Harihari
Encyclopedia
Hari Hari -Maori Meaning, from Te Aka Maori/English Dictionary is "To Take/Carry Joy" or, as local legend suggests, "Come together in Unison" from a Maori canoe paddling chant/song. In recent years, Hari Hari has been increasingly referred to as "Harihari" – Maori Meaning is "Ambulance". No official statutory process has taken place in order for this to happen.
Hari Hari is a small rural settlement in the South West of the West Coast
region of New Zealand
's South Island
. It is slightly inland from the Tasman Sea
and the Saltwater Lagoon
and is situated between the Wanganui
and Poerua
Rivers, 45 minutes south of the tourist town of Hokitika. State Highway 6
passes through the town on its route from Ross
to the Franz Josef Glacier
. The Westland District's largest town, Greymouth is 110 km, and Hokitika 70 km to the north-east. Ross is 46 km to the north-east, and Franz Josef
is 32 km south west.
The population of Hari Hari and its surrounds was 348 in the 2006 Census
, unchanged from 2001.
Hari Hari was once a logging
settlement and relics of a bush tramway that used to carry timber
can be found in the area. Today, the forest in the area is protected and popular activities in the Hari Hari area include bushwalking, birdwatching, and trout
and salmon
fishing. These days, along its main Township Rd (Highway 6), it contains some shops, including the "Pukeko Tearooms" which is also a Dairy, and "Gasoline Alley" Service Station, a Historic Pioneer Cottage, converted into the "Willows Craft Shop", a huge Op Shop, named "The Golden Opportunity Op Shop" (open on Tuesdays), and also, Hari Hari Hotel, and the Flaxseed Motels. On the other main street (Waunganui Flat Rd), running off the far south end of Hari Hari's Township Rd, is "Thompson's Butchery", and a small Plant Nursery. This street also contains the local "St Ann's Church", and South Westland Area School.
The Inter-Wanganui Co-op opened a dairy factory at Hari Hari in 1908, but it is now a ruin.
Hari Hari's main claim to fame occurred on 7 January 1931 when Australia
n aviator
Guy Menzies
landed upside down in a swamp near Hari Hari, completing the first solo flight across the Tasman Sea
. Menzies, who had left Sydney
11 hours and 45 minutes earlier, was aiming for Blenheim
but had been blown off course and mistook a swamp for flat pasture suitable for landing. Despite the accident, he was unharmed. On 7 January 2006, 75th anniversary celebrations of the feat were held in Hari Hari, with roughly 400 people in attendance. To mark the occasion, Dick Smith
recreated Guy Menzies' flight, though Smith chose to land upright in Hari Hari.
about the tampering with of a traditional Māori place name. Town signs around Hari Hari still state the name is Hari Hari. One newly placed town distance sign in Whataroa shows the name "Harihari".
The town was named in 1908 when a post office was needed for the township. "Hari Hari Post Office" was operated by Postmaster Hende. Prior to this, Hari Hari was called "Hende's Ferry" after the Hende family, the first settlers in the area. Land Information New Zealand
states, they have no record of "Hari Hari Post Office" and insist the "accepted" name is Harihari. They also state that a chain of surveyors who had surveyed the area over past years had used the shortened name. Locals say this is debatable and untrue. If true, this was either from a lack of knowledge of Hari Hari's given name, or the surveyors were simply saving time by shortening the town's name. This has resulted in confusion, and official Government Organizations and Internet sites World Wide, such as Google Earth
not using the real town name.
Gerald Arthur of Land Information New Zealand
and New Zealand Geographic Board Nga Pou Taunaha o Aotearoa has stated, quote "The accepted form of the town name is Harihari as one composite word", although, he also states "The name [Harihari] has not been through the New Zealand Geographic Board's statutory process".
of 4 and a roll of 111. The school has a satellite class at Franz Josef Glacier School.
University of Canterbury
Field Station. "The Green Elephant"
Hari Hari is a small rural settlement in the South West of the West Coast
West Coast, New Zealand
The West Coast is one of the administrative regions of New Zealand, located on the west coast of the South Island, and is one of the more remote and most sparsely populated areas of the country. It is made up of three districts: Buller, Grey and Westland...
region of New Zealand
New Zealand
New Zealand is an island country in the south-western Pacific Ocean comprising two main landmasses and numerous smaller islands. The country is situated some east of Australia across the Tasman Sea, and roughly south of the Pacific island nations of New Caledonia, Fiji, and Tonga...
's South Island
South Island
The South Island is the larger of the two major islands of New Zealand, the other being the more populous North Island. It is bordered to the north by Cook Strait, to the west by the Tasman Sea, to the south and east by the Pacific Ocean...
