Trapping the Kawekas with Tipene & Jess

The backdrop to Hawkes Bay, the mighty Kawekas are a beautiful . Whether you're enjoying them from a distance over a pint on West Quay, looking down from the top of Kaweka J or hiking through the varied bush that they have to offer, you can't help but love them. 

Tipene invited Jess (more about her soon!) & I to get hands on with some of our traps that he's deployed in Balls Clearing. It was cold in the foothills of the Kawekas, hearing the crunching, cracking of ice as we walked in, we were keen to get started into some physical work.

The work Tipene is doing is amazing, so much mahi, motivated by his love for all native species of flora and fauna, he is a wealth of knowledge on all things bush.  The bush is regenerating, with plenty of ferns, undergrowth and of course more bird song. Making multiple trips a week to check traps and clear paths for the classes he works with, passing on his passion to teach them about the bush too, Tipene is smashing it! With help from local DoC Rangers like Kahori Nakagawa they are having a massive positive impact on the bush. Jess was most impressed with Tipene's passion and knowledge. 

Jess is our new customer service, social media, general 'keep the train on the tracks' chick! She's your first point of contact through facebook, instagram and email. She's already a guru, and I've completely thrown her in the deep end. To show her what we're about at Good Wood, I thought it would be good to get her out pulling predators and pests out of icy cold traps to save native birds. 

From checking traps to hiking through the bush, Jess had a great time - even if one of the traps thought that she was the target and tried to take one of her fingers! I'll admit, I had a few close calls too...

All in all, we had a great time getting to know Tipene more & seeing the impressive work he's doing in Balls Clearing! Can't wait for next time.

See you out there,

Cheers,

Callum at Good Wood