Tuai Power Station a product of adventurous journey

When researching the Hawke’s Bay Museums Trust collection, it’s wonderful to discover connections between items which were not donated together. Recently I made the connection between “The Record of a Unique Excursion. Waikaremoana Hydro-Electric League’s Parliamentary Tour, 13-18 March 1918”, a booklet written by Government Press Secretary Philip Hereford, and a leather-bound photograph album with “Waikaremoana” embossed in gold on the front cover. The album contains 86 images documenting this unique excursion.

On 5 December 1917, the Waikaremoana Hydro-electric League organised a “Grand Tour” of Waikaremoana and its surroundings. The aim of the trip was two-fold: “to obtain Government recognition” of Lake Waikaremoana “as the central station for the development of hydro-electric power for the North Island”, and to further “the making of public roads and extension of the railway system” throughout the East Coast. Invitations were duly sent out, which eight Members of Parliament (MPs), including Sir James Carroll, and 35 Southern Local Body representatives accepted.

The visitors arrived in Napier on 14 March 1918 and at 11pm were conveyed by tram to meet the ship Tangaroa at Port Ahuriri, bound for Wairoa. Hereford wrote, “the situation was not devoid of humour” as “the sea was up and …  spirits down”. Several delegates were “unpleasantly astonished” at the small size of Tangaroa. Their sense of unease was justified, as the vessel was crammed with passengers, forcing delegates to sleep wherever a space could be found – on the deck, in cars, lifeboats and even standing-up.

After a rough passage, the Tangaroa docked at Wairoa at 6am, and on disembarking many of the delegates looked “pale and disheveled”. Inclement weather held them up, so the group were “royally entertained” by being given the “freedom of the Wairoa Club” as well as being ferried across the river to inspect the newly built freezing works.

The following morning dawned wet, nevertheless the organisers decided to go-ahead, and the passengers were issued into 17 cars, borrowed from, and driven by Hawke’s Bay locals. From the outset the journey proved “unbelievably bad” forcing the passengers to “hold hard on to their seats”.

As the convoy approached Frasertown the mud turned into a quagmire, causing many vehicles to become stuck. In some places horses were able to be procured to extract the vehicles, but usually the passengers had to shovel the mud from around the tyres, then push from behind. Drivers also had to contend with deep ruts in the road.

At 3 o’clock most of the cars had reached Waimako Pā where they stopped for lunch. Here Ngāi Tūhoe hospitably fed them, serving lunch “on mats on the floor in the Māori fashion”. The worn-out guests unanimously agreed that the “food never tasted better”.

The final section of the trip proved worse than the first, being described as “possessed of the devil”. On reaching Lake Waikaremoana, the visitors were relayed by launch to their accommodation. The launch’s final trip did not leave until 9pm when the last car arrived, loaded with “heavy weights” (passengers) who, once on board, caused the launch to ground. The captain endeavoured to dislodge the vessel using a rope, but it broke, whiplashing a driver who fell sustaining a nasty head wound. In the ensuing commotion the only available lantern was dropped overboard. During the kerfuffle, a delegate shrewdly remarked there were “45 captains and a crew of one” directing the launch 

Half of the delegates stayed at a camp close to the lake shore, while the remainder slept at Lake House. Once at their accommodation and replete with a hot meal, the “ruffled explorers’ equanimity was soon restored”. For those at the camp, life was convivial with armchairs set-up around an open fire, and they whiled away the hours with “philosophy, poetry and politics”. Once all were settled, Hereford wrote that “the cry of the morepork and the rustle of the trees” were the only sounds to disturb the night, except for the “sonorous noises coming from the bachelors’ quarters.”

The following day the weather conditions were perfect. The group was divided-up with half travelling to Lake Waikareiti by road and foot, while the remainder (mostly MPs) explored Lake Waikaremoana by launch. In the evening everyone gathered at Lake House to listen to an address given by Professor Easterfield of Victoria University, who “discoursed learnedly and interestingly on hydro-electric power”.

After a “second night’s slumber which obliterated all memory of the Tangaroa and the mud” the delegates rose and, after lunch, set off on the return journey. Before farewelling the lake, a “thorough inspection” was made of the outlet, which many described as “the grandest sight of the tour”.

On the trip back to Wairoa the road was barely recognisable, as “two glorious mountain days” had improved it immensely. On Monday morning the Parliamentary Party caught the Tangaroa bound for Napier. For Wairoa locals, the trip had proved to be the most “exciting event for many years” and the “town poured out en masse to farewell the visitors”.

 On arrival at Napier, the travellers were welcomed by a large crowd, including pupils from Hukarere College. After a sumptuous meal at the Masonic Hotel the group assembled at Napier’s Municipal Theatre, where a general discussion was held on the value of Lake Waikaremoana as a source for hydro-electric power. The MP’s promised that after World War I, the question of developing a hydro scheme at Waikaremoana would receive urgent consideration. Eleven years later this promise was fulfilled - Tuai Power Station directly below Lake Waikaremoana was officially opened in 1929. 

Published in the Hawke’s Bay Today newspaper on 27 September 2024 and written by Gail Pope, Social History Curator at MTG Hawke’s Bay.

Image: Exploring Lake Waikaremoana by launch.                 

30 September 2024

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