Pukerua Bay
Encyclopedia
Pukerua Bay is a small seaside community at the southern end of the Kapiti Coast
, New Zealand
. In local government terms it is the northernmost suburb of Porirua
City. It is 12 km north of the Porirua City Centre on State Highway 1 (SH1), and 30 km north of central Wellington
.
In Māori
, the words puke rua literally mean two hills but it is not clear which hills the name refers to.
The community's population was 1,722 people in 2006, and there were 89 businesses. Pukerua Bay has a kindergarten, a pre-school, and the Pukerua Bay School, which caters for ages 5–12. There is a branch of Porirua Library, a Returned Servicemen's Association, tennis club, scout hall, sports field, and several nature reserves and trails. Retail facilities include a convenience store, hairdresser and second-hand bookstore.
Pukerua Bay has one train station, Pukerua Bay
, on the North Island Main Trunk Railway, with suburban services provided by Tranz Metro
. The train journey to Wellington takes about 35 minutes, to Paraparaumu
20 minutes. A second train station, Muri station
, 1.2 km by road north of Pukerua Bay station, has been closed on 30 April 2011.
Pukerua Bay's skatepark was rebuilt in 2009 in a collaborative venture between the Porirua City Council, the Residents Association, and PKBSK8 Inc. Funding was also provided by the Caversham Foundation and the Mana Community Grants Foundation. The park is adjacent to the Pukerua Bay railway station, and replaces an old asphalt bowl which was possibly New Zealand's first purpose-built skateboarding facility.
near today's seaward end of Rawhiti Road. Pukerua Bay was on the main road for Māori travellers going north or south. About 1822, it was invaded from Kapiti Island
by Te Rauparaha
and his Ngati Toa
people. According to local legend, the Muaupoko people fled up the gorge of the Waimapihi stream (on the Ohariu Fault line), abandoning their treasures on the way.
The land blocks originally surveyed (Wairaka in the west, Waimapihi and Pukerua in the east) were sold to settlers from Europe for farming in the late 19th century. Charles Gray was the first resident to subdivide and sell residential sections in Pukerua Bay, in the early 20th century.
Pukerua Bay's development history is curious because the railway went through it (1886) for years before there was good road access (1940), so it grew at first on the waterfront as a weekend destination. The original railway station was named "Pukerua" until it was changed briefly to Waimapihi in the 1920s and then to "Pukerua Bay" to avoid confusion with "Pukerau" in the South Island
.
By the end of the 1920s, Pukerua Bay numbered 100 houses, a small school on land donated by Charles Gray, and a few small stores. Electricity was put through from Plimmerton to Pukerua Bay in 1927 and in 1928 the track between Plimmerton and Pukerua Bay was formed into a narrow road. The beach remained the main attraction for weekend visitors from Wellington (by steam train) as there was still no highway and no bridge at Paremata
.
Most of the clifftop development dates from after World War II
. Pukerua Bay experienced significant growth in the 1950s and 1960s, being connected to Wellington via the (by then double-tracked) railway line and accessible from north and south via SH1. In 1973, Pukerua Bay joined Porirua City Council to get the issues of water and sewerage connection addressed.
Growth continued in the 1970s with the Sea Vista Drive subdivision and soon the fact that SH1, with increasing traffic, was going through the middle of Pukerua Bay became an issue. In 1989, an over-bridge over SH1 was opened, after continued lobbying by local residents, which included continually walking across the pedestrian crossing to hold up traffic.
and occasionally Mount Taranaki and Ruapehu
to the north) from many houses. The Kaikoura range on the South Island including Mt Tapuaenuku can be seen from some places at the southern end of the township. The coast around Pukerua Bay is fairly steep, with only a few houses nestled in a row behind the two sandy beach areas. The surrounding hills are mainly farm land used for sheep and cattle grazing, providing a rural backdrop to the east and west. The area to the south, along SH1, turns into Taupo Swamp towards Plimmerton.
Pukerua Bay's main residential areas are along Rawhiti Road, west of SH1, the central clifftop, Sea Vista Drive east of SH1 and the beach frontage extending east (Brendan Beach) and west of Beach Road. There is a pedestrian bridge over SH1 near Wairaka Road's Kindergarten and pre-school and the school's back entrance (the main entrance is on Rawhiti Road).
There are two walks between Pukerua Bay and Plimmerton
(5 km south), one around the rocky coast, and one inland (part of a longer cycleway) parallel to the railway. The inland route is pre-European - it was traditionally known as te taua tapu (the sacred war-party). The cycleway is known as Te Ara Harakeke (the flax road). The coastal route goes past Marble Arch (Te Ana Puta) to Wairaka Rock on an uninhabited part of Pukerua Bay, the only, mainland home of Whitaker's Skink
(Cyclodina whitakeri), an icon of the bay. According to legend, the rock is the petrified wife of culture hero Haunui-a-Nanaia, who pursued her from Mahia Peninsula
, naming places on the way.
