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Karamea is a town on the West Coast of the South Island of New Zealand. It is the northernmost settlement of any real size on the West Coast, and is located northeast by road from Westport. Apart from a narrow coastal strip, the town of Karamea and its local area are completely surrounded to the south, east and north by Kahurangi National Park.
The town is located on the coastal plain adjacent to the Karamea River and the Ōtūmahana Estuary. The town consists of two small settlements, Market Cross and Karamea proper, located about apart. Up the Karamea River are the farming areas of Arapito (on the south bank) and Umere (on the north bank).
Karamea is a gateway to the Kahurangi National Park, and provides a base for visitors coming to walk or mountain bike the Heaphy Track, or see popular local attractions such as the Ōpārara Basin, Ōpārara Arches, the Fenian Track and caves, the Big Rimu Walk and the coastal scenery north of Kōhaihai on the Heaphy Track.
The mouth of the Heaphy River is the site of an early Māori encampment dating back to perhaps 1380 AD, and there is evidence it was one of the few sites in the northwest South Island occupied by people for extended periods of time. There is significant evidence of stoneworking, including local pounamu as well as argillite, obsidian, and chert imported from elsewhere in Aotearoa. The significance of the site to Ngāi Tahu led to it being excluded from Kahurangi National Park.
The first Europeans and Chinese would have been early gold-miners in the 1860s.
Prior to 1874, the Nelson Province had not been significantly involved in the immigration schemes organised by the Colonial Government, but in October of that year, around 250 adults arrived in Nelson seeking work, and another shipload of immigrants was on the way. There was insufficient work available to employ all these immigrants, and the province turned again to Special Settlement Areas as a solution. Karamea was chosen as a site for a Special Settlement Area partly because the area was already known from a gold rush 7 years earlier, but also that it had a harbour, and there were steamers passing regularly along the coast. By November 1874, a block of land of had been reserved on the south side of the Karamea River, and in April 1875 a further was reserved on the north side of the Karamea River . The planning of the settlement was placed under the control of Eugene O'Conor, Provincial Secretary, and member of the New Zealand House of Representatives.
The settlers at Karamea were mostly immigrants from four ships that arrived at Nelson between August 1874 and February 1875. The first settlers to arrive in Karamea were landed from the steamer Charles Edward, on 27 November 1874. Most of the 20 men who were landed had no experience of breaking in new land. They were initially allocated small sections of pakihi – flat boggy land with infertile, waterlogged soil high up on a terrace to the south of the Karamea River. Better land was found on the Karamea River flats below the terrace, but there were delays before this land was allocated. Women and children arrived in January 1875.
In October 1875, using labour from the settlers, work began on creating an inland track over the hills between Little Wanganui and Mohikinui to bypass the difficult and dangerous coastal track. The road to Karamea over the hilly section (known as the Karamea bluffs) north of Mokihinui, was not opened until 1916.
In 1935, the Karamea dairy factory was manufacturing 300 tonnes of butter annually. The industry slowly expanded, and milk powder was manufactured locally from the 1970s. Local processing eventually ceased, and milk is now transported by road tanker to Hokitika.
There are two main areas of residential accommodation and businesses on the north side of the Karamea River. These are Market Cross and the settlement of Karamea itself. These two locations are around apart. On the south side of the river, and inland, is the small settlement of Arapito, and across the river from it is the settlement of Umere. These were originally called Promised Land and Land of Promise, respectively, when they were settled around 1880.
The mouth of the Ōpārara River is around north of the centre of Karamea.
Little Wanganui is a small dairy farming village located south of Karamea. It has a surfing beach and a river popular for whitebaiting and fishing.
The estuary is the third largest tidal estuary on the West Coast, after Ōkārito Lagoon and Saltwater Lagoon. It has been classified as a Significant Wetland by the West Coast Regional Council in its Regional Land and Water Plan. A small specially protected area of wetland known as Ōtūmahana Reserve was established at the south-east corner of the estuary in 1983. A life-size bronze statue of the extinct Haast's eagle or hōkioi was erected in Karamea in 2020. The initiative was a joint undertaking of the Karamea Estuary Enhancement Project and local iwi Ngāti Apa ki te Rā Tō and Ngāti Waewae. The hōkioi represents the spiritual guardian of the estuary. The statue is called Te Maia Kahurangi, and was unveiled on 22 February 2020. It depicts the ancestor Te Maia who rode an eagle he raised from a chick. It was cast in bronze by Gillie and Marc and is 300 cm high.
There is a history of the river causing flooding in the township. In 1899, a large flood swept away a new bridge across the river and caused damage to settlers homes, farms and crops. Another major flood caused serious damage in January 1915, inundating the main street and the majority of houses.
The Murchison earthquake on 17 June 1929 led to debris blocking the existing mouth of the Karamea River, and a new outlet to the sea formed from the Ōtūmahana lagoon around to the south of the existing outlet. Deposits of silt raised the level of the river bed and led to a greatly increased risk of flooding in the townships of Karamea and Market Cross. On 30 December 1929 there was heavy damage in Karamea and Arapito from a sudden flood attributed to the breach of a dam created during the earthquake. In April 1931, floodwaters entered most of the homes around Market Cross, and some in the Karamea township. In August 1931, the settlers were given access to relief funding from the West Coast Earthquake Relief Fund for the damage caused by these floods.
