Raglan, New Zealand

Raglan is a small beachside town located 48 km west of Hamilton, New Zealand on State Highway 23. The population was 2,637 at the 2006 New Zealand Census in 1,068 households, with a median age of 37 (NZ median 35.9) and median personal income of $18,900 (NZ median $24,400).^[1] In 2013 Raglan's population had risen by 99 people to 2,736.^[2]

History

The area has been inhabited for at least 800 years and was originally known by Māori as Whaingaroa (“the long pursuit”). The name Raglan was adopted in 1858 in honour of Fitzroy Somerset, 1st Lord Raglan, who had been the commander of British forces in the Crimean War shortly before.

The first Europeans to settle in the area were the Rev James and Mary Wallis, Wesleyan Missionaries who were embraced and welcomed by local Māori in 1835.^[3] European settlement, including large scale conversion of land to pasture, began in the mid-1850s after a large sale of land by Chief Wiremu Neera Te Awaitaia.

The Raglan economy was supported initially by flax and timber exports, followed by farming which is still the mainstay of the area. Tourism and the arts are also significant contributors to the current economy. Raglan and District Museum contains historic artefacts and archives from the region. A new museum building was built in 2011.

The town was the scene for very public civil disobedience campaigns in the 1970s. During World War II the New Zealand Government took local ancestral land from indigenous Māori owners to construct a military airfield. When no longer required for defence purposes, part of the land, a 62-acre (250,000 m²) block, was not returned to the owners but became the public Raglan golf course.

There was widespread protest and attempts to reoccupy the land, and in 1978 20 Māori protesters were arrested on the ninth hole of the golf course. The land was eventually returned to the owners to become a focus for local job-training and employment programs, as well as for the Māori sovereignty movement.

Geography

Raglan is associated with Whaingaroa Harbour (also known as Raglan Harbour) on the west coast of the Waikato region in New Zealand's North Island. The harbour runs 12 km inland from the entrance, for the most part is less than 2 km wide, has a high-tide area of 33 km², a 2–4 m tidal range, with a spring-tide range of 2.8 m and neap 1.8 m, spring tide flow around 46 x 10⁶ m³ and neap 29 x 10⁶ m³ and on average water stays in the harbour 1.1 days at spring-tides.^[4] It is the northernmost of three large inlets in the Waikato coast (the others, also drowned river valleys, are Aotea Harbour and Kāwhia Harbour). Rivers running into the harbour include Opotoru River, Waingaro River, Tawatahi River and Waitetuna River.

A study for Regional Council said, "Whaingaroa Harbour began to fill with sediment at least 8000 years before present (B.P.) and before the sea had reached its present level 6500 years B.P. Rapid sedimentation in the harbour before 6500 years B.P. is attributed to the formation of now relict intertidal shore platforms up to 700-m wide and ≤10 m below present-day mean high water level. These coastal landforms were rapidly formed 8000-6500 years B.P. by physical weathering of soft mudstone cliffs and wave action. Consequently, all but the upper two metres of the present day sediment column was deposited before 6000 years B.P. and thousands of years before the arrival of Maori some 700 years ago. Today, the harbour has largely infilled with catchment sediment up to ~8-m thick, with 70% of its high tide surface area being intertidal." It concluded that most sediment is now swept up to 20 km out to sea.^[4]

Southwest of the township stands the extinct volcano of Mt Karioi. According to Māori legend the Karioi was a jilted Māori Princess who, upon discovering that love was lost, lay down and rests until this day.

North of the harbour mouth there are extensive dunes and dune-dammed lakes. Like the beaches, the dunes are rich in ironsand and have been considered for mining several times.^[5] Threats of seabed mining following passage of the Foreshore and Seabed Act 2004 resulted in formation of the opposition group KASM,^[6] based in Raglan (see also Mining in New Zealand#Opposition and Sand mining#New Zealand).

The area is also home to the popular tourist destination, Bridal Veil Falls, which is located 20 kilometres southeast of the township and the unusual Lake Disappear 4 km further on.

Climate

Average annual rainfall at Raglan 1984-2004 was 1.354m a year.^[4] Average temperature and rainfall graphs show an average high of 24C in February and an average low of 8C in July. Raglan usually has no more than a degree of frost and that only for a few hours on a few winter mornings.

Surf Breaks

Raglan is best known for its surf. Eight kilometres from the Raglan township is a series of surf breaks including Indicators, Whale Bay, Manu Bay, Vortex Bay. Manu Bay was featured in the 1966 movie The Endless Summer and in the 2010 movie Last Paradise.

Indicators is a left hand point break that breaks for up to 600m, from 2 to 10 feet+ (Hawaiian scale). It is a long-walled, fast wave with occasional barrels, particularly on the low tide. It picks up a lot of swell and is very consistent. On big days the wave can link up with the next break called Whale Bay.

Whale Bay is a left hand point break that breaks up to 200m in length, from about 2 to 8 feet+. It has two sections, an inside hollow section up to about 4 feet that breaks very close to the rocks, and an outside, slower section from 4 feet up. It has been rumoured by locals to link up with the next break further down-Manu Point-but only on very large swells, making a potential ride of up to 2 km from the top of Indicators, which locals say has only been achieved once.

Manu Point is a left hand point break which works from 2 to 10 feet+, breaking over 300m. It has alternate hollow and wall sections, occasional barrels, and is usually about 2/3 the size of Indicators.

Vortex Bay is a soft peak east of the boat ramp that sometimes breaks on low tide when the swell is too large for the main three points.

There is also a beach break further down from Manu Point. Ruapuke is another beach break well to the west around the point.

Raglan has hosted a world championship surfing event at Ruapuke beach and is home to a learn-to-surf school.

