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Journey 10: Pakaraka, Kerikeri, Stone Store, Kemp House, Waimate Mission

Time from the Lodge: 1 hour to Pakaraka. 20 minutes to Kerikeri. Round trip travel time allow approximately 3 hours.

Turn left from the Lodge. Turn right onto State Highway 12. Drive east on State Highway 12 through Waima, Taheke, Kaikohe and Ohaeawai. Continue south to Pakaraka.

From Pakaraka, drive a further 1 km to the junction of State Highway 10 with State Highway 1 and turn left. Shortly after the junction you will see signs and a drive on your right leading to a small cheese making business. Well worth a visit if you fancy a bit of cheese.

At Puketona Junction, continue straight ahead and you will come to the outskirts of Kerikeri. You will find several fine wineries in the district and many stalls selling fresh fruit. When you come to a roundabout, turn right into Kerikeri Road, which will take you to the town centre.

If you carry on through the town area you will be led down to the waters of the Kerikeri inlet. On one side of the inlet is the Stone Store, the oldest stone building in New Zealand and beside the store is Kemp House, the oldest occupied European house in New Zealand (1822). Both historic buildings are administered by the NZ Historic Places Trust and are open to the public from 10.00 am until 5.00 pm from November until April and from May to October they close at 4.00 pm. Kemp House is by guided tour only. Ring 09-407-9236. The grounds are home to the oldest Heritage Gardens in New Zealand.

Across the bridge, on the other side of the inlet, is Rewa’s Pa, which is a full-scale reconstruction of a Maori village that recaptures the atmosphere of the average kainga in pre-European times. Traditionally, each sub-tribe built a pa (fortified village) on a hilltop or some other easily defended position. In contrast, the kainga (unfortified village) was a temporary arrangement built close to the kumara fields or to other sources of food. In times of peace most would live in the kainga, but in times of danger would desert the kainga for the greater safety of the more permanent pa.

Return to the State Highway 10 roundabout and drive straight ahead. You will pass Kerikeri Airport and come to a road junction. Turn left into Waimate Road and carry on until you come to Waimate North, where you will find the Waimate Mission House, the second oldest building in New Zealand (1832). The Mission House was very involved in the troubled times during the Northern conflict. Officers who fell in the Ohaeawai battle of 1845 are buried in the churchyard of the adjacent Church of St. John the Baptist. It is owned by the NZ Historic Places Trust and open to the public (closed in winter, ring 09-407-9734, adult $10, child $3.50).