. It is slightly inland from the Tasman Sea
Tasman Sea
The Tasman Sea is the large body of water between Australia and New Zealand, approximately across. It extends 2,800 km from north to south. It is a south-western segment of the South Pacific Ocean. The sea was named after the Dutch explorer Abel Janszoon Tasman, the first recorded European...
and the Saltwater Lagoon
Saltwater Lagoon
The Saltwater Lagoon is a lagoon located on the West Coast of New Zealand's South Island.It is in the southern Westland District, with Abut Head to the west and the village of Harihari to the east/southeast. The lagoon is located on the coast of the Tasman Sea and has a narrow sea opening at the...
and is situated between the Wanganui
Wanganui River
The Wanganui River is located in the western South Island of New Zealand. It flows northwest for 55 kilometres from its headwaters in the Southern Alps, entering the Tasman Sea near Lake Ianthe, 40 kilometres southwest of Hokitika....
and Poerua
Poerua River
Poerua River is the name of two rivers in the West Coast region of New Zealand's South Island.The northern Poerua River flows from Lake Poerua into the Crooked River, which leads to Lake Brunner....
Rivers, 45 minutes south of the tourist town of Hokitika. State Highway 6
New Zealand State Highway network
The New Zealand State Highway network is the major national highway network in New Zealand. Just under 100 roads in both the North and South Islands are State Highways...
passes through the town on its route from Ross
Ross, New Zealand
Ross is a small town located on the West Coast of New Zealand's South Island.It lies 27 kilometres south-west of Hokitika and 46 kilometres north-east of Harihari...
to the Franz Josef Glacier
Franz Josef Glacier
The Franz Josef is a long glacier located in Westland Tai Poutini National Park on the West Coast of New Zealand's South Island...
. The Westland District's largest town, Greymouth is 110 km, and Hokitika 70 km to the north-east. Ross is 46 km to the north-east, and Franz Josef
Franz Josef, New Zealand
Franz Josef is a small town in the West Coast region of the South Island of New Zealand. Whataroa is 32 km to the north-east, and the township of Fox Glacier is 23 km to the south-west. State Highway 6 runs through the town...
is 32 km south west.
The population of Hari Hari and its surrounds was 348 in the 2006 Census
New Zealand Census of Population and Dwellings
The New Zealand government department Statistics New Zealand conducts a census of population and dwellings every five years. The census scheduled for 2011 was cancelled due to circumstances surrounding the February 2011 Christchurch earthquake, however, and legislation introduced to hold the next...
, unchanged from 2001.
Hari Hari was once a logging
Logging
Logging is the cutting, skidding, on-site processing, and loading of trees or logs onto trucks.In forestry, the term logging is sometimes used in a narrow sense concerning the logistics of moving wood from the stump to somewhere outside the forest, usually a sawmill or a lumber yard...
settlement and relics of a bush tramway that used to carry timber
Timber
Timber may refer to:* Timber, a term common in the United Kingdom and Australia for wood materials * Timber, Oregon, an unincorporated community in the U.S...
can be found in the area. Today, the forest in the area is protected and popular activities in the Hari Hari area include bushwalking, birdwatching, and trout
Trout
Trout is the name for a number of species of freshwater and saltwater fish belonging to the Salmoninae subfamily of the family Salmonidae. Salmon belong to the same family as trout. Most salmon species spend almost all their lives in salt water...
and salmon
Salmon
Salmon is the common name for several species of fish in the family Salmonidae. Several other fish in the same family are called trout; the difference is often said to be that salmon migrate and trout are resident, but this distinction does not strictly hold true...
fishing. These days, along its main Township Rd (Highway 6), it contains some shops, including the "Pukeko Tearooms" which is also a Dairy, and "Gasoline Alley" Service Station, a Historic Pioneer Cottage, converted into the "Willows Craft Shop", a huge Op Shop, named "The Golden Opportunity Op Shop" (open on Tuesdays), and also, Hari Hari Hotel, and the Flaxseed Motels. On the other main street (Waunganui Flat Rd), running off the far south end of Hari Hari's Township Rd, is "Thompson's Butchery", and a small Plant Nursery. This street also contains the local "St Ann's Church", and South Westland Area School.
The Inter-Wanganui Co-op opened a dairy factory at Hari Hari in 1908, but it is now a ruin.
Hari Hari's main claim to fame occurred on 7 January 1931 when Australia
Australia
Australia , officially the Commonwealth of Australia, is a country in the Southern Hemisphere comprising the mainland of the Australian continent, the island of Tasmania, and numerous smaller islands in the Indian and Pacific Oceans. It is the world's sixth-largest country by total area...
n aviator
Aviator
An aviator is a person who flies an aircraft. The first recorded use of the term was in 1887, as a variation of 'aviation', from the Latin avis , coined in 1863 by G. de la Landelle in Aviation Ou Navigation Aérienne...
