A coastal recreation study of Wainui Valley, Banks Peninsula

Abstract

Wainui Valley, which is located on the shores of Akaroa Harbour, Banks Peninsula, is a popular holiday home settlement. It is reached by travelling along State Highway 75 to Akaroa and turning off at Barry's Bay. An alternative scenic route can be taken by turning off State Highway 75 at Little River and travelling over the metalled winding Bossu Road. When taking this route one passes over Peraki Saddle at which point magnificent views of Akaroa crater and harbour are obtained. From the saddle one drops into Wainui Valley via the narrow metalled Jubilee Road.

The Valley is bounded by the Akaroa crater rim and two primary ridges, creating a visual unit. The upper reaches of the valley are very steep but as one nears the coast the land form tends to soften into rolling hills and the flat valley floor. Wainui's main economy is pastoral farming because of the steep rugged nature of the land. These farmed areas provide a strong visual contrast with the areas of second growth bush which dot the valley.

The early European Settlers of Akaroa travelled across the harbour by boat to Wainui for picnics. It was not until the early 1960's that the potential of Wainui for a holiday home settlement was realized. Sporadic development of holiday homes has taken place since then with the consequence of a mixture of colours and architectural styles.

Today the main users of Wainui are the holiday home owners, the Wainui Y.W.C.A. campers and the day trippers from Canterbury. Holiday home owners use the valley mainly during the summer months. As a large proportion of them own boats, sailing, boating and fishing are popular activities. The Y.M.C.A. camp which is sited along Wainui Valley Road was established in 1929 and provides a valuable rural experience to city children. The day trippers who travel to Wainui for recreational activities do so with a particular type of activity in mind. They come prepared with picnic hampers, etc because very few facilities are provided.The coastal zone of Wainui Valley, because of its proximity to Christchurch, has great potential for limited recreational development. The small stretch of sand beach is easily accessible by foot. The combination of these factors lead to periodic overcrowding during the summer months. During the course of this study the major problem areas were identified by talking to some of the users i.e. permanent residents, holiday home owners and Y.M.C.A. camp personnel. It was not possible to talk with any day trippers because this study was completed before the holiday season started. The problem areas include the sand beach, the boat ramp and the refuse tip. Keeping the above facts in mind the following objectives were choosen. 1) to identify the most suitable area of the coast which could be developed for recreation. This is the primary objective. 2) to identify the holiday home areas and to relate them to their neighbours and surrounding landscape by the use of colour. 3) to identify and alleviate areas of conflict between users and between users and site. 4) to personally enjoy the natural beauty of Wainui Valley coastal zone as well as to understand coastal processes and to enjoy the food resources (mussels and pauas) provided by the coastal ecosystem. In order to achieve the above objectives this study involves: 1) A study of the valley with regard to its regional context. 2) Suggested colour co-ordinated schemes for the holiday homes. These colour schemes compliment the surrounding landscape and provide unity within the housing identity areas. 3) Undertaking a detailed study, involving both visual and physical landscape features, of the coastal zone of Wainui Valley.