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Above: The camp site of the hard working volunteers building the tracks.
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Above: Hard at work on the tracks. |
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| Above: Jumping for Joy at the completion of the project. |
Back in 2002, a group of Karamea residents formed the Oparara Valley Project Trust. The Trust is aimed at developing and enhancing the Oparara Valley to become the premium visitor attraction of the northern West Coast.
And what a success!
Patron and environmentalist, Dr David Bellamy, turned the first piece of land in 2006 and returned in late 2008 to cut the ribbon. His response was an arm's wide “WOW” of the hard work put in by the Trust.
Tucked away in a corner of Kahurangi National Park, the Oparara has a magic all of its own, which is now available for all to enjoy. Visitors from all over the country and the world visit Oparara to explore the Honeycomb Hill Caves, the unspoiled rainforest, three magnificent arches sculpted by the Oparara River and bush-fringed streams.
Working within strong environmental parameters, the Trust aims to create sustainable tourism and increase employment opportunities in Karamea. The Trust is made up of seven volunteer members including former and current Department of Conservation and NZ Forest Service staff, a tourism operator and horticulturist.
Trustee member Rosalie Sampson says the whole project has been a real community initiative.
“We have had support all the way to Government,” says Rosalie.
Major funders for the project have included Department of Internal Affairs, Development West Coast, Department of Conservation and the Buller District Council.
In 2004 the Oparara Valley Trust won the Supreme Award at the TrustPower Buller Community Awards for their many hours of volunteer work that they put in to get the project started. In 2008, the Trust won the Heritage and Environment section at the TrustPower Buller Community Awards for the completion of the project!
What volunteers have achieved
Throughout the whole project the volunteers have achieved so much!
“Although the bald statistics of what we achieved through out the project are impressive, they don’t tell the real story,” says Rosalie.
At the completion of the project 19.2 km of new and upgraded tracks have been built, 14 steel girder bridges, one 48 m suspension bridge, a 60 vehicle car park, 4 shelters, 5 toilets, and 13 interpretation panels.
The Trust has drawn on the diverse skills of its members and each has contributed to their full extent. In the three and a half years of planning and fundraising, the chair and secretary worked unpaid often in excess of twenty hours a week. The paper work for one application alone weighed in excess of five kilograms when couriered off.
Professional fundraisers were not called on as the Trust considered it their own project. And the Trust didn’t stop at funding alone! When tenders came in for the first 4km track it was obvious that to succeed the Trust would have to contract the work themselves.
With the cooperation of DoC; Malcolm Hansen, Trustee and DoC employee, became the Trust’s working project manager tasked with purchasing equipment, costing and co-ordinating operations. Malcolm led from the front, breaking in the track route with his little 1.8 tonne digger and five local lads following behind.
Throughout the building of the track, Malcolm and his team hand-cut 65,000 corduroy staves, dug 6.5km of drains, carted 6,834 tonnes of compacted gravel and spent 450 nights camped in the bush, rain and mud. True pioneering!
Perhaps the greatest achievement throughout the project was that in two years and nine months not one day was lost through anyone being injured. Throughout the project, other trustee members managed accounts and provided regular reports to funders. Trust meetings were held monthly and sometimes fortnightly. This $3.2 million project was completed on time and within budget in November 2008.
What this means for the District
The Oparara Valley project Trustees are a dedicated group with strong environmental goals. They saw their commitment to Oparara as ongoing and remaining long after the completion of the project.
“To achieve a level of ongoing financial sustainability as well as environmental management of tourist facilities for the area we operate guiding concessions to the “Restricted Area” of Honeycomb Hill Cave and kayaking in the fragile environment of the upper Oparara River. Profits from this are then spent on promoting the Karamea District,” says Rosalie.
Of the $3.2 million spent, $2.1 million was spent in the Buller District on wages, materials and contractors, which shows the huge commitment to the area. Recent news and magazine articles show that the Oparara is being discovered and steadily increasing visitor numbers are benefiting local businesses.
To find out more information about the Oparara Valley Project contact Rosalie Sampson on 03-782 6745 or email peterandrosalie@xtra.co.nz.
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