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British Mensa Travel Special Interest Group |
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Forgotten
world The talk being given was 'Stress in the Rural Community'. There were four people in the audience and after the landlady had served us coffee and settled us down in the bar with the local papers she popped in to listen. We watched through the glass door and read some of the slides ,but we were outsiders looking in, not stressed, not part of the community and what's more, on holiday! Not our problem. Our coffee stop was at the Whangamomona Hotel between Stratford and Taumarunui, east of the Egmont National Park and snow capped volcanic Mount Taranaki (Mount Egmont). The road is the SH 43, the Forgotten World Highway. The hotel had once been the centre of a thriving community of gold miners, loggers and farmers but as mining and logging disappeared the sheep took over the countryside and the population of Whangamomona diminished to 15 though, on Friday nights, the farmers gathered to discuss stock prices and politics while drinking the local NZ beer, Monteith. The road from Stratford is, in many places, unmade though the compacted gravel is not difficult to drive on apart from the hairpin bends, the 'washouts' and rockfalls. Precipitous drops into craggy gorges keep the mind focused on the drive rather than the spectacular scenery. We passed two cars during the 153km drive. On entering Whangamomona, a sign declares it a Republic and that passports are issued at the hotel for $NZ2. Independence was sought 18 years ago when local government shifted the local district boundary to one that was in line with the watershed of the main rivers. Half of the Whangamomona District went from the Taranaki District to the Manawata District, incurring the wrath of the locals, who made the decision to celebrate their independence. Republic Day celebrations in January swell the village population to around 8,000 with sheep races, gumboot throwing, whip cracking and possum skinning so not for the faint hearted. Past Presidents have included Billy the Kid and Thai the Poodle. For visitors the road has some of the best tramping, trail bike riding and mountain biking. Taranaki Motorcycle Adventures supplies all necessary gear and explores places of early pioneer history. Along the road pass through the Moki Tunnel and the Tangarakau Gorge visiting Morgan's grave on the way, the burying place of an early 19th century surveyor who died of peritonitis at the age of 32. Visiting the spot was a poignant reminder of the trials of tribulations of early pioneers and the photographs in the hotel bar bore witness to the harsh life of the early settlers. For more information, see whangamomonahotel@xtra.co.nz First
published in VISA issue 80 (Aug 2008) |