The waters around Pukerua Bay, from a point north halfway to Paekakariki to Wairaka Point south of Pukerua Bay, are currently protected by a Rāhui
.
whose first feature film, Bad Taste
, was filmed there.
Prominent current residents are former CEO of Meridian Energy
Dr Keith Turner and composer Jenny McLeod
.
Former residents include poets Louis Johnston, Sam Hunt, James K. Baxter
, Denis Glover
, Meg Campbell
, Alistair Campbell
and actress Davina Whitehouse
.
Kapiti Coast
The Kapiti Coast is the name of the section of the coast of the south-western North Island of New Zealand that is north of Wellington and opposite Kapiti Island. It falls under the jurisdiction of the Wellington Regional Council...
, New Zealand
New Zealand
New Zealand is an island country in the south-western Pacific Ocean comprising two main landmasses and numerous smaller islands. The country is situated some east of Australia across the Tasman Sea, and roughly south of the Pacific island nations of New Caledonia, Fiji, and Tonga...
. In local government terms it is the northernmost suburb of Porirua
Porirua
Porirua is a city in the Wellington Region of New Zealand, immediately north of the city of Wellington, with their central business districts 20 km apart. A large proportion of the population commutes to Wellington, so it may be considered a satellite city. It almost completely surrounds...
City. It is 12 km north of the Porirua City Centre on State Highway 1 (SH1), and 30 km north of central Wellington
Wellington
Wellington is the capital city and third most populous urban area of New Zealand, although it is likely to have surpassed Christchurch due to the exodus following the Canterbury Earthquake. It is at the southwestern tip of the North Island, between Cook Strait and the Rimutaka Range...
.
In Māori
Maori language
Māori or te reo Māori , commonly te reo , is the language of the indigenous population of New Zealand, the Māori. It has the status of an official language in New Zealand...
, the words puke rua literally mean two hills but it is not clear which hills the name refers to.
The community's population was 1,722 people in 2006, and there were 89 businesses. Pukerua Bay has a kindergarten, a pre-school, and the Pukerua Bay School, which caters for ages 5–12. There is a branch of Porirua Library, a Returned Servicemen's Association, tennis club, scout hall, sports field, and several nature reserves and trails. Retail facilities include a convenience store, hairdresser and second-hand bookstore.
Pukerua Bay has one train station, Pukerua Bay
Pukerua Bay Railway Station
Pukerua Bay Railway Station is located on the North Island Main Trunk Railway in Pukerua Bay, New Zealand and is part of the suburban rail network of Wellington. It is double tracked, has an island platform layout, and is 30.4 km from Wellington Railway Station, the southern terminus of the NIMT...
, on the North Island Main Trunk Railway, with suburban services provided by Tranz Metro
Tranz Metro
Tranz Metro, part of KiwiRail, is the operator of Metlink suburban trains owned by the Greater Wellington Regional Council in the Wellington Region of New Zealand....
. The train journey to Wellington takes about 35 minutes, to Paraparaumu
Paraparaumu
Paraparaumu is a town in the south-western North Island of New Zealand. It lies in the Kapiti Coast, 50 kilometres north of the nation's capital city, Wellington....
20 minutes. A second train station, Muri station
Muri Railway Station
The now disused Muri Railway Station is located on the North Island Main Trunk Railway in Pukerua Bay, New Zealand and is part of the suburban rail network of Wellington. It is double tracked, has a side platform layout on a straight section between two curves, and is 31.2 km from Wellington...
, 1.2 km by road north of Pukerua Bay station, has been closed on 30 April 2011.
Pukerua Bay's skatepark was rebuilt in 2009 in a collaborative venture between the Porirua City Council, the Residents Association, and PKBSK8 Inc. Funding was also provided by the Caversham Foundation and the Mana Community Grants Foundation. The park is adjacent to the Pukerua Bay railway station, and replaces an old asphalt bowl which was possibly New Zealand's first purpose-built skateboarding facility.
