During August 2023, an opportunity arose for Survey Gisborne Limited to visit the Chatham Islands and survey three Nga Whenua Rahui covenants.

The Nga Whenua Rahui Fund supports the protection of indigenous biodiversity on Māori-owned land.

Survey Gisborne Limited enjoyed the experience of travelling to and working in a remote outpost of New Zealand.

During April 2026, a further opportunity arose to visit the Chatham Islands and survey a further seven Nga Whenua Rahui covenants.

One of the first projects involved surveying an established fenced area of native bush situated adjacent to the road heading north-west to Port Hutt.

A similar covenant survey was undertaken at Wharekauri, situated along the northern coast of Chatham Island.  For this covenant, the area adjoined the beach, which had been fenced along the top of the sand dunes.

Another interesting area involved driving north-east to Kaingaroa to survey an established bush block known as Hokotehi Kaingarahu.

Most of the covenants surveyed, however, were situated in the vicinity of Owenga, situated in the south-eastern corner of Chatham Island and also Te Awapatiki on the edge of Te Whanga Lagoon.

Surveying was challenging at times given the windy conditions, especially the fenced cliff tops along the southern coast at Owenga.

To ensure the GPS base station stayed securely in place, large rocks were placed on each tripod leg to prevent it from being blown over.  The GPS rover was also required to be securely held whilst Kevin knelt to shelter from the wind.

The views from the south coast to nearby Pitt Island (the second-largest island) on clear days were spectacular.