o te Puarangi , referring to puarangi , a rare native species of hibiscus. The Hibiscus Coast area has been settled since at least
3024-546: Was sacked. Survivors fled to the Ararimu Valley, Muriwai , and eventually to the Waikato , gradually returning in the 1830s. On return, Ngāti Kahu formed intertribal marriages with Ngāti Whātua o Kaipara, seasonally migrating between Orewa, Te Haruhi Bay and Ōkura . Ngāti Kahu settlement at Whangaparāoa continued until the 1870s. After the war, prominent Ngāpuhi chief Eruera Maihi Patuone , who married Takarangi / Rīria,
3080-413: Was that 21,348 (47.9%) people were employed full-time, 6,522 (14.6%) were part-time, and 1,209 (2.7%) were unemployed. The Hibiscus Coast has a number of beaches that attract people to live there. Other places of interest on the coast or nearby include Snowplanet , Auckland Adventure Park , the Waiwera Hot Pools (now abandoned), Orewa Beach, Shakespear Regional Park , and Gulf Harbour. Gulf Harbour
3136-570: Was the administrative centre for the Rodney District. The Hibiscus Coast was amalgamated into Auckland Council in November 2010, under a single unitary authority system. Within the Auckland Council, the Hibiscus Coast subdivision is a part of the Hibiscus and Bays local government area governed by the Hibiscus and Bays Local Board . It is a part of the Albany ward , which elects two councillors to
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