History
The earliest people known to have lived in the area around Pukerua Bay were the Ngati Iri Māori tribe and later the Muaupoko, who built Waimapihi PāPa
-Places:* Pâ, a town in Burkina Faso* Pâ Department, a department in Burkina Faso* PA postcode area, in Scotland* Province of Palermo, Italy* Palo Alto, California* Panama, ISO country code** .pa, the country code top level domain for Panama...
near today's seaward end of Rawhiti Road. Pukerua Bay was on the main road for Māori travellers going north or south. About 1822, it was invaded from Kapiti Island
Kapiti Island
-External links:* , Department of Conservation* * , Nature Coast Enterprise *...
by Te Rauparaha
Te Rauparaha
Te Rauparaha was a Māori rangatira and war leader of the Ngāti Toa tribe who took a leading part in the Musket Wars. He was influential in the original sale of conquered Rangitane land to the New Zealand Company and was a participant in the Wairau Incident in Marlborough...
and his Ngati Toa
Ngati Toa
Ngāti Toa , an iwi , traces its descent from the eponymous ancestor Toarangatira. The Ngāti Toa region extends from Miria-te-kakara at Rangitikei to Wellington, and across Cook Strait to Wairau and Nelson....
people. According to local legend, the Muaupoko people fled up the gorge of the Waimapihi stream (on the Ohariu Fault line), abandoning their treasures on the way.
The land blocks originally surveyed (Wairaka in the west, Waimapihi and Pukerua in the east) were sold to settlers from Europe for farming in the late 19th century. Charles Gray was the first resident to subdivide and sell residential sections in Pukerua Bay, in the early 20th century.
Pukerua Bay's development history is curious because the railway went through it (1886) for years before there was good road access (1940), so it grew at first on the waterfront as a weekend destination. The original railway station was named "Pukerua" until it was changed briefly to Waimapihi in the 1920s and then to "Pukerua Bay" to avoid confusion with "Pukerau" in the South Island
South Island
The South Island is the larger of the two major islands of New Zealand, the other being the more populous North Island. It is bordered to the north by Cook Strait, to the west by the Tasman Sea, to the south and east by the Pacific Ocean...
.
By the end of the 1920s, Pukerua Bay numbered 100 houses, a small school on land donated by Charles Gray, and a few small stores. Electricity was put through from Plimmerton to Pukerua Bay in 1927 and in 1928 the track between Plimmerton and Pukerua Bay was formed into a narrow road. The beach remained the main attraction for weekend visitors from Wellington (by steam train) as there was still no highway and no bridge at Paremata
Paremata
Paremata is a suburb of Porirua, on the Tasman Sea coast to the north of Wellington, New Zealand.-Early history:The modern suburb, just south of Plimmerton, derives its name from the "Parramatta Barracks", erected on the north shore of Porirua Harbour in about 1846 when the infant government was...
.
Most of the clifftop development dates from after World War II
World War II
World War II, or the Second World War , was a global conflict lasting from 1939 to 1945, involving most of the world's nations—including all of the great powers—eventually forming two opposing military alliances: the Allies and the Axis...
. Pukerua Bay experienced significant growth in the 1950s and 1960s, being connected to Wellington via the (by then double-tracked) railway line and accessible from north and south via SH1. In 1973, Pukerua Bay joined Porirua City Council to get the issues of water and sewerage connection addressed.
Growth continued in the 1970s with the Sea Vista Drive subdivision and soon the fact that SH1, with increasing traffic, was going through the middle of Pukerua Bay became an issue. In 1989, an over-bridge over SH1 was opened, after continued lobbying by local residents, which included continually walking across the pedestrian crossing to hold up traffic.
Localities
The majority of Pukerua Bay is situated in a saddle between hills, about 60-90m above sea level, offering sea views (and views of Kapiti IslandKapiti Island
-External links:* , Department of Conservation* * , Nature Coast Enterprise *...
and occasionally Mount Taranaki and Ruapehu
Ruapehu
Ruapehu may refer to:* Mount Ruapehu, the highest mountain in the North Island of New Zealand* Ruapehu District, the local government area that covers much land generally west and south of Mount Ruapehu, mostly in the headwaters of the Whanganui River...
to the north) from many houses. The Kaikoura range on the South Island including Mt Tapuaenuku can be seen from some places at the southern end of the township. The coast around Pukerua Bay is fairly steep, with only a few houses nestled in a row behind the two sandy beach areas. The surrounding hills are mainly farm land used for sheep and cattle grazing, providing a rural backdrop to the east and west. The area to the south, along SH1, turns into Taupo Swamp towards Plimmerton.
Pukerua Bay's main residential areas are along Rawhiti Road, west of SH1, the central clifftop, Sea Vista Drive east of SH1 and the beach frontage extending east (Brendan Beach) and west of Beach Road. There is a pedestrian bridge over SH1 near Wairaka Road's Kindergarten and pre-school and the school's back entrance (the main entrance is on Rawhiti Road).
There are two walks between Pukerua Bay and Plimmerton
Plimmerton
The township of Plimmerton is adjacent to one of the more congenial beaches in the northwest part of the Wellington urban area of Porirua in New Zealand...