Over the next few years, stop banks and training walls were constructed on the north side of the river to help mitigate the flood risk to the town. In May 1936 the Karamea School Committee notified the Education Board of their concerns about the damage caused by repeated flooding of the school. Relocation to a new site was proposed. In October 1936 there was a further major flood that entered 40 houses in Karamea and Market Cross. In September 1937, a large flood led to the river breaking through to the sea at the location of the old river mouth, cutting a new channel that greatly reduced the flood risk to the town and enabled the entry of vessels at high tide. Further river protection works were installed between 1938 and 1940, and these successfully defended the township during a heavy flood in the river in February 1940.
Survey records since 1912 indicate that there have been either single or double openings to the sea from the Ōtūmahana Estuary, and that these openings have migrated over of shoreline since records began. Between 2008 and 2010, the two openings merged at a location giving a direct exit from the Karamea River to the sea. From December 2010, the combined opening migrated south. Between 2013 and 2015, the channel moved further south by over . In 2016, the channel was south of the most direct route from the river to the sea. This southern location of the channel increases the risk of flooding in some areas of Karamea. A report to the West Coast Regional Council in 2016 recommended mechanical excavation of a breach channel to allow the next major flood to cut a new direct route to the sea, and mitigate the flood risk. Breach channels were constructed at the north end of the spit and a direct path was opened to the sea in 2017. The Regional Council cautioned that further interventions could be required in future to keep the outlet in a northern location.
The town had a population of 354 at the 2018 New Zealand census, a decrease of 21 people (−5.6%) since the 2013 census, and a decrease of 69 people (−16.3%) since the 2006 census. There were 204 households, comprising 195 males and 159 females, giving a sex ratio of 1.23 males per female, with 51 people (14.4%) aged under 15 years, 18 (5.1%) aged 15 to 29, 195 (55.1%) aged 30 to 64, and 99 (28.0%) aged 65 or older.
Ethnicities were 93.2% European/Pākehā, 6.8% Māori, 3.4% Pasifika, 2.5% Asian, and 3.4% other ethnicities. People may identify with more than one ethnicity.
Although some people chose not to answer the census's question about religious affiliation, 61.9% had no religion, 24.6% were Christian and 2.5% had other religions.
Of those at least 15 years old, 30 (9.9%) people had a bachelor's or higher degree, and 78 (25.7%) people had no formal qualifications. 27 people (8.9%) earned over $70,000 compared to 17.2% nationally. The employment status of those at least 15 was that 114 (37.6%) people were employed full-time, 63 (20.8%) were part-time, and 12 (4.0%) were unemployed.
The statistical area had a population of 714 at the 2018 New Zealand census, a decrease of 54 people (−7.0%) since the 2013 census, and a decrease of 84 people (−10.5%) since the 2006 census. There were 381 households, comprising 393 males and 324 females, giving a sex ratio of 1.21 males per female. The median age was 53.3 years (compared with 37.4 years nationally), with 99 people (13.9%) aged under 15 years, 60 (8.4%) aged 15 to 29, 378 (52.9%) aged 30 to 64, and 177 (24.8%) aged 65 or older.
Ethnicities were 92.0% European/Pākehā, 10.5% Māori, 2.9% Pasifika, 0.8% Asian, and 3.4% other ethnicities. People may identify with more than one ethnicity.
The percentage of people born overseas was 16.4, compared with 27.1% nationally.
Although some people chose not to answer the census's question about religious affiliation, 65.1% had no religion, 21.8% were Christian, 0.4% had Māori religious beliefs and 1.7% had other religions.
Of those at least 15 years old, 54 (8.8%) people had a bachelor's or higher degree, and 165 (26.8%) people had no formal qualifications. The median income was $19,900, compared with $31,800 nationally. 48 people (7.8%) earned over $70,000 compared to 17.2% nationally. The employment status of those at least 15 was that 219 (35.6%) people were employed full-time, 126 (20.5%) were part-time, and 27 (4.4%) were unemployed.
In 2020, it was reported that there had been a significant increase in the local population, with increasing demand for housing, and an increase in the roll at Karamea Area School.
Popular attractions in the area include the Ōpārara Basin, (including the Ōpārara Basin Arches), Honeycomb Hill Cave, Fenian Track and caves, and the Big Rimu Walk.
Air transport is available from Karamea Aerodrome. Golden Bay Air flies from Karamea to from Wellington, Takaka and Nelson. There is also a helicopter charter service at the aerodrome.
The Karamea War Memorial Library was opened in 1954 and for decades shared its building with the Plunket Society rooms. It expanded to occupy the whole building in the mid 1990s, and now operates as an entirely volunteer-run library with approximately 50 subscriptions. Karamea Centennial Museum is a small museum opened in 1974. The museum collections include photographs and exhibits on the local industries of sawmilling, dairying, gold mining, flax milling and shipping. Until 1908 there was no church in Karamea; services were conducted in private homes, and a minister would visit from Westport or Mokihinui, often having to take an arduous coastal route along beaches and rocks. After the death by drowning in August 1906 of the crew of the Rangi while taking soundings on the Karamea Bar, the Westport vicar Rev Dart held services. He suggested locals might like to acquire a memorial, such as an organ, but the people of Karamea organised the construction of a church, taking three months and costing £69. The Holy Trinity Church was dedicated on 24 June 1908, and has stayed an interdenonominational community church ever since.
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