Paparangi where?

Hubby and I went for a ride over our long weekend (Queen's Birthday, which is actually in April) down to Whanganui and then an adventure of backroads, our favorite kind. We took Kaurapaoa Road to the boonies back of beyond and drove a few hours through tree farms in various stages. There were a few sheep and beef farms along the way, but not much else along the mostly-dirt road through the hillsides.

We took this photo of Mt Taranaki across the pine trees that will eventually be harvested for paper. FYI, pine trees grow seven times faster here in NZ than any where else, but the quality is less than perfect.

When I got home, I was anxious to see where exactly it was taken, so I went to my favorite locator page Whereisthepicture.com and it said Paparangi.

 There is no information about this area that I could find,  Wikipedia's map showed it was in the Manawatu-Whanganui area (where we drove), but my small argument with Wikipedia that it was a different 'Paparangi' than the one outside of Wellington was rejected--because there were no links to verify its location!  So I guess it's just a designation for the lumber company.

Anyway, if you want to see where we went on google maps, put in Kaurapaoa Road (not Brunswick) and follow along on satellite view.  We followed Rangitatau E Road back to civilization. 

Arapuni Swing Bridge

This is the Arapuni Swing Bridge that was built for workers' access during

the construction of the power station.

Click here for more information.

Late autumn roses

These are just a few of the roses that are still blooming

in our southern hemisphere autumn garden!

The photos were taken since we moved in less than 2 months ago.

Today, I decided to get out and count the roses.

I counted 409!!

It will be so delightful to see them bloom next spring/summer/autumn!

te kiri

Outside of the hall at Te Kiri is a piece of art depicting the work of the pioneers in the area that we have passed many times. A few weeks ago, we stopped to capture its beauty. I can find nothing about it on the internet. Enjoy.

Front

Side (away from the road)

Back

There's not much information about the town of Te Kiri itself

except  this bit that was written on 1908.

This short article on the Waimate Plain says a lot. 

The Waimate plain, north-west of Hāwera on the southern ring plain, was once one of New Zealand’s most densely populated rural areas. There were small communities, often centred on a dairy factory or school, at nearly every intersection of the grid of roads in the area. However, Mākākā, Te Kiri, Awatuna, Riverlea, Auroa, Mangawhero, Mātapu, Ōtākeho, Ōeo and Mangatoki all but disappeared in the later 20th century. The district’s population fell sharply during this period – the population of Waimate West County dropped from 2,788 in 1951 to 1,944 in 1981. The closure of many schools in 2004 and 2005 was the final blow for many townships.

https://teara.govt.nz/en/taranaki-places/page-5