(5 km south), one around the rocky coast, and one inland (part of a longer cycleway) parallel to the railway. The inland route is pre-European - it was traditionally known as te taua tapu (the sacred war-party). The cycleway is known as Te Ara Harakeke (the flax road). The coastal route goes past Marble Arch (Te Ana Puta) to Wairaka Rock on an uninhabited part of Pukerua Bay, the only, mainland home of Whitaker's Skink
Whitaker's skink
The Whitaker's skink, Cyclodina whitakeri, is a species of skink in the Scincidae family. It is found only in New Zealand. The specific epithet is in honour of Tony Whitaker , a New Zealand herpetologist who has studied NZ lizards for more than 30 years.Whitaker's skink lives in coastal forest and...
(Cyclodina whitakeri), an icon of the bay. According to legend, the rock is the petrified wife of culture hero Haunui-a-Nanaia, who pursued her from Mahia Peninsula
Mahia Peninsula
The Mahia Peninsula is located on the east coast of New Zealand's North Island, between the cities of Napier and Gisborne.-Geography:The peninsula is long and wide rising to its highest point at Rahuimokairoa reaching about above sea level. Mahia was initially an island which over time, has had...
, naming places on the way.
The waters around Pukerua Bay, from a point north halfway to Paekakariki to Wairaka Point south of Pukerua Bay, are currently protected by a Rāhui
Rahui
In Māori culture, a rāhui is a form of tapu restricting access to, or use of, an area or resource by unauthorised persons. With the passing of the 1996 Fisheries Act, a rāhui can also be imposed by the New Zealand Ministry of Fisheries...
.
Famous residents
Pukerua Bay is the birthplace and childhood home of film director Peter JacksonPeter Jackson
Sir Peter Robert Jackson, KNZM is a New Zealand film director, producer, actor, and screenwriter, known for his The Lord of the Rings film trilogy , adapted from the novel by J. R. R...
whose first feature film, Bad Taste
Bad Taste
Bad Taste is a 1987 cult science fiction comedy horror film. Produced on a low budget, it is one of the first films directed by Peter Jackson. The film features Jackson and his friends taking a number of key roles, both on and off-screen...
, was filmed there.
Prominent current residents are former CEO of Meridian Energy
Meridian Energy
Meridian Energy Limited is a New Zealand state-owned electricity generator and retailer. The company generates the largest proportion of New Zealand's electricity, generating 32 percent of the country's electricity in the year ending 31 December 2009, and is the fourth-equal largest retailer, with...
Dr Keith Turner and composer Jenny McLeod
Jenny McLeod
Jenny Helen McLeod ONZM is a composer and former Professor of Music at Victoria University of Wellington, New Zealand.-Education:McLeod graduated BMus from Victoria University in 1964, and the same year a New Zealand government bursary enabled her to study for two years in Europe with Messiaen,...
.
Former residents include poets Louis Johnston, Sam Hunt, James K. Baxter
James K. Baxter
James Keir Baxter was a poet, and is a celebrated figure in New Zealand society.-Biography:Baxter was born in Dunedin to Archibald Baxter and Millicent Brown and grew up near Brighton. He was named after James Keir Hardie, a founder of the British Labour Party. His father had been a conscientious...
, Denis Glover
Denis Glover
Lieutenant Commander Denis James Matthews Glover DSC was a New Zealand poet and publisher.Well-known for radical leftist opinions, he was often in trouble with authorities. In 1935 he founded the Caxton Press, which he used to encourage a less sentimental style of poetry in New Zealand than was...
, Meg Campbell
Meg Campbell
Meg Campbell was a female New Zealand poet. Campbell was born and raised in Palmerston North, New Zealand and attended Marsden Collegiate, Wellington where she studied acting...
, Alistair Campbell
Alistair Campbell (poet)
Alistair Te Ariki Campbell, ONZM was a New Zealand poet, playwright, and novelist. His father was a New Zealand Scot and his mother a Cook Island Maori from Penrhyn Island.-Biography:...
and actress Davina Whitehouse
Davina Whitehouse
Davina Whitehouse, OBE was a stage, film and television actress acclaimed in both her native UK as well as Australasia.She was a star of the London stage in the 1930s before emigrating to New Zealand in 1952,...
.
External links
- Pukerua Bay Community web site
- Pukerua Bay Community Profile from Statistics NZStatistics New ZealandStatistics New Zealand is the national statistical office of New Zealand.-Organisation:New Zealand's Minister of Statistics is Maurice Williamson who serves as a member of the New Zealand House of Representatives and holds several other posts within government...
- Photo of the Napier Express and Pukerua Bay c1932