22/01/2025. Mt Royal/Bobby’s Head (Tavora Reserve). Grade 3.5. Trampers. Leaders: Graham Thurlow, Graeme Souter.
Parking at Tavora Reserve in the long grass on a warm summer’s day with a slight breeze we, 15 trampers, made our way up the gravel on Bobby’s Head Rd turning left onto the Goodwood Rd passing a familiar sign, “Adam Sutherland Road”. Yes, Adam I have resided here, in the old homestead built all those years ago in 1853 by Edward Swallow who named the farm “Shepherds Bush”.
I was remembering so many details of what I have learnt of the history of this locality and remembered those early settlers in this area, Goodwood.
Next the site of a former Anglican Church, we turned in to look at the graves of local relatives buried here. Especially the Preston family who had built a large summer residence on a knob beside Bobby’s Head Rd called “Centerwood.” This home, still surrounded by native forest and gleaming in the sun has been beautifully cared for over the years.
On we went turning into the Foote’s farm, stopping to have morning tea under the macrocarpas, a former site of a house.
Making our way into a small valley where the Irish settlement of many more houses had almost completely vanished, I remembered our former neighbours here, the Kelly’s. The Kelly’s told me the Irish didn’t get on too well with each other up this valley!
Then entering deepening long grass we passed the small one room holiday cottage that the Footes had built to enjoy silence and peace.
Up, up, up and through the gate into even deeper grass we followed the tracks of the first person who had trodden a path to the very top of Mount Royal. We walked along the top of Mount Royal observing ‘Puketapu monument’ honouring a significant member of Parliament Sir John McKenzie, that had allowed many of us to buy at least a small piece of land in this country called New Zealand. Sir John McKenzie Memorial on Puketapu
https://teara.govt.nz/en/biographies/2m17/mckenzie-john
After lunch it was a pleasant walk down, opening and shutting many gates through the farmland passing amongst weaned lambs in long grass, onto Goodwood road again.
Then on Bobby’s Head Rd we paused at the stile into Tavora and some of us went on a few km’s to have a quick look at the seals over the cliff and others returned to the cars.
We appreciate the farm access we have had from the Foote family and Simon Englebrect.
Graham Thurlow
Link to background information and earlier tramps and hikes in the same area.