Walking tours provide insights to a Whanganui wonderland

Walking tour guide Bob Griffiths with Paul Dibble's Kereru sculpture at Moutua Quay. Photo/Liz Wylie

There is much to be learned during a stroll around Whanganui when you have a good guide.

Bob Griffiths is one of eight volunteers conducting guided walking tours around the city and he's been busy.

"We've been getting a lot of good feedback from visitors and locals.

"It's been a busy summer."

I met him at the i-Site on a sunny Monday morning and cast a fresh eye over the familiar surroundings.

Before we even set off, I noticed Paul Dibble's Kereru sculpture, the Durie Hill tower, elevator tower, the historic Red Lion and water tower across the river and the tram shed to our left.

Griffiths told me about the restoration of number 12 tram Mable, returned to her original home and running order after languishing for many years in Auckland.

He then related the grisly tale of Joe Rowe, the first known Pakeha to die on the Whanganui River in 1831.

"He was sailing with a cargo of shrunken heads when he encountered a group of Taupō natives and they relieved him on his own head."

On that note, we set off along the boardwalk and stop to look at David McCracken's stainless-steel sphere sculpture Bearing and Peter Nicholl's Tributaries depicting the tributaries of the Whanganui River.

Paddle steamer Waimarie is preparing to head up the river as we walk by and the smaller steamer Wairua is at her berth further along.

We crossed the road to Pākaitore (Moutua Gardens) and Griffiths spoke briefly about the 1995 occupation and the memorials in the park.

The monuments and history of the gardens are worthy of a tour of their own as there is much to learn but for a first-time visitor, the walking tour provides a great introduction for the curious.

Griffiths tells me he came to Whanganui from Coventry, England in the early 1970s to teach at Whanganui Collegiate and became a housemaster there.

He and his late wife Francis loved the place and raised their two sons in the river city.

"It has such a rich history and so many interesting people."

The walking tours, he says, can be tailored to suit individual needs and can take from 90 minutes to two hours depending on fitness and interest levels.

International visitors have provided plenty of positive feedback on the tours and those from closer to home have also enjoyed them.

"We have visited Whanganui a few times but never knew the location and history of the most interesting sites," wrote a Lower Hutt visitor.

Griffiths says Whanganui residents have also reported learning a lot from the tours.

By the time we returned to the i-Site, we had taken in a dozen historic buildings including the Sarjeant Gallery and the Royal Wanganui Opera House, numerous monuments and sculptures and Cooks Gardens where Peter Snell made his world record run in 1962.

Walking tours depart Whanganui i-Site at 10am and 2pm every Saturday and Sunday and cost $10 per person. Tours are also available at other times and can be booked at the i-Site or phone 0800 926 426.