Maori Toa (New Zealand) LbNA #37049
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Add Location| Owner: | Wisconsin Hiker
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| Plant date: | Dec 2, 2007 |
| Location: | |
| City: | Wellington, NI, New Zealand |
| County: | Other International |
| State: | Other International |
| Boxes: | 1 |
| Found by: | 55 steps |
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| Last found: | Nov 6, 2008 |
| Status: | F |
| Last edited: | May 15, 2016 |
Location: tnomleB Regional Park. Take SH2 to the Maungaraki exit to the west. Follow the main road (Dowse Drive) as it winds upwards until you reach Oakleigh Street. Turn left onto Oakleigh, then turn right into the park when you see the entrance sign. Ppark your car in the lot. A map of the park can be found at: www.
Time: 60-90 minutes.
Terrain: Typical hiking path with some ascents/descents and rocks & roots. Mostly wooded, so not too much sun to worry about.
We planted this box while we vacationed in New Zealand. One aspect of the country that interested us was the Maori culture, so I created several boxes on this theme.
The Māori, like the Japanese, had a distinct warrior class known as the Toa. The Toa rose out of the Iwi or tribes vying for land and coastal Trading Pā or Fort which was considered important to the growth of an Iwi. In Māori culture, all males were considered Toa and grew up from boys as young as five to become the Ultimate Warrior in adulthood.They are recognised as being among the most fearsome warriors in history, using similar battle tactics to the Spartans in the Mediterranean. Prior to the 19th century, the Maori warriors were masters of hand-to-hand combat and utilised weapons such as the taiaha (carved spear with a flat blade on one end) as well as the patu and mere (clubs made from wood, bone and jade with bladed edges) amongst others. From the mid 1800s onward, during the Maori Wars, the Maori warriors began to utilise firearms and quickly adapted to this new style of conflict, inventing the modern-day trench and bunker warfare systems which European military forces implemented during the First and Second World Wars. The Maori have retained their reputation as highly committed and fearsome Toa's by displaying those same fighting qualities during World War Two with the famous Maori Battalion and more recently with the award of the revered Victoria Cross to Maori SAS soldier, Willie Apiata V.C. for his act of valour in Afghanistan in 2004. (Source: Wikipedia)
If you are brave enough to meet a Toa that lives in this park, find the trailhead that leads to Stratton Street (at the far end of the parking area on the right). Travel along the path as it winds through the woods until you eventually reach an intersection with one sign showing directions to two streets, while another sign points to a dam. The Toa chose the path to Stratton, so you must follow his lead.
You travel along with a stream on your left and wind uphill and through an open area and then back into the woods. You now become cautious since you do not want to antagonize the fearsome warrior. You watch on your right for a large fallen tree and then stop to pay your respects. The Toa has created a bunker for himself behind the fallen trunk at the east (uphill) end. The box is covered in camouflage tape so it blends in with its surroundings. Please watch for traffic coming from both ways on the path before you retrieve or rehide the box so it won’t be a target for muggles!
After stamping in and carefully rehiding the box, you should return to the intersection with two signs. You can return to your vehicle by either the dam route or back the way you came.
I’d really appreciate a status update if you find the box, since we live VERY FAR away and won’t be able to check on it ourselves. Kia ora!
Hike length: 2-3 miles
Time: 60-90 minutes.
Terrain: Typical hiking path with some ascents/descents and rocks & roots. Mostly wooded, so not too much sun to worry about.
We planted this box while we vacationed in New Zealand. One aspect of the country that interested us was the Maori culture, so I created several boxes on this theme.
The Māori, like the Japanese, had a distinct warrior class known as the Toa. The Toa rose out of the Iwi or tribes vying for land and coastal Trading Pā or Fort which was considered important to the growth of an Iwi. In Māori culture, all males were considered Toa and grew up from boys as young as five to become the Ultimate Warrior in adulthood.They are recognised as being among the most fearsome warriors in history, using similar battle tactics to the Spartans in the Mediterranean. Prior to the 19th century, the Maori warriors were masters of hand-to-hand combat and utilised weapons such as the taiaha (carved spear with a flat blade on one end) as well as the patu and mere (clubs made from wood, bone and jade with bladed edges) amongst others. From the mid 1800s onward, during the Maori Wars, the Maori warriors began to utilise firearms and quickly adapted to this new style of conflict, inventing the modern-day trench and bunker warfare systems which European military forces implemented during the First and Second World Wars. The Maori have retained their reputation as highly committed and fearsome Toa's by displaying those same fighting qualities during World War Two with the famous Maori Battalion and more recently with the award of the revered Victoria Cross to Maori SAS soldier, Willie Apiata V.C. for his act of valour in Afghanistan in 2004. (Source: Wikipedia)
If you are brave enough to meet a Toa that lives in this park, find the trailhead that leads to Stratton Street (at the far end of the parking area on the right). Travel along the path as it winds through the woods until you eventually reach an intersection with one sign showing directions to two streets, while another sign points to a dam. The Toa chose the path to Stratton, so you must follow his lead.
You travel along with a stream on your left and wind uphill and through an open area and then back into the woods. You now become cautious since you do not want to antagonize the fearsome warrior. You watch on your right for a large fallen tree and then stop to pay your respects. The Toa has created a bunker for himself behind the fallen trunk at the east (uphill) end. The box is covered in camouflage tape so it blends in with its surroundings. Please watch for traffic coming from both ways on the path before you retrieve or rehide the box so it won’t be a target for muggles!
After stamping in and carefully rehiding the box, you should return to the intersection with two signs. You can return to your vehicle by either the dam route or back the way you came.
I’d really appreciate a status update if you find the box, since we live VERY FAR away and won’t be able to check on it ourselves. Kia ora!
Hike length: 2-3 miles