More than 100 people gathered at Whangārei’s Mair Park recently for a magical evening exploring the beauty of the Hātea River by night.

Dubbed the ‘Hātea Hikoi’ the event was organised by the Mountains to Sea Conservation Trust in collaboration with the Northland Regional Council, Department of Conservation, Dream Streams Ltd, Whangarei District Council, Fonterra, MTF Whangarei and Pukenui Trust.

The event – funded through the Wai Connection Programme by Ministry for the Environment – provided a unique opportunity to experience the river, its surrounding environment and history in a whole new light.

Over the course of several hours, the 120 people registered for the event could take part in a variety of activities including learning about freshwater fish identification, the life cycles of inanga and kākahi (freshwater mussels), spotlighting, electrofishing, a bat hunt, hunting for ferns and identifying macroinvertebrates.

Local kaumatua Winiwini Kingi also provided a talk about the history of the area, the local pa site and memories passed down by his tipuna.

"There's a lot of history in the place, this maunga,” he told participants.

“If you look at the original tracks [up to the pa site] they're all white and very narrow. In times when they were threatened, they'd put water down them to make them slippery so in bare feet or even in boots you'd have no chance of getting to the top."