Meet at 10 am at entrance to the Okura Walkway, 1 Duck Creek Road, Stillwater.
2026 FOOB AGM Tuesday 11 August
Time: 6.30 pm Okura Hall, 81 Okura River Road, Okura. All welcome to join us for hot soup on arrival, and to hear, after a short AGM meeting, a most entertaining, highly recommended speaker, Dr Wesley Webb, lecturer on biodiversity at Unitec. The sounds of the forest – and beyond! How and why animals use sounds. Dr Webb will talk…
Weeding Report April 2026 by Island Solutions
Weed control across the Okura management units in March–April 2026 totalled 121.5 hours, continuing the 2025 programme with full surveys and targeted treatment of priority species. All primary weeds were controlled in the Chenier units, with additional work on pampas, smilax, moth plant, tree lupin, woolly nightshade, and privet. Sandspit and Southern Esplanade received focused interventions, including pampas avoidance near…
Summer 2026
Summer, what summer you may ask? It’s been a fairly wild and wet time but the recent spell of calmer and dry weather allowed me to get out and walk through from Stillwater to Okura along the coast. I was surprised that the track from Stillwater to the Weiti chénier was more-or-less mud-free, given the wetness of the summer. Kererū…
Weeding Report January 2026 by Island Solutions
Between November and December 2025, Island Solutions completed ~180 hours of weed control across six Okura management units. The cheniers received full surveys, with all primary weeds—climbing asparagus, smilax, honeysuckle, periwinkle—controlled. Other units were strategically sampled, revealing new weed incursions linked to nearby gardens, forestry disturbance, and private land. Key issues include steep‑slope access, reinvasion pressure, and misidentification risks (stinking…
Merry Christmas & a Happy New Year 2026
FOOB has made good progress with our pest animal catches and our pest plant programme. Thanks so much to our sponsors, supporters, volunteers and our fabulous committee. Without you all, we couldn’t have done any of the work that this exceptional part of our world needs. There’s so much more to be done and we look forward to all…
FOOB meets with Waka Kotahi NZTA re Penlink
FOOB meets with Waka Kotahi NZTA re Penlink Waka Kotahi NZTA is currently consulting with the local community on the development of the planned Penlink roading project crossing the Weiti River, and linking Whangaparaoa at Beverley Road to the Northern Motorway. There will be on and off ramps at the East Coast Road intersection and just north of Stillwater. On…
Kuaka Return
While it seems to have rained and blown for most of the past month, I was out and about last week on a gloriously sunny day (although the wind was cool enough) and was very pleased to see that the kuaka/godwits had returned. There were forty something busy feeding at Karepiro Bay and I think they may have arrived…
Planting Day Sunday 3rd August
The annual planting day is always a highlight for Friends of Okura Bush. Every year, we come together to plant native trees and help restore this beautiful ecosystem. To date, thousands of trees have been planted along the Stillwater walkway, creating a welcoming habitat for geckos, helping to improve track conditions, and providing a valuable food source for our local…
Another Day in Paradise
What a spectacular run of late winter weather we’ve been having – if it weren’t for the biting southeasterly you’d think spring had arrived. Not quite, and there’s still a winter stillness about, but a feeling of anticipation permeates the ether. As I walked in from Stillwater I marvelled at the growth of some recent plantings and noticed that the…
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