Parks & Reserves

Whinray Reserve

On the road between Gisborne and Opotiki, turn off at Matawai to find the Whinray Scenic Reserve - an outstanding area of native forest that has never been milled.

Named after James Whinray, a local settler who lobbied to save the forest when the region was being cleared for farming, the reserve has many giant trees - rimu, matai, miro, totara, kaweka and kahikatea. Bird life is prolific. Grey warblers, fantails, tomtits, kereru, cuckoos, moreporks and kingfishers are all common. Rarer bird species in this reserve include the North Island robin, kaka, weka, New Zealand falcon and brown kiwi.

A five kilometre walking track cuts through the middle of the reserve. The track used to be a dray road and formed part of the historic trail that was the main link between Gisborne and Opotiki in the late 1800s. At the start of the track a dramatic 42 metre suspension bridge crosses the Motu River just below the Motu Falls.