A group of QEII covenant owners in the Far North got together for an event last month at the property of Lizette and Kees Oud in Parapara. It was a great opportunity for Far North locals with covenants to connect with each other in the sunshine and learn a bit more about the challenges shared across the region.

A lovely group of 27 people came along on the Tuesday morning. The day was opened with karakia by Matua Eru, followed by a talk on protecting precious kauri by Candaice Rameka from Northland Regional Council.

The QEII open space covenant at Lizette and Kees’ property protects Kaurinui Pā. James Robinson from Heritage New Zealand Pouhere Taonga spoke about the work that he does helping to look after historic sites and about the significance of the pā on the property. He highlighted how QEII and Heritage New Zealand Pouhere Taonga work together.

About 18 of the group were lead on a walk through the top of Lizette and Kees’ covenant, carefully avoiding kauri after Candaice’s talk on protecting kauri from disease.

Contractor Kelly Peterson has been undertaking wild pig control in the area, including on Lizette and Kees’ property. Kelly showed visitors one of the pig traps and talked about how the traps worked, how to set up, and how much success he has had with them over the Far North.

The event wrapped up with a shared lunch back at the house. QEII rep Mieke Kapa was heartened to see the covenant owners from her region come together, share ideas and struggles, and have a great time at the event: “People had smiles and seemed happy, which is absolutely lovely to see.”