Logan Howard arrived at popular swim spot Maraetōtara Falls roughly 15 minutes after longstanding branches and swing rope were cut down from an overhanging tree.
The council had decided the beloved and decades-old launch spot into the waterfall pool below was now too risky.
Howard was incensed. And he decided to “prove a point” by taking a video of him launching himself into the deep pool below using one of the tiny stumps.
He knew it was risky. That was his point.
“The arborists were still there cleaning up. I decided to jump from the tree to prove a point. You can still jump from it but now it’s a lot riskier,” Howard said.
Now, Hastings District Council says it is taking action again. It has instructed its contractor to again return to the site and remove the stub from the tree, ensuring it is flush with the trunk.
“It is clear that the limb removal to fix the issue needs further work as it has left a ‘stub’ that can still be used for jumping from,” a council spokesperson said in response to a request for comment.
“It is true that this is an unmanaged reserve where there will always be some inherent risks, but Council staff believed the swing was a particular risk and significant hazard that could be mitigated.”
However, Howard said he thought the council had made a poor decision.
There are several other jump spots at Maraetōtara Falls - most of them off concrete or off the falls themselves - but Howard said he felt the tree and rope swing had always been the safest option.
“There has to be risk and reward but taking away this risk is pushing people to take bigger risks,” Howard said.
“I have already seen so many more people trying to walk along the top of waterfalls and jump in. It’s so slippery and people are taking a bigger risk by doing that than climbing a tree and swinging from a rope into the water.
“My son Braxton did the rope swing when he was eight. He’s 10 this year and that was going to be his summer goal, to jump from the branch. He can’t do that now.”
Born and bred in Hawke’s Bay, Howard, who is a self-employed roofer, said he had been going to the falls for years. Now he takes his children.
“We start in early summer and go as long as we can.”
He said there was another spot people had started jumping from which wasn’t as risky as the tree and stump he launched off.
However he said he was unwilling to reveal it to Hawke’s Bay Today in case “council came and cut that down as well”.
“They have cleared shrubs from the bottom of the rocks which is good because it gives you more visibility of people in the water.”
The council spokesperson said it was understandable that some people were upset at the change. The spokesperson said it was notable that others were pleased the council had taken steps to try and assure people are safe.
The branches and rope swing were removed on December 5 and 6, 2024, following a risk assessment by in-house council teams including parks and reserves and health and safety.
Council said this was further to an initial post-Cyclone Gabrielle inspection, which noted considerable damage to the falls area from the cyclone.
“The most recent inspections [October] led to further clearing of the stream bed and a recommendation that the tree branch over a popular swimming hole be removed, given the risk to users.”
LDR is local body journalism co-funded by RNZ and NZ On Air
