A new series by Katie Lowes, exploring fun activities to do with kids in Whaingaroa.
Is anyone else completely broke?
Every year, no matter how clever I am squirreling away cash for the RIDE that is; Christmas, New Year, Ice-Cream money all wrapped up in the big bow of School-Holidays, served up with a drizzle of no-one working for a month … I still find myself scooping out big chunks of savings to get to this time of year and keep food on the table for my tribe of small humans. And the dog. Woof.
Granted, I can’t be the only one feeling the pinch, and with us officially in the realm of recession, I will be kind to your wallets in the first of a new series for The Chronicle called Places to be with the Little Ones.
Over the course of the next few months I will share some amazing finds that are local-ish to Raglan on the off-chance it inspires another person to dig out a wetsuit, a bucket, a bike and a towel and head off in search of adventure.
If there is one thing that can be hard when looking after or parenting small children, it’s having the energy and capacity to go somewhere new and to leave our comfort zones. This new series is designed to take that step for you and share the bounty of the ‘low-hanging fruit’ of awesome things to do to ‘fill the family cup’ and energise you all.
First Up – we are staying in Whaingaroa Raglan
1. Rock pool exploration low tide Ngarunui Beach:
I’m a ‘wetsuit mum’ because it means we can play longer. Of course your kids will be fine in togs but wetsuits give a group of kids extra-time to sit, to explore, to chat, to play, because it keeps them warm. I highly recommend adding this to your kit if you don’t already have one. There are amazing wetsuits at Raglan Surf Co that can get passed down through the generations of Raglan kids. Check the tide, look for a lovely low tide, and head to the rock pools to the left of the ‘big hill’ going down to Ngarunui Beach. When walking back up the hill encourage the little ones to take little steps, “walk like a bird,” make the smallest steps possible. If they look at their feet and have fun being birds then they might make it back to the top of the hill all by themselves!
2. Wainui Bush Reserve:
The challenge here is to stay for a long time. So pack a picnic and explore. You can draw your own maps of the bush park with its winding pathways, you can see places where others go eeling or build dens, and you can do the hike to the TOP and have a picnic looking at the ocean. You can get another adult to drop you off at Wainui Bush and then pick you all up at the Top. This ‘drop off-pick up’ hack gives little people the experience of travelling really far and having a big experience.
3. Hike Karioi.
Before you think of the reasons why you can’t do this I want to give you an amazing learning from my baby years parenting; you do not have to FINISH everything. You can start a hike and not aim for the summit. Walking Karioi is a wonderful experience, parking the car on the Ruapuke side then walking through the fields to where the easy walk starts; to get to the rooty and steeper parts is such a massive adventure for little people. As they get older you can go a little bit further, and one day you will get to the top.
Stacking these local experiences and stacking the intensity is a great way to prepare kids for wider travel and adventure. Not only does it help us adults stay fit and healthy it makes the most of what is available on our doorstep and it’s $free.
Photos Katie Lowes
IG: @fohboh.online
