News and media

Palmerston North opens new section

• 05 Sep 2008

Palmerston North Mayor Heather Tanguay opens the new
section, with Te Araroa Manawatu Trust chairman Frank Goldingham

Seventy people turned out on Sunday Sept 23 for the opening of a 32-kilometre Te Araroa section that unrolls from the city south to Burtton's Track.

Palmerston North mayor Heather Tanguay unveiled a sign at the Fitzherbert Bridge and praised the efforts of Te Araroa Manawatu Trust in getting the new "green" section of trail in place.

"I'm confident Manawatu will have opened all of the trail through its region by the projected national opening date of 2010," she said.

Te Araroa Manawatu chairman Frank Goldingham thanked the Palmerston North City Council for its considerable help. Work was continuing in the south with the extension of Burtton's track through the Makahika Valley and across the proposed new Arapaepae Lookout Trail into Levin due to be finished early next year, he said. This would complete the Palmerston North to Levin link. North of the city, the Bulls Bridge to Feilding section should also be signposted this summer.

Frank Goldingham read a message from Te Araroa Trust CEO Geoff Chapple: "The whole 2,920-kilometre Te Araroa track from Cape Reinga to Bluff is a huge enterprise," the message said. "It got a good boost this year, with DoC taking over construction and maintenance of Te Araroa on all sections on DoC land - one third of the trail length. But that still leaves two thirds of the distance to be put in place and maintained by volunteers and councils. It's efforts such as this one today which make me confident we'll achieve our 2010 opening date for the entire length of the trail."

Heather Tanguay presented John Todd with a picture of the Manawatu wind turbines for his sterling efforts in assisting Te Araroa Manawatu Trust under difficult medical conditions.

A map and text description of the new trail section is

.