ORRA’s 2021 AGM and 60th Anniversary
Saturday January 2nd 2021, 9.30am at Opoutere School

ORRA was founded in 1961, making 2021 our 60th Anniversary. Incredible when you think about it. It’s rare for a community group to have such a long and proud history and record of achievements.

So it’s our pleasure to invite you to the 2021 60th Anniversary AGM at 9.30am, SaturdayJanuary 2 at the Opoutere School hall. It will be very special and we will be taking a moment to celebrate the past and look forward to the future (of course, everyone’s welcome!). There’ll be a morning tea and even some bubbles and orange juice as a small celebration.

As the years go by the battle to keep Opoutere’s unique and unspoiled nature has become more important than ever. Please feel free to invite any friends and family who aren’t members yet and who would like to come along and perhaps become involved in our ongoing projects to preserve and restore this special place.

And we’d also like to thank you for all your support during this past year, and the many years before it, and look forward to seeing you at this special AGM.

Feel free to contact us at chair@orra.org.nz if you have any questions.

Dotterel Watch Roster

The dotterels/tuturiwhatu are happily nesting along the length of the beach, and are safely contained by the perimeter fence on the Wharekawa Wildlife Refuge at the mouth of the estuary. However, the holiday season brings with it lots of visitors who may not understand the precious space that these birds need to feed their chicks and themselves.

Please help these hard-working little families to have a successful breeding season by signing up to do a dotterel watch session out on the spit. The roster is up on the bus shelter notice board and there are official t-shirts available to wear while you do your duty. Look inside the bus shelter for a red bag containing t-shirts, hats, and useful information and stickers to take out with you. The stickers are great to give to kids.

Base yourself on the inside of the spit next to the big DOC detour sign and divert people over the boardwalk through the dunes to the ocean beach. This allows the dotterels undisturbed access to good feeding at low tide.

Take a book, sunscreen, bug repellant and a pair of binoculars if you have them. If you have any questions feel free to call Dave Burbage (ph 027 495 7734), a local DOC volunteer who has been hard at work in the Wildlife Refuge. Dave works alongside our official DOC dotterel ranger, Stewart, maintaining the fencing, protecting the chicks from predators and educating people about the birds.

The World Famous Opoutere Regatta

No doubt you’ve all been training madly, anticipating the fierce competition that we’ve all come to expect from our neighbours and friends at the Opoutere Regatta in Bruce’s Bay. There’ll be bucket races for the smallest athletes and the usual swimming and kayaking races for the rest of us.

This year the regatta will take place on the afternoon of Sunday 3rd January with the traditional prizegiving and bbq in the Michael King Reserve in the early evening. Keep your eyes peeled for posters around the village with all the details.

Fire Danger

Please have a good look at the evacuation plan that is pinned up on the bus shelter and on a large sign by the beach access carpark. Every summer brings the risk of a catastrophic fire in the beach reserve forest and it is important to know how to stay safe in such an event. You may have also received one in your letterbox (mine got squashed but it’s still good!) pin it up where your household can see it.

Stay safe, drive carefully and we will see you on the beach.

Meri Kirihimete, Season’s Greetings, Manuia le Kirisimasi, Joyeux Noël, Fröhliche Weihnachten!