Cape track closure affecting business
A business that has been running for more than 50 years is urging the Department of Conservation (DoC) to reopen its walking track at popular tourist spot Cape Kidnappers in Hawke’s Bay.
The track was closed after a major slip last year, and will remain so until the area can be properly assessed.
Gannet Safaris Overland said the track should reopen in ‘‘the interests of Hawke’s Bay tourism’’, and says it is suffering financially from the closure.
Co-director Charlotte Fisher said DoC’s inaction was affecting ‘‘every business on the Cape’’, including hers, which had seen online free independent traveller bookings fall by 80 per cent.
‘‘The image that’s being portrayed is that no-one can go to the gannet colony – we take 7000 people a year, both Kiwis and internationals. I feel the public deserves better.’’
Gannet Safaris Overland is one of two businesses that offer tours to the gannet colonies, only it uses private land to access the birds.
‘‘Tourists believe that Gannet Safaris Overland is closed, when it’s only access from the beach up to the plateau that’s not open at the moment,’’ Fisher said.
She said matters were made worse by the fact that DoC’s website stated that access to the gannets was across private land and failed to mention that the business had access.
‘‘We are sympathetic that the ongoing closure of the track from the beach affects Gannet Beach Adventures,’’ she said.
‘‘It’s time that DoC acted as better neighbours at Cape Kidnappers and allowed tourists access to the gannet colony other than over the farm.
‘‘We want DoC to stop its inaction, which has caused widespread confusion, so that we can continue to show tourists from around New Zealand and the beauty of the gannets and the Cape,’’ Fisher said.
DoC Hawke’s Bay operations manager Jenny Nelson-Smith said visitor safety was a ‘‘top priority’’.
‘‘DoC has closed the track from the beach up through the reserve while the Quantitative Risk Analysis report is reviewed and finalised, which is still taking place,’’ NelsonSmith said.
‘‘The report will help ensure we have a full understanding of the level of risk associated with the walk from Clifton to the reserve, so that we can manage it effectively. Only at that point will we be comfortable to make a decision whether or not to reopen the track.’’
Nelson-Smith said there was access to the colony via private land, although public access via the track from the beach was closed.
‘‘We have invited Gannet Safaris Overland to meet with us in person to talk about their concerns,’’ she said.