Arts

Visual artists hold regular exhibitions at the Raglan Old School Art Centre. Fabric artists show their creations in the biennial ArtoWear competition. There is also a Raglan Arts Trail Guide with an Open Studio Weekend in late January. For Matariki there are displays of Māori art. Local art is on display in the Show Off Gallery, Kanuka Design, Matapihi Gallery, local cafes and the Raglan Old School Arts Centre. The Arts Centre is in a 19th-century heritage building, the former Raglan School.

Markets

There is a regular market on the second Sunday of every month at the Raglan Old School Arts Centre in Stewart Street. This Raglan Creative Market specialises in local crafts, food and art.

Music

There's a live music scene in Raglan. The International Soundsplash Eco Reggae Festival ran yearly in summer on the Wainui Reserve, between 2001 and 2008, and attracted some of the biggest names in roots, reggae and dub, as well as local acts.

The main venue in Raglan for live music is the Yot Club, a regular stop for NZ musicians on national tours. There is also live music at the Orca Restaurant and Bar, the Harbour View Hotel, the Raglan Club and Vinnies Cafe.

The Musicians' Club have open-mic nights at the Orca Restaurant and Bar on the last Thursday of each month.

The New Zealand reggae bands Cornerstone Roots and Zionhill were formed in Raglan.

Walking

Whaingaroa has a variety of walks, from an easy stroll over the footbridge to the more strenuous Mount Karioi tracks. Walking has been a popular activity here since at least 1915, when the guidebook said, "An hour's walk brings one to the harbour entrance and to the sea coast. Here there is a wide sandy beach with a background of bush-covered cliffs, and the picturesque Mount Karioi close at hand" and went on, "Many suitable landing places are to be found where parties may leave the launch for a ramble ashore or may picnic ‘neath the shade of the kowhai trees".^[7]

Today walks can be planned using these pages -

• 1:50,000 map, also with walking access information'
• walking and cycling map - Raglan and Whaingaroa.
• walks on Wainui Reserve.
• DoC brochure for Karioi, Bryant Reserve, Karamu Walkway, Bridal Veil and Pirongia.
• heritage strolls in Raglan.

Weekly guided walks are run by Raglan Ramblers (also on Facebook, with many photos) on Wednesdays.

Environment

Whaingaroa has a high proportion of environmentalists. This is evidenced by a high vote for the Green Party, (28 percent,^[8] compared to a national average of 11 percent in 2011), and the existence of several high profile environmental groups.

Groups include -

• Xtreme Waste (see Recycling below)
• Whaingaroa Harbour Care which has planted more than 1.1 million native trees.
• Whaingaroa Environment Centre
• Kiwis Against Seabed Mining
• Kaiwhenua Organics
• Arocha / Te Whakaoranga o Karioi
• Friends of Wainui Reserve
• Te Mauri Tau
• Whaingaroa Food Forest
• Whaingaroa Environmental Defence

The environmentalism has been recognised by the local councils to a limited extent. Waikato District has modified the community document to produce Raglan Naturally and Regional Council has referred to the Whaingaroa Catchment Management Plan saying, "a zone plan for the west coast will be developed. . . Rather than reinventing the wheel, this plan will build on the great work already undertaken in the Whaingaroa catchment".^[9]

Recycling

Recycling in Raglan is managed by a non-profit organization called Xtreme Waste. Xtreme Waste's stated goal is to create a waste management system for the Raglan/Whaingaroa community in which none of the waste is stored in landfills. The organization was founded in 2000, after Raglan's landfill closed and the town decided to find an alternative to transporting its waste elsewhere. Xtreme Waste has recycled an increasing volume and percentage of waste every year, and as of 2010, it diverts nearly three-quarters of the town's waste from reaching the landfill.^[10] It operates a recycling center, which is open to the public^[11] and offers group tours.^[12]

Actor Antonio Te Maioha, who lives in Raglan, has publicly spoken about his own involvement and Raglan's leadership in recycling. He mentioned that Raglan is one of the few towns in New Zealand with recycling bins in the main street, and describes how people he knew became involved in recycling because of Xtreme Waste's programs.^[13]

Notable people

• Angeline Greensill Golf Course activist
• Anna Coddington, a contemporary musician, grew up in Raglan
• Dave Currie sports administrator
• Hallyburton Johnstone MP and farmer
• David Pretty (bushman) 1878–1947 was a champion axeman and athlete
• Edward Puttick retired soldier
• Eva Rickard Golf Course activist
• Cort and Annie Jane Schnackenberg, 1860s-1870s missionaries^[14]

See also

Raglan Chronicle - local newspaper

Raglan area school - website, decile and roll. ERO 2011 report.

Maui's dolphin

Raglan radio stations

Te Uku Wind Farm (and Pipiwharauroa Way) completed 2011 and Hauauru ma raki with resource consent, but on hold.

Surf Life Saving Northern Region - Raglan Branch

Lake Waitamoumou - sand-dune lake 1 km north of Raglan

Chaetocorophium - 'sparse' freshwater shrimp.

Strawberry Fields Music Festival - held at venues around Raglan in the 1990s and until the early 2000s.

Gary McCormick - fronted a television documentary, Raglan by the Sea.

Aerial topdressing

Raglan Harbour Board Empowering Act

Futuro fibreglass 'spaceship' house at 115 Riria Kereopa Memorial Dr^[15]

References

External links

• Raglan on the Open Directory Project
• The Raglan Website
• Raglan Weather
• Raglan Arts
• Raglan Community Information
• Raglan Surf
• safety at airfield

Coordinates: 37°48′S 174°53′E / 37.800°S 174.883°E / -37.800; 174.883