According to rumour it had been cancelled although police suspected that it had merely been taken off Facebook. More than 80 people had said they would take part and another 400-plus said they were interested before the post was deleted.
Meanwhile the gate was manned on Friday night, when a couple of camper vans were turned away, through to 1am on Saturday, but the road remained open to locals and anyone who wanted to go fishing, surfing or make use of the beach in any way that would not threaten the dunes.
The defenders of the dunes were back at 8am on Saturday and had little to do. There hadn't been a great deal of traffic but there had been a "lot of communicating", they said.
Senior Sergeant Russell Richards said extra police staff were on duty in Kaitaia and at Ahipara to talk to locals and out-of-towners arriving on bikes while traffic staff from Auckland north were monitoring the behaviour of riders heading Ahipara's way.
They were prepared to urge each side to "understand the other's concerns and have adult conversations about the reasons for the fencing".
