Sparrow’s Cliff, by the Whanganui awa, is a childhood playground. It is also steeped in history. Totara were hauled from the bush in Upokongaro to the hilltop and pushed over the cliff into the awa. If the totara floated, it was then destined to become a waka. The taniwha at the base of Kaimātira are surely likely to have been part of that decision!
Kamātira also speaks of courage. Arthur Lincoln Pauls said that ‘we must learn to fly within ourselves, and launch ourselves into spaces where we see no landing place. This is the only real courage.”