This is the Dawn Persson Boardwalk, at the end of Ash Street and just beside the Ash-Rata bridge across the Whau River. It was dedicated to Dawn Persson, a community stalwart, serving 10 years on the Community Board, as well as a raft of other community positions in Avondale. She died in October 1999, just two months after this was named in her honour.
This part of the Whau sees ducks ...
... as well as a hawk (flies over on the New Lynn/Kelston side, I saw it on Friday when I took these shots) and lots of pigeons (hawk food, I'd say).
This is the only place where anyone can see what the boardwalk's name is, or a mention of Dawn Persson. Bit of a shame.
Pollution still seeping into the Whau after all these years -- possibly from an old rubbish tip, judging by the rusty, oily water. This spill is close to where the plaque is.
A City Council sign left lying in the mud and mangroves, after giving up the fight to be seen through the coating of tags.
This is where the main interpretive sign for the walk is supposed to be. Lost to vandals and grafitti, some time past.
A view of the river looking towards the Waitemata Harbour ...
... underneath the Ash-Rata bridge ...
... and the other side, looking upriver towards the older Great North Road bridge.Update, 31 July 2009: See Phil Hanson's comment below. He took this shot of the state of the rubbish along the boardwalk.
Those are beaut photos, such a shame about the pollution seeping into the river.
ReplyDeleteDawn Persson must have been a great force for the community!
Your blog is very informative and I enjoy reading about Auckland's heritage - maybe you can give me some advice regarding my blog http://eyeonauckland.blogspot.com/ I made an attempt to create a timeline for the site where the Deloittes Centre is - I just hope that it is correct.
ReplyDeletePrompted by this posting, I did the walk today with my dog. The walkway is in poor cosmetic condition, with lots of litter on either side. It's 10 years since the path was opened - an aniversary present might be a good cleanup! We also walked the path at the pleasant Tony Segedin Park, where the Dawn Persson plaque is located. This walk provides excellent westward views across the Whau River to Kelston and is an excellent modern visual reference to many Timespanner postings on waterside commerce in the area in the 19th and early 20th centuries.
ReplyDeleteI used to go under the bridge on ash street on the home home from lynn mall. Its been over 10 years, so i don't think it was there then, might need to check it out, haven't been under that bridge in so long.
ReplyDeleteI have just added a link to this here http://walksinauckland.com/avondale-whau-river-walk/
ReplyDeleteThanks, Helen. I'll repeat it as an html link.
ReplyDeleteAvondale Whau River Walk.
The pollution still the same. It’s been looking like that since I was young. Snakeway known to some🙌🏾
ReplyDelete