A pioneering walk of a section of the Big Omaha Trail was organised by Luke Williamson of the Warkworth Walkers. Here is an account of the day:
“The day went well. Thirty two walkers piled aboard a bus outside the Old Masonic Hall in Warkworth and rode to Rodney Road. Here we disembarked and led by Luke Williamson, tramped down the unformed section of Schollum Road until we joined its formed section. The going was good and even though most of it was really an old formed road used regularly 50 or more years ago and is now overgrown in places by regenerating bush. Ina Shaw tells of her father using the road to take a horse over to his store in Pakiri. He also had the store at Big Omaha Wharf. The views were remarkable, over the Whangateau Harbour and the Big Omaha Valley. We stood and read the memorial of the early settlers, the Meiklejohns at the beginning of Schollum Road. Then we crossed over to the Upper Whangateau Road and had lunch at a sausage sizzle provided by Ian and Elise Macdonald. Here everyone looked at a display of the proposed route of Big Omaha Trail and listened to accounts of the early history of the valley from Hugh McKergow. Ian Macdonald gave an account of the proposed Big Omaha Walkway and the artist Billy Apple described his intention to design the walkway as part of his Auckland City environ sculptures. He envisages placing kilometre stones along its some 24K length. He is also designing a stairway in a section of the Quintal Road unformed section where it is very steep.
The party continued along towards the formed section of Quintal Road by passing with many thanks through Sally Greenwood’s property. Here we climbed on the bus again and then back to Warkworth after visiting Charlie’s to eat ice-cream.”
Ian Macdonald talks about the idea of Big Omaha Trail
Hugh McKergow talks about the local history
Billy Apple describes his intentions to design the walk as an artwork
Luke Williamson, the organiser in the bus on the way home