Welcome
Thanks for stopping by! You’ll find everything you need to know about your next visit to Cape Brett here on the site. You can stay at Oke Bay Lodge. Please visit www.okebaylodge.co.nz. If you are not staying at the Lodge, you can buy secure parking at Oke Bay Lodge for $10 per night. Saves leaving it on the road which is unsafe. Call Julian on 0274764430 to book your parking. If you stay at the Lodge, parking is...
Oke Bay
Cape Brett Track starts at the beautiful Oke Bay in Rawhiti. Oke Bay is rated one of the best in Northland. From the land above this beach you get breathtaking views. Global opera star Kiri Te Kanawa, who has a holiday home nearby, considers this her favourite beach. Dolphins often come into this bay to play so if you are lucky, you’ll see them. If you have time, you’ll be able to get into the water and swim with them. After this...
Oke Bay Lodge
This is a 140 year old, two storey, historic homestead which is located right at the beginning (literally) of the Cape Brett walking track. Start by clicking on the picture of the Lodge on the left of the screen, and then watch a video. All you need to do is walk out the front door and onto the track. The Lodge is also by far the best location available in Rawhiti if you want close proximity to Oke Bay which is Kiri Te...
Conservation – Project Island Song
In this area of New Zealand, there are groups of really committed volunteers who are working very hard to eradicate pests like possums, rats, stoats, certain types of ants and bees, cats which people throw away in the bush and they become wild etc. Their aim is also to restore the native bush, bird, animal, and insect life to how it was before all these introduced pests came and ruined things. Wow! What great initiatives! Foremost...
Cape Brett Walkway
This magnificent, steeped in history walking track, rated one of the best 100 in the world, is 7-8 hours and 16.3 km one way. It’s perfectly suited for people with average to good fitness. This track equates to approximately 26,666 steps. Travelling north from Auckland, turn off SH1 at Whakapara, 15 minutes north of Whangarei. Follow the Russell-Whakapara Road. It will take about 1 hour to get to Rawhiti from Whangarei. If you are...
Costs
There are four costs associated with staying at Oke Bay Lodge and walking the Cape Brett track. Track fees. Department of Conservation (DOC) hut fees. Water taxi charges. Renting Oke Bay Lodge. Each of these costs is explained below. When you stay at Oke Bay Lodge, you’ll have it all to yourselves, even if you are a small group. To find out what it costs to stay at Oke Bay Lodge email Julian at [email protected]
Kauri Forest
This is definitely worth a visit. Many of the Kauri are 4-500 years old and several meters in diameter at the base. Standing among these gaurdians of the forest you’ll feel like you are stepping back in time way beyond when New Zealand was first populated! Spend a bit of time here and soak up the aura and sense of majesty that these magnificent trees exude. FYI, the largest diameter and oldest kauri tree still living in NZ is called...
Whangamumu Whaling Station
This station was the only one in the world that caught whales with nets, and it was Northland’s longest running and most successful station. The physical remains at Whangamumu represent the last factory based whaling station in Northland. Whaling from Whangamumu reportedly began in 1844 by John Johnson and Andrew Gibson but details from of this early operation are sketchy. According to better known history, whaling at Whangamumu began...
Getting near to Cape Brett
Towards the Cape, walking alongside the dramatic cliff-face, you can see abundant fish and bird life below – often dolphins and seals will come close to shore – and even the odd whale! From Deep Water Cove onwards, the track gets more challenging and becomes quite exposed with steep drop-offs to the sea below. Although it is not that far to the lighthouse, it will take you about 2-3 hours, and can be quite tiring. The effort is...
Deep Water Cove – HMNZS Canterbury
On November 3, 2007, after nine months of final planning and a weather postponement, the HMNZS Canterbury was sunk by explosives at Deep Water Cover. The idea behind retiring the frigate at this beautiful location was to provide recreational divers with a thrilling underwater experience. Divers from all over the world now come to Deep Water Cove to explore the old girl. On the day she was sunk, over 300 hospitality boats and pleasure...
Mt Rakaumangamanga
Mt Rakaumangamanga, at the headland of the end of the Cape Brett peninsula, has huge significance for the Maori people. It marks one of pivotal corners of the so called ‘polynesian triangle’. The earliest navigators came from within this triangle to arrive in Aotearoa (i.e. New Zealand). The other points of the triangle are Hawaiiki and Easter Island. Mt Rakaumangamanga (“the branching out of the canoes”) is named after Te Heke Nui...
Cape Brett Lighthouse
The 14-metre high Cape Brett Lighthouse stands at the entrance to the Bay of Islands. The iconic lighthouse was first lit in 1910, and it still has its internal workings. The light was unique in that it was the first light of three in New Zealand to utilize mercury bath technology. The Cape Brett Lighthouse keeper’s cottage, built in 1908, is a typical lighthouse keepers dwelling of the early 20th century. It is the only one of...
Safety
This walk is exhilarating and thrilling, with lots of variety and places of interest. It’s a real adventure! However, there are parts of the track where you’ll have to concentrate and exercise care and caution. No one yet has had an accident (as far as we know) so we don’t want you to be the first. » Make sure you take plenty of water. » Wear good tramping boots. » Take a walking...
Water Taxi
Oke Bay Lodge offers a water taxi service to and from Cape Brett. We can bring you from Paihia or Russell, take you to the Lodge, you do the walk, and then we can take you back to the Lodge or Russell or Paihia. We are completely flexible.
Fishing Trips
We can organise fishing trips for you anywhere in the Bay of Islands. And if you don’t know where to go to get fish, we do! Come and stay at the Lodge with your friends, we’ll take you out fishing for the day, and return you safely back to the Lodge in the evening! No mess, no fuss. You simply walk on the boat at the beginning of the day, and walk off at the end, loaded with fresh fish. Done. To watch a video of fishing at...
Cape Brett Challenge
This is a fantastic not-to-be-missed marathon run! This is in recess at the moment. Hopefully it will start up again. It starts from Rawhiti at the Kaingahoa Marae with various length runs over all the tracks on the Cape Brett Peninsula. Oke Bay Lodge is the perfect place to stay as it’s situated right at the beginning of the Cape Brett track. To book the Lodge, phone Julian 027476 44 30. For more information on the Cape Brett...
How To Make A Track Booking
There is a track fee for walking from Oke Bay to Deep Water Cove which is $30.00 per adult and $15.00 per child under 15. This fee goes to local Maori because this section of the track is their land. From Deep Water cove to Cape Brett is free, since this land is owned by the Department of Conservation (DOC). However, DOC does charge adults $15 per night to stay at their hut at Cape Brett. Children under 15 are $7.50 Example: to walk...
Marsden Cross Tours
Marsden Cross, the place where Samuel Marsden preached the first evangelistic sermon in New Zealand on Christmas morning 1814, is only 15 minutes by boat from Oke Bay Lodge. When you visit this immensely significant site, you are in for a rich blend of history and scenery! The painting above shows Marsden’s ship Active anchored in Oihi Bay. It was at Oihi Bay that he conducted on shore the first Christian service to be held in...
