Around the Harbour

Matiu-Somes Island

Spring is approaching (albeit grudgingly) and it's made exploration a little more palatable. Long on my list of to-do's was a visit to Matiu-Somes island, and this Saturday we finally made the trip over to do a tour. I've included lots of links to explore topics in more detail, too...

The island sits prominently in the middle of Wellington Harbour, and is accessible via the East by West Ferry service which stops there several times a day.

Right: View from the back of the boat as Wellington fades into the distance.

A return trip on the ferry costs $18.50 We had a 2-for-1 coupon in our Entertainment Book, so it worked out really well. We planned the day so that we would spend several hours on the island, have a picnic lunch, and then board the ferry for a "Tour of the Harbour" as it made stops in Petone, Day's Bay and Seatoun before coming back to Queen's Wharf. The weather cooperated beautifully and it the boat ride was a treat.

Yucca-like "Cabbage trees" are common on Matiu-Somes.

The majority of our day, however, was spent exploring the island itself. Matiu-Somes is a scientific and historic reserve that was only recently opened to the public. Maori occupied the island for generations prior to the arrival of Europeans. The island's name is bilingual and designated in 1997 to reflect both the Maori and European heritage. Matiu was the name of one of Kupe's daughters, while Somes refers to Joseph Somes, the deputy-governor of the New Zealand Company which owned the island during British colonial times.

The sun was out and we didn't even need to wear our coats!

The island has seen a lot of history, some of it not so pleasant. Up to and during World War II, the island was used as an enemy internment camp and a military defense post, and also as a human and animal quarantine station. There are many historical structures on the island that tie to these events including old bunkers, a hospital, gun emplacements and a cemetery and memorial monument to those who lived and died here. Visitors can explore all of these as they roam about the island on a series of tracks.

The lighthouse at Matiu-Somes was built in 1900 and continues to guide ships safely into the Harbour.

Not every animal on Matiu-Somes is super rare, but I still could not resist shooting photos of this Red Admiral butterfly and a cute lamb who stopped to check us out. A handful of sheep remain on the island under the management of DOC staff...I am not sure why, though. Perhaps......in case someone gets hungry?

Today, the island is an important refuge for native species and place of historical importance. DOC has gone to great lengths to eradicate mammalian pest species from the island. In fact, when you get off the boat, the firs thing they do is herd you into a room where they ask everyone to check their bags for possible stowaway rodents. Everyone laughs at this, of course, but it's not impossible and DOC rangers say that it does happen! Now that the animal pests have been removed, the park managers and stakeholders are focussing on eradicating pest plants. This task is enormous and will be even more difficult, but the results of their efforts are starting to show as large tracts of the island slowly revert back to native bush with a little help from humans.

Stacey stops to smell the Hebe which were in bloom all over the island. If we ever own a house here, this native plant is high on my list to have in the garden.

Reclaimed island habitats are a great place to nurture threatened and at-risk species, and Matiu-Somes features a number of rare species. The most notable is probably the Tuatara, an ancient reptile whose lineage dates to the age of the dinosaurs. It was recently reported that babies were found on the island, so scientists now can confirm that the Tuatara are breeding. This is great news. While we did not see one, I was constantly on the lookout and spotted several of its cousins - skinks! There were heaps of birds around including Kakariki (red-crowned parakeet), Silvereyes and many seabirds. On the invertebrate side, we got to see a brood of giant weta in a weta hotel on the trackside.

A "Weta Motel"...the critters live inside of the hollowed tree trunk, and visitors can open a trap door to take a look. They are huge!




Shag Point, with a view of Wellington in the distance.