Hamilton’s Gullies
The Natural Environment of Hamilton Interest Group has walked along many of the boardwalks and pathways in the four main Hamilton gully systems.
The Hamilton City Council notes on its website: ‘The city also has an extensive system of gullies that carve their way through the suburbs as they make their way toward the Waikato River. There are four major gully systems (Kirikiriroa, Mangakotukutuku, Mangaonua and Waitawhiriwhiri) as well as numerous minor systems occupying a total of 750 hectares or eight percent of the City area.
Formed over 10,000 years ago and filled for 1000’s of years with rich and diverse native vegetation, Hamilton’s gullies and river banks were largely cleared for timber, horticulture and farmland by the late 19th century. As the city grew and developed as an urban area in the 20th century the gullies were neglected and often used as dumping grounds, becoming filled with weeds.
Improvements in the gully habitat through restoration plantings help to promote the biodiversity of Hamilton including iconic species such as bats, tui, bellbirds, kereru, as well as aquatic stream life. This wildlife can spread throughout the city via these natural gully networks to other natural areas and beyond the city limits’.
Some years ago, the Hamilton City Council published a book on how to restore gullies and this is still of great value today. There is much in this book for children to learn about native plants in and around the city. The map of the gully systems in the book on page 6. Click on this link to be taken to the 2006 book, the ‘Gully Guide’:
http://www.gullyguide.co.nz/index.asp?pageID=2145821537
The gullies are easy to get to and reasonably easy to walk – great for having an adventure with the grandchildren, surrounded by native plants. Not all the gullies have walking tracks and these ones are worth a visit.
1. Mangaiti Gully.
This gully is in the north-east suburbs of Huntington and Rototuna as part of the Kirkiriroa Gully System.
This can be accessed from multiple sites as on this map: http://gullyrestoration.blogspot.com/p/gully.html
The Mangaiti Gully Restoration Trust Group has a blog site, which can be found by clicking on this link: http://gullyrestoration.blogspot.com/
2. AJ Seeley Gully Reserve
The AJ Seeley Gully Reserve in Hamilton East was gifted to the people of Hamilton by Dr Alwyn Seeley. The 2.5ha gully was completely bare when Dr Seeley began planting in the 1960s. Now mature groves of kahikatea, rimu, kanuka, mahoe, nikau palms and tree ferns line the walkways.
The best access to the park is from Armagh St in Hamilton East.
An active community group, The Seeley Gully Trust, along with other volunteers, school groups and Council staff, care for the reserve. Their facebook page and photos can be found at: https://www.facebook.com/AJSeeleyGully/
3. The Fairfield Project and Kukutaaruhe Gully
Kukutaaruhe Gully is a minor branch of Hamilton’s extensive gully system, and runs from the corner of Bankwood and Clarkin Road, behind Fairfield College, connecting with Donny Park in the north and out into the Waikato River. The restoration of the gully is being done mainly by volunteers, including the students of the two secondary schools, which border the gully: Fairfield College and Diocesan Girls’ College, as part of their environment education.
Access is from College Place (off Bankwood Road) or Donny Park
Detailed information can be found in this report:
https://www.waikato.ac.nz/__data/assets/pdf_file/0015/560103/ERI-Report-136-Part-1-Overview-of-Kukutaaruhe-Gully-Restoration-Initiative.pdf
The gully work is connected with a bigger project called the Fairfield Project, check out their webpage: http://www.thefairfieldproject.co.nz/
4. Hammond Bush Park and Walkway
Hammond Park boardwalk meanders alongside the Waikato River in Riverlea. It contains one of the last Hamilton remnants of evergreen swamp maire. Swamp maire was once common within Hamilton but due to development and agriculture the tree with distinctive pink bark is now almost gone from the city. New Zealand’s rare long-tailed bats are regularly sighted within the park. Hamilton is the only city in New Zealand known to have its own population of bats.
The board walk can be accessed from Balfour Crescent, Riverlea Road and Malcolm St park.
There is a volunteer group, Riverlea Environment Society, which works in the Hammond Bush and surrounding area. Their website is: https://www.resi.org.nz/
5. Waiwhakareke Natural Heritage Site
Waiwhakareke, a 65.5ha park was established in 2004 with the long-term aim of reconstructing the natural forest, wetland and lake ecosystems present in pre-European times.
Access is by the main gate opposite the zoo in Brymer Road.
Full information and maps are given on https://www.hamilton.govt.nz/our-city/parks/parksandgardens/waiwhakareke/Pages/default.aspx
The gullies and the expressway
The new Waikato Expressway passes near some of these gullies and they are being restored as part of the expressway construction:
https://www.nzherald.co.nz/waikato-news/news/gully-restoration-under-way-along-new-section-of-waikato-expressway/PHFRXVGDEJSXA2DMK646PSY7HY/