Fit for a KING
Mike Yardley finds Elvis is still alive — and so much more — on Surf Highway 45
SURF HIGHWAY 45 is a ravishing 105km coastal route, stretching from New Plymouth to Ha¯wera. I hit the road south, tootling through a necklace of sweet villages like O¯ akura, where the Lemonwood Eatery is a tempting pit-stop to fuel the tummy on fabulous vegan fare and recaffeinate.
A short diversion down Timaru Rd leads you to gnarly, rusted wreck of the coastal steamer Gairloch, which ran aground on the reef in 1903. Mercifully, no lives were lost.
If you want to check out some great surf breaks, top spots include Stent Road, the Kumara Patch and Fitzroy Beach. Just before arriving in O¯ punake, I stopped in Rahotu, where I had an appointment with Steve Manning, a local legend who is a wizardly leather craftsman. He is wizardly in every sense — he even looks like a wizard (he dressed up like Gandalf for me) and is a masterly storyteller.
Steve kept me enthralled for several hours, sharing with me his epic craftwork, which has seen him routinely deployed for our biggest movie productions. He has specialised as a leather artist on a dazzling roll call of movies, including the Lord of the Rings trilogy, The Hobbit, Spartacus and The Last Samurai.
Deployed in both the costume and props departments, Steve has designed and produced hundreds of boots, bags, saddles and costumes from scratch. His Rahotu main street workshop doubles as a glorified museum, laden with priceless movie memorabilia.
While Steve regaled me with gripping anecdotes from working with some of Hollywood’s A-listers, locals would pop in with repair jobs or to commission him to design a custom piece. He does it all.
Steve is planning to set up an on-site boutique backpackers’ business while also running leathercraft workshops.
Blending the scenic highlights with a heady dollop of history and culture, you’ll want to make tracks to Ha¯wera’s Tawhiti Museum. Every history buff I know considers it the best private museum in the country.
The ingenious powerhouse behind
Tawhiti Museum is its owner and creator, Nigel Ogle, who’s been developing this magnificent heritage showcase over the past 35 years. Nigel describes the museum as “one big art project.”
It’s got its own bush railway and it’s complemented by the truly wondrous Traders and Whalers attraction. Weta Workshops deployed their technical expertise to help construct the artificial underground caverns.
The river boat ride through these caverns, clad in convincing lush bush and rocky coastal settings, glides you past compelling animated displays, graphically illustrating Taranaki life in the 1820s and 1830s. Modelled on Disneyland’s iconic It’s a Small World attraction, this exhilarating tour de force at Tawhiti is compulsive.
Another show-stopper to be found in Ha¯wera is KD’S Elvis Presley Museum.
If you think Nigel Ogle’s creations have to be seen to be believed, KD’S emporium of all things Elvis is equally gobsmacking. Kevin Walsey has been a relentless collector of the King’s records and memorabilia since his childhood.
It all began when he was 12 and was given what he now calls his “pride and joy” — an original EP of Heartbreak Hotel.
The mega-fan has visited Graceland 17 times and has amassed what is considered by Elvis buffs as one of the greatest memorabilia-loaded museums in the world. Step inside his household garage and you’ll be awestruck by this glittering grotto to the music legend.
Kevin remarked to me that people walk in, and they say, ‘God!’ And I say, ‘No, Elvis.'”
Every single surface within the garage is awash in Elvis.
He’s on the walls and ceiling, on mugs, glasses, cufflinks, ties, books, album covers… you name it.
A television belts out Elvis performances non-stop. There are over 10,000 objects within KJ’S staggering collection. KJ is a gifted raconteur with an infectious character, who regaled me with some enthralling stories about his collection and his life.
As a high school student, he struck up a penpal relationship with a chap named Roy Lyon who lived in Memphis. Roy had no interest in Elvis but was starstruck by New Zealand and our greenery.
Roy would send KJ images of Elvis, out and about in Memphis. Kevin’s delightful wife, JJ, was also a joy to meet. She knew nothing about Elvis when she met Kevin. Elvis has not left the building in Ha¯wera. Entry is by donation and by appointment. Prepare to be awestruck.