Party: Anna, Elizabeth, Lesley
Map:
Distance:
Elevation:
Time: 3 hours
Notes: The last time we did something like this walk, it was 2011, and Janet B was part of the party.
This time, it was seriously freezing when we set off from Bucklands Beach, although we did take the time to admire how close Tahuna Torea Spit is at low tide, and to check out the boats heading out for the day in the channel between the Spit and Bucklands. First stop was Pigeon Mountain / Ōhuiarangi to see what changes have been made to the landscape there: read more about the changes here. Our interest has stemmed from a similar project currently proposed for Mt Albert / Ōwairaka which would also see exotic trees removed and replaced by new native tree plantings.There wasn't much to see - just a small area that has been cleared of larger trees, with some harakeke plantings and a few other shrubs, but not much else. There was a mysterious fenced off area which was only a few metres wide, but which extended across an area close to the summit. The view is amazing! Anna directed us onwards, and we had a close look at urban Bucklands Beach, making our way through Murvale Reserve and Macleans Park before ending up on the Esplanade at Eastern Beach. Highlights included a meeting of some of the more elderly locals behind the public toilet block (we can only assume it was out of the wind), who had thermoses, food, camp chairs and blankets and were happily ensconced for the day. Up and over the hill through the Howick Golf Club, and on to Musick Point. The Musick Memorial Radio Station is at the highest point, with views out to Browns Island, Motutapu and Waiheke, and the Coromandel Peninsula curving around to look as though the whole area encloses a single bay. The day was sunny and clear, so we could see Anna's apartment and the Harbour Bridge way in the distance. Spectacular. We hit the beach, and slid and crunched our way back to Bucklands Espresso Lounge across the muddy low tide. Nice hot coffee, delicious ginger crunch, and some slightly out-of-season monarch butterflies finished off a great walk on a crisp, bluebird day.
Great to see the blog up and running again in these Kauri dieback, Covid-19, gloomy days. I see Musick Point written up by council like this: 'Musick Point has a fascinating history. Don't miss the former radio transmission station, which played a key role in the South Pacific campaign during WWII. In the late 1930's, Musick Point was one of five strategic locations for a national communications network that enabled commercial international aviation in New Zealand. Musick Point was named after American aviation pioneer, Captain Edwin Musick.
ReplyDeleteThe unique architecture of the transmission station is credited to the first New Zealand-trained Government Architect John Blake-Kelly. It represents an early local use of modern or functionalist-influenced architecture in Auckland.
Another claim to fame is that the radio transmission station building was 'blown up' during the filming of an episode of children’s television show 'Terry and the Gunrunners' in 1985. The fireball from the explosion was set off by remote control from the top of the drive. The episode is available to watch on the Musick Point Radio Group website.' I'm off to watch Terry and the Gunrunners!