What a year it has been – these months and months of bach-owners being away from our beloved Opoutere left the beach and the village unusually quiet – especially on the beach where nesting birds got on with hatching their eggs in relative peace and tranquility. It will be wonderful to see familiar faces over the summer – if you’re using a mask don’t forget to flick the eyebrows up in a friendly greeting!

Summer Information

TCDC COVID Requirements – please visit the TCDC website for up to date details on how to stay safe in the district this summer.

Fire Ban – a total fire ban applies in the Coromandel from late December to early February each year. This is particularly important in Opoutere/Ohui as the beach reserve forest is dry and has many dead trees that pose a catastrophic fire risk.

Opoutere is very lucky to have an active local volunteer fire force based in Onemana. We appreciate that they give up many hours of their own time and would willingly put themselves in dangerous situations to keep us all safe. Give a thumbs up to the yellow trucks patrolling through the village and along the beach over the summer.

Please keep your eyes open and don’t hesitate to dial 111 if you see fire. Explore permits and rules here: checkitsalright.nz and stay safe over summer.

Dotterel Watch – stop by the bus shelter to add your name to the roster for the busy holiday period. It’s a lovely opportunity to spend a couple of hours minding the low-tide feeding grounds on the spit, spotting baby dotterels is a bonus.

Dogs on the beach – Unlike the summer changes in rules for dogs on other local beaches please note that Opoutere’s dog control rules are the same year-round – dogs on lead on the beach north of the campground entrance (yellow benches), dogs banned on the beach south of the campground entrance and on the Wharekawa Wildlife Refuge (spit area), dogs on lead on the path from Waiponga Reserve carpark to the campground, dogs off-lead in the forest. Take a minute to familiarise yourself with the map in the Waiponga Reserve carpark. From TCDC:

“The most important rule to remember is that dogs must be on lead unless specified otherwise. So, when in doubt, put your dog on a lead.” 

ORRA AGM – 9.30am Sunday 2nd January 2022, Opoutere School.

As the Coromandel has entered the traffic light framework at orange, the ORRA Committee has agreed that we can proceed with the AGM at this stage. It will be held in the Opoutere School senior classroom (not the hall as previously notified) on 2 January 2022, for fully vaccinated attendees only who will be required to scan-in using the school’s QR code, and to show their My Vaccine Pass.

We will also ask for masks to be worn; there will be no organised socialising after the AGM,
and the meeting itself will run to a strict timetable.

Should the Coromandel Traffic Lights Protection Framework turn Red before 2 January 2022
the ORRA AGM will be postponed – possibly to Easter.

Regatta Postponed To Easter – out of an abundance of caution, due to the COVID situation, the decision has been made to postpone the annual regatta to Easter.

Summer Rubbish and Recycling Schedule – the summer collection schedule begins on Monday 27 December 2021 and ends Saturday 12 February 2022.

For all the details please follow this link to the TCDC website.

Support Swappa Pottle – A New Compost Initiative

Check out the Whangamata Resource Recovery Trust Compost 2 Go Project. Fill a pottle with plant and kitchen scraps this summer…don’t add to the landfill. Phone 027 286 5709 for your Swappa Pottle!

Local Music Events – just along the main road towards Whangamata there’s going to be three outdoor events held at popular venue Joe’s Farm. Coro-Events are holding Sundown (02 January), DanceFarm (08 January) and Kickdown (20-23 January).

Support Local Business – share the love!

Grab a copy of the Whangamatā News for local news and details of many local tradespeople and service providers. It’s a terrific publication full of interesting articles and useful information – online copies can be found here or on Facebook @Whanganews