in

Love ItLove It

Views from Arataki Visitor Centre, Waitakere Ranges, West Auckland

I show any visitor the Arataki Visitor Centre and they have information on places to visit in the Waitakere Ranges. These photos are views from this place. It is one gateway to West Auckland and an introduction of Native New Zealand Bush.

There are very many precious native New Zealand plants unique to this country and you need to have clean foot wear to walk through the bush at all time to prevent biological warfare on our precious native birds and plants.

This is a must see place to come to for any New Zealand visitor or tourist. We don’t call our native bush “Woods” it’s much more than just trees, but shrubs, precious unique New Zealand orchids and ferns and mosses and grasses. In an isolated place in dense New Zealand forest it’s so dense, you may be lucky to be able to see more than 5 feet infant of you. So it’s very important to stay to the paths, wear good footwear and warm clothing. Many people die of hypothermia here, because they don’t believe it could happen in our warmer climate , but it does and it’s easy to fall off a cliff within 1/2 a second.

Don’t go alone into the bush go with friends and stick together .

#5 Model of Haast Eagle Arataki visitor centre

The Haast Eagle lived 300 years ago and it had a 14 foot wing span. It was so big it used to be able to attack and carry Maori children, there are legends about that. 

Now it's extinct and we don't know why. The bones have been found and kept by the qualified experts. This wooden sculpture is hanging in the Arotaki visitor centre.

There was also another bird that was 7 foot high, flightless like Emu or Ostrich but really huge, that was called a "Moa". The Maoris hunted it to extinction.

Report

What do you think?

14 Points

Written by Pamela Moresby

13 Comments