New public access to Taiari scroll plains

Herenga ā Nuku Aotearoa has supported Māniatoto farmers, the Winmill family and local catchment group Tiaki Maniototo to open new public access to the unique Taiari scroll plains.

The newly opened Wilson Road Taiari/Taieri river access site crosses the Winmill family's farm at Rotherwood. "We didn't approach them and ask them for public access," says Caitlin Daley, Tiaki Maniototo's project manager. "They approached us, saying they had this area and wanted to allow the public in there."

Herenga ā Nuku has worked closely with the Winmills and Tiaki Maniototo to develop this site, creating and funding signs, planting the area in flood-tolerant natives and fencing off the walkway.

Herenga ā Nuku's regional field advisor, Amie Pont, has been involved in the project since its inception. "Most of our mahi for this project has been to work with the group to advise of the land tenure of different sites," she says. "But in this instance, it was great to offer the landholders our Walking Access Easement instrument, creating public access in perpetuity so it is secure for future generations. The easement has enabled the Winmills to be quite specific about access requirements, such as allowing dogs under control but no firearms, while encouraging safe access to the Taiari.

Nina Winmill says her young family has enjoyed many adventures down at the river, and they wanted the public to be able to share this special place, too.
"It's a really cool area," she says. There's a lot of wildlife down here, and it's an area of land we're not using. It would be great to get some families down here, looking at the planting that's been done, and going for a walk."

For Caitlin Daley, opening a site like this, only about a 15-minute drive from Ranfurly, is a significant win for the community. "The Taiari scroll plain doesn't have much public access," she says. "I think it's really important that the community has access to the river to learn more about it.

"It's one thing to be able to talk about these places and tell people about them, but it's a completely different thing for people to experience them for themselves."
Many of the native plants have been planted by locals on community planting days. St John's School students have visited twice, planting hundreds of plants on each occasion.

The site features a short walk that leads visitors from a parking area to a small oxbow lake near the river. Tiaki Māniatoto hopes the site will eventually become a rich spot for birdlife.