Maungaturoto describes itself as a 'Real New Zealand Town', but who would have thought this small hilltop town owes quite a bit of its contemporary character to Irish Humour?

It is certainly a pleasant place on the road to Paparoa (the valley in the village) Matakohe – of the Kauri Museum, and Dargaville and the Kai Iwi Lakes.

The first sign you may be approaching somewhere unusual is in a paddock before the Diary factory – a major source of local employment. A pair of gumboots, with legs in trousers stand by themselves with soles facing the sky.

Maungaturoto proper starts with its grand old Pub, dating from around 1901. Karen, who has only worked here since February, said of the town, “It is a very small community but we do all get along. We are a major stopping off point before things like the Kauri Museum and the Waipoua Forest, so we do get a lot of tourists.”

The Pub is very much at the bottom of the hill on which the bulk of the town sits, and it is a long hard climb to the main street.  As you ascend there can be rather a confusing feeling caused by the intermingling of the buildings and the paddocks. One moment you are surrounded by paddocks, and glorious views to the hills and inlets on the Kaipara Harbour. The next by buildings, but the sounds of the sheep still rings in your ears. Is there some ploy afoot to convince you that you are still really in the country? If it was planned this way then long may it continue.

You could say of Maungaturoto “Where Town meets Country”. It certainly has a friendly feel to it, and judging by the people who have returned there it must have some draw of its own.

Rex Brown’s ancestors settled in Port Albert and his Dad, born in 1903 farmed at Kaiwaka. After share milking in the Waikato Rex returned to the area 16 years ago to run his farm contracting business.

“It’s a great place to live,” he told Rural Living, “No Stress! We are just far enough away from Whangarei and Dargaville for them not to matter!” Barry Crisp was also born here and having left for Gisborne when he was 15 and spent the next 30 years there, has since returned. “I think I always regarded it as home. Setting up as a building contractor wasn’t that easy with the recession but there are positive signs out there now. I’m closer to Paparoa, but the whole area is a nice quiet place to be.”

At last we reach the main street in Maungaturoto, which according to Sue in the BeeJays’s bakery and café was “more banks than anything else, and now there are none!” This particular building looks as if it should have been the old Post Office, but was a bank and is now a big airy café and bakery.

A little further along the street we come to something strangely familiar outside a shop called ‘Dreams’. It is a pair of gumboots, with soles facing the sky. It is the joke of Jan Schimanski, owner of ‘Dreams’ and despite her name and Kiwi accent as Irish as they come. In fact she was responsible for the Shamrock filling station on SH1, which has reverted to the title she chose for it many years ago.

“People come in here laughing because they don’t know what they are in for,” Jan said . “We wanted to retain a bit of mystery, and my hubby and I being ex share-milkers thought we’d keep a farming theme as well. It’s all just a bit of a giggle, and the gumboots themselves don’t say anything about the shop…they just lead there.” Jan thinks Maungaturoto is quite central – it claims to be the centre of Northland – and is certainly not too isolated. “The biggest drawcard round here is the Kauri Museum by far; I think we’ll stay here for a few years yet.”

Maungaturoto is certainly determined to keep itself on the map. On Saturday 7th November Real Town Maungaturoto Inc will host the 2009 Northland Lifestyle Field Days, which is being supported by Carters, Northtec, Enterprise Northland, Kaipara District Council and Northland Regional Council. The event is aimed at the 27,000 lifestyle blocks in Northland and will cover every aspect of small scale farming, for both new and established owners.

Paparoa – the Maori name means ‘long, flat rock’ is just down the road from its bigger neighbour and is host to a fortnightly Farmers Market on Saturday mornings which has been a roaring success. Started in 2007 the market has maintained a steady number of stall-holders since then, and ever-increasing visitors. The village is now a service centre for the local farming community and tourists but was once a major port and construction yard on the Kaipara Harbour in the days of sail.  

Ken who now owns the Paparoa Motor camp says that the area is growing and despite the recession tourists are continuing to flock in, especially as Spring has arrived. “The biggest attraction here would be the Kauri Museum,” he said. “There are a number of bush walks around and even talk of a cycleway on Pahi Peninsula, but it is certainly a friendly, laid back area. There is no shortage of facilities here either. We can cater for anything from tents to Motorhomes and there is a top class restaurant locally – Sahara – which got a huge award a couple of years back.”

In fact it wasn’t just for food – the Northland Platter of the Year contest - that Sahara is known. In 2005 it took the Aalto Heritage Colour Restoration Award given by the New Zealand Historic Places Trust in recognition of the owners’ achievement in restoring the colours of the former National Bank Building.

No drive along SH12 from the Brynderwyn turnoff to Dargaville, would be complete without mentioning Matakohe, and the world class Kauri Museum, which continues to grow and evolve, and draw visitors from all over the globe.

If Maungaturoto is the centre of Northland then Matakohe is probably its heart. For it is here that you can learn everything about life on the Kaipara Harbour from the earliest pioneering days to the establishment of the museum itself in the 60’s. The ‘heart of the heart’, as it were of the museum, is of course the mighty Kauri Tree which built the early economy of the area.

According to the locals, Maungaturoto, Paparoa and Matakohe have one great big advantage – they are all close enough to the central towns, such as Whangarei and Dargaville, far enough away from the big city to be comfortable, and close to some wonderful attractions. As they point out, the beaches of the east coast are only 20 mins away, and the popular attractions of the Waipoua Forest, Bayleys Beach and the Kai Iwi lakes only a reasonable drive in the other direction.