Tears of joy: 'They've found them alive '

A welcome kiss for George Junior Barbaer, 6, being held by his mother, after he and his father and sister were found in the Northland bush. Photo / Greg Bowker

The mood in the marae dining room was sombre. Women were red-eyed from crying throughout the night and all day and police admitted they had grave fears.

Then came the words they had prayed so long to hear: "They've found them alive."

The people on the marae hugged each other and wept, this time for joy.

All eyes were focused on the gateway, though it would be an hour still before George Barbaer and his children would be driven through it.

"I love that black car," said a woman running towards Mr Barbaer's vehicle as it appeared in the drive with a search and rescue volunteer at the wheel.

The drama began when 40-year-old Mr Barbaer took his two children - Trinity, 13, and 6-year-old George Junior - on a hike into the Omahuta Forest, southwest of Kaitaia, early on Friday.

They were due back for dinner but concerns grew when they didn't arrive, and family members began searching.

Police were alerted and search and rescue members from the Northland police squad were called.

They began their search at first light yesterday, when up to 30 members in five teams were taken into the area by an Army Unimog truck.

Heavy rain and mist in one of the worst storms of the year prevented searching by helicopter.

A search base was set up at a local marae, and police iwi liaison officers and victim support staff were called in.

Mr Barbaer's ute was found parked on Blackbridge Rd.

Whanau and members of the marae huddled and comforted each other at the marae, worried for their relatives and especially for the two children - Trinity, who is deaf and George Junior, who is asthmatic.

The three had limited amounts of food and were not equipped for near-zero temperatures.

At 2.40pm,the search controller, Senior Sergeant Cliff Metcalfe, broke the news he had received by radio from searcher - the three had been found after 42 hours in the bush.

"We found them alive," Mr Metcalfe said. "The kids are all right. They are all just tired and hungry."

They survived by building a shelter and eating chocolate and berries.

This morning, Mr Metcalfe told Radio New Zealand he did not think the trio were unwise to go hunting on Friday morning.

When they were finally found more than 48 hours later, they were doing "remarkably well" despite being very cold," he said.

"They're used to living in this environment up here and they sought shelter at night and held it together."

Mr Metcalfe said the stormy weather was not forecast to hit the region before the evening but hit early.

"On this occasion they got caught out by the weather."

The area the three were found in was very thick bush and even the most experienced of hunters could become disorientated, Mr Metcalfe said.

As the three arrived at the search base the children were grabbed from their seats by their aunties and hugged and kissed over and over.

Wrapped in blankets, they appeared none the worst for having survived two nights in bitterly cold temperatures in thick bush.

One aunt, Maria Speers, said Mr Barbaer was "a very experienced bushman and the kids are very hardy."

Another aunt, Maria Tau, said: "None of us could sleep last night - my heart is still racing. Once we know George is good, we are going to shake him for giving us a fright.

"But he is old school hunting up there, and we knew he would be keeping the kids warm."

Mr Barbaer was shivering with the cold when he arrived to the marae welcome.

Speaking softly, he thanked the search and rescue team.

Then he said: "The kids - they are all right. They are just tired and hungry."

George Junior, was drinking Coke from a can within a short time of his arrival at the marae.

His sister Trinity was smiling broadly.

Mr Metcalfe said father and children were checked by paramedics.

"They breed them tough up here. They were found in bush, not far from where they had parked their ute on Friday morning."

The mountainous bush was "horrible country", he said.

"The weather has been atrocious, and finding them alive is an excellent result. As the search went on, we were fearing the worst.

"I am surprised they have survived given the weather and that they were lightly clad."

Up to 40 members of Northland search and rescue, took part in the hunt, aided by some pig hunters who said they wanted to help.

Mr Metcalfe said the weather had been good when the trio entered the bush.

But on Saturday night the wind chill had been down to zero degrees.

Members of the trio's whanau and friends spent Saturday night in the bush as the searched.

One of the searchers was Mr Barbaer's elder brother Terance, who said: "We never gave up that we would find them.

"They got tired coming back and it got dark, so they built a hut at the base of a tree. They kept their spirits up by eating chocolate."

- With NZPA