Guy Menzies
Guy Menzies
Guy Lambton Menzies was the Australian aviator who flew the first solo trans-Tasman flight, from Sydney, Australia to the West Coast of New Zealand, on 7 January 1931....
landed upside down in a swamp near Hari Hari, completing the first solo flight across the Tasman Sea
Tasman Sea
The Tasman Sea is the large body of water between Australia and New Zealand, approximately across. It extends 2,800 km from north to south. It is a south-western segment of the South Pacific Ocean. The sea was named after the Dutch explorer Abel Janszoon Tasman, the first recorded European...
. Menzies, who had left Sydney
Sydney
Sydney is the most populous city in Australia and the state capital of New South Wales. Sydney is located on Australia's south-east coast of the Tasman Sea. As of June 2010, the greater metropolitan area had an approximate population of 4.6 million people...
11 hours and 45 minutes earlier, was aiming for Blenheim
Blenheim, New Zealand
Blenheim is the most populous town in the region of Marlborough, in the north east of the South Island of New Zealand, and the seat of the regional council. It has a population of The area which surrounds the town is well known as a centre of New Zealand's wine industry...
but had been blown off course and mistook a swamp for flat pasture suitable for landing. Despite the accident, he was unharmed. On 7 January 2006, 75th anniversary celebrations of the feat were held in Hari Hari, with roughly 400 people in attendance. To mark the occasion, Dick Smith
Dick Smith (entrepreneur)
Dick Smith, AO is an Australian entrepreneur, businessman, aviator, and political activist. He is the founder of Dick Smith Electronics, Dick Smith Foods and Australian Geographic, and was selected as the 1986 Australian of the Year.-Electronics:In 1968, Dick Smith founded electronics retailer...
recreated Guy Menzies' flight, though Smith chose to land upright in Hari Hari.
Local name change controversy
Many local residents are upset about the growing number of official websites, and official documentation, referring to Hari Hari as being "Harihari". The greater community insists that they were not informed or talked to about this matter, and are against the gradual unofficial change. Some are being active about keeping their town's name the same, and have involved the Department of Māori AffairsTe Puni Kokiri
Te Puni Kōkiri is a New Zealand Public Sector Department responsible for Māori public policy and policy affecting Māori.The department, called TPK for short, reports to the Minister of Māori Affairs...
about the tampering with of a traditional Māori place name. Town signs around Hari Hari still state the name is Hari Hari. One newly placed town distance sign in Whataroa shows the name "Harihari".
The town was named in 1908 when a post office was needed for the township. "Hari Hari Post Office" was operated by Postmaster Hende. Prior to this, Hari Hari was called "Hende's Ferry" after the Hende family, the first settlers in the area. Land Information New Zealand
Land Information New Zealand
Land Information New Zealand is a New Zealand government agency. The current Chief Executive is Colin MacDonald and the current Minister of Land Information is Maurice Williamson.- Nature and scope of functions :...
states, they have no record of "Hari Hari Post Office" and insist the "accepted" name is Harihari. They also state that a chain of surveyors who had surveyed the area over past years had used the shortened name. Locals say this is debatable and untrue. If true, this was either from a lack of knowledge of Hari Hari's given name, or the surveyors were simply saving time by shortening the town's name. This has resulted in confusion, and official Government Organizations and Internet sites World Wide, such as Google Earth
Google Earth
Google Earth is a virtual globe, map and geographical information program that was originally called EarthViewer 3D, and was created by Keyhole, Inc, a Central Intelligence Agency funded company acquired by Google in 2004 . It maps the Earth by the superimposition of images obtained from satellite...
not using the real town name.
Gerald Arthur of Land Information New Zealand
Land Information New Zealand
Land Information New Zealand is a New Zealand government agency. The current Chief Executive is Colin MacDonald and the current Minister of Land Information is Maurice Williamson.- Nature and scope of functions :...
and New Zealand Geographic Board Nga Pou Taunaha o Aotearoa has stated, quote "The accepted form of the town name is Harihari as one composite word", although, he also states "The name [Harihari] has not been through the New Zealand Geographic Board's statutory process".
Education
South Westland Area School is a coeducational composite (years 1-15) school with a decile ratingSocio-Economic Decile
Decile, Socio-Economic Decile or Socio-Economic Decile Band is a widely used measure in education in New Zealand used to target funding and support to more needy schools....
of 4 and a roll of 111. The school has a satellite class at Franz Josef Glacier School.
University of Canterbury
University of Canterbury
The University of Canterbury , New Zealand's second-oldest university, operates its main campus in the suburb of Ilam in the city of Christchurch, New Zealand...
Field Station. "The Green Elephant"