I always liked the idea of walking to Moturata Island. I've read on more than one occasion that you can do so when the tide is low. The only trouble with this plan is that I’m not completely confident I would make it back in time. Māori tribes called the island Rata Island due to the dense forest of giant rata that covered the island from crown to sea shore. Traveling tribes use to stop at the island as they sailed up and down the coast in waka. Then, from 1839 to 1841 Edward and George Weller operated the Taieri Whaling Station from the Island. Johnny Jones temporarily revived the station in 1844, employing more than twenty men. Later, from 1862 to 1864 pilots on the island flew signals concerning the state of the river mouth to warn vessels proceeding up the river with passengers and goods for the goldfields. These days the island is a native reserve and is home to many protected seabirds, notably yellow-eyed penguins. Even migrating whales are making a comeback, occasionally being seen in the area. John's Blog https://blog.caswellimages.com/ The latest print price guide: https://bit.ly/3oLw9OI
I finished my walk in bright sunshine at the Rongo Stone Memorial located on a large grass verge of road connecting the city’s harbour to the Otago Peninsula. The stone named Rongo is from Taranaki which commemorates the Māori prisoners transported to Dunedin between 1869 and 1879. As I read the inscriptions after visiting the nearby caves, I remember the stories I had heard as a child. Growing up my understanding was that Māori prisoners were held inside at night while building the road to the harbour during the day. This was in fact not true. The caves were used for storage while the groups of men sent down from Taranaki were prisoners who had supported an uprising against the Crown over unjust land confiscation in the 1870’s. The 74 prisoners were originally sentenced to death for high treason, but had their sentences commuted to imprisonment and hard labour and transported to Dunedin. Over the 25 months they spent in Dunedin, 18 men died, mostly from illness caused by the damp prison conditions and the sleeping arrangements. Ten years later at Parihaka in the Taranaki, following another confrontation between government officials and local iwi, more arrests were made and a further 200 prisoners were sent to Dunedin, sentenced to hard labour. The men from Taranaki ended up making significant contributions to Dunedin’s transport network as they cut through stone and hill to make a connection between Maitland Street and Princes Street and built portions of the main road from Dunedin to Port Chalmers. In the sunshine as I reflected on some of the shameful acts in New Zealand’s history, I was glad I knew the truth. John's Blog https://blog.caswellimages.com/ The latest print price guide: https://bit.ly/3oLw9OI
