Kaipūpū Sanctuary, Picton’s pest-free paradise in the inner Queen Charlotte Sound, welcomed more than 150 people to its first Discover Kaipūpū fundraising walk last Saturday.
Participants strolled the sanctuary’s peaceful 2.7km circular track, wandering through native bush, spotting birdlife and taking in views across Shakespeare Bay and Picton Harbour.
Community outreach coordinator Anna Polson said the response was overwhelmingly positive, with people travelling from Blenheim and further afield to explore the protected area.
The event raised $3500, which will go towards maintaining tracks, toilets, the jetty and predator-proof fencing, as well as supporting weed and pest management programmes that help keep the sanctuary safe and accessible.
Opened to the public as a sanctuary in 2013, Kaipūpū was previously used for sheep grazing connected to the Picton Freezing Works until the 1980s, with large areas cleared for farming.
Anna said volunteers had made significant progress restoring native flora and fauna, particularly in recent years as forest regrowth accelerated.
“There were people I met there who hadn’t visited for 10 years, and they were quite blown away by the changes, just with the growth of the forest and the number of birds.”
Among them were Resolution Bay retirees Val and David Podmore, who last visited Kaipūpū a decade ago.
“It’s quite impressive. It’s changed quite a lot. The undergrowth is much richer now and the trees have gotten taller,” Val said.
The pair said there were clear differences in vegetation and pest activity between Kaipūpū and Resolution Bay, where trapping programmes operate but not on the same scale.
“You realise the benefits of having a sanctuary and a whole team of people dedicated to the area,” David said.
A 600m-long predator-proof fence was installed across Kaipūpū’s southern end in 2008, protecting the sanctuary from mammalian pests such as possums and mustelids.
Its predator-free status is also supported by a trapping programme, with volunteers carrying out fortnightly checks to prevent mice, rats and stoats from establishing, alongside plant pests such as Old Man’s Beard.
Greg Jenks, a coastal ecologist and Kaipūpū tour guide, said volunteers had done “a very good job” of keeping the sanctuary predator-free and creating conditions for native species to thrive.
He highlighted the importance of kererū, New Zealand’s native wood pigeon, which helps establish native tawa trees through seed dispersal and supports the wider forest ecosystem.
Anna said the team was now focused on protecting those gains, with plans to expand the sanctuary’s use of automated predator traps.
“Automated traps are definitely the way to go. You only have to check them every six months, so you don’t need to go out every week or every second week like we do. They’re also very effective because they’re always live,” she said.
Adding another dozen or so automated traps throughout the sanctuary would “absolutely make sure that we maintain our predator-proof status”, she said.
Following the success of the inaugural fundraiser and a strong response from families, the team plans to make the event an annual fixture.
“It’s something for families to do when they’re in town.
“We just really want to improve [Kaipūpū’s] profile, and that will improve things like getting sponsors and funding. The more people we have appreciating and enjoying it, the better story we have to tell.”
