Te Araroa Trail: DoC concession secured for Whangaehu River swing bridge project

The bridge will allow walkers to bypass 32km of road on the way to Bulls. Image / Frame Group

A 120-metre swing bridge over the Whangaehu River should be finished by the end of summer.

The bridge, part of the 3000km Te Araroa Trail, will allow walkers to follow the coast from South Beach to Turakina Beach, bypassing 32km of road.

Trail manager Dan Radford said a tender went out for the job in September and a preferred contractor was chosen at the end of October.

“We’re now negotiating,” he said.

“At this stage, we’ve got what we hope is one final step for resource consent from Horizons [Regional Council], and DoC [Department of Conservation] have granted their concession.”

The Whangaehu River runs through the Whitiau Scientific Reserve, which is DoC-owned.

Once the bridge is completed, part of the trail will run through land owned by Rakautaua 9 Ahu Whenua Trust and farmer Rob Craig.

“In theory, it can be built with a two-month construction window, so the plan is still to have it done by the end of summer,” Radford said.

In February, the Chronicle reported that $556,000 had been secured for the bridge, with a further $150,000 to be added through grants and other fundraising.

Trust chief executive Matt Claridge told the Chronicle this week $60,000 was still required but the bridge would be built regardless.

“We just have to manage our situation so we can deliver the bridge in good time. Effectively, that just means cash flow.”

More than $700,000 had been raised, with decisions on “a couple of funding applications” still to come in.

“There has been so much community support and we’ve had really cool conversations with [iwi] Ngāti Apa about the bridge design and what is presented walking up to it and leaving it,” Claridge said.

Te Araroa Trust members (from left) John Birch, Dan Radford and Brian Doughty during a site visit in December 2024. Photo / Mike Tweed

“Who would have thought Whanganui to Bulls would be a great off-road walk?

“We don’t do it just to build a bridge. We’re doing it to add value to the community.”

Last December, Radford said it would be the longest swing bridge in New Zealand.

But this week he told the Chronicle the 189m Hooker Valley swing bridge in Aoraki Mt Cook National Park was being built.

It is expected to be completed next autumn.

“If we were to build ours first, we’d have the title, but that bridge will become the longest by quite a bit.”

He said most walkers on the trail were currently north of Whanganui, with “a wave” due in the district in December and January.

“There are good crowds of people in Northland, Auckland and Waikato heading your way.

“It would be really nice if the tail end of the northbound walkers got to use the bridge.”

Claridge said there would be well over 3000 walkers along the trail in 2025, with a record number of domestic walkers.

“I’ve seen photos of walkers camping up in Northland in a group of 25 to 40.

“This is probably going to be our biggest year.”

Until the bridge is built, walkers heading from Whanganui to Bulls must use Portal St, No 2 Line, Warrengate Rd, SH3 and Whangaehu Beach Rd before the trail heads off-road again.

Mike Tweed is a multimedia journalist at the Whanganui Chronicle. Since starting in March 2020, he has dabbled in everything from sport to music. At present his focus is local government, primarily Whanganui District Council.