Forest restoration is the core business of Project Rameka, so it was great to have another good turn out for the Saturday morning tree planting session. There were two goals, first to plant 20 Northern Rata (supplied by Project Crimson) and then to start planting fast growing native trees beside Rameka Road.
Many hands make light work, and the tree planting was no exception. All thanks due to Fil and Albie, Derek, Frankie, Chris, Derrie, Jonathan, Bronnie, Patrick, and Ricky.

Tuesday was set aside for track design with Ricky Ward, Jonathan and Bronnie. The main task was to continue an easy track from the historic Rameka Track down to Rameka Creek. There are plenty of steep slopes at Project Rameka, which we were keen to avoid, so a lot of time was spent walking back and forth with a clinometer, measuring the terrain and finding the easiest way down hill.

By the end of the day, we had marked out another 500 metres of gently sloping track that avoided native trees and rocky terrain.

Forest restoration can be a smelly business, so thank goodness Martin and friends have installed an outdoor bath! And what a luxury it seems after a hard days’ work to soak away with the stars above and Golden Bay below. But be warned, getting the temperature just right is not easy. A cold bucket of water nearby is essential.