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ANZAC DAY in Whananaki 2026
An earlier service at dawn at the fire station for brigade members and their families kicked off ANZAC Day in Whananaki this year. Whananaki FM was unable to broadcast ANZAC DAY 2026 from Whananaki School due to transmission problems. Here is the full recording of the ANZAC service at 10:30am on Saturday 25th April 2026.
Dallas Gurney
Apr 251 min read


The Week That Was in Whananaki: 19/04/26
Is it time the gate at Otamure went? How much of a "Whananaki-an" are you? Do fizzer weather warnings do more harm than good? Meetings about Whananaki bus service this week! Plenty of good chat with Jodi this week on The Week That Was in Whananaki! Listen below.
Dallas Gurney
Apr 191 min read


Peter Halvorson: Meet Your Neighbour
Another privilege today to hear the story of Peter Halvorson. The name is synonymous with Whananaki - Halvorson Road - marking the entry to Te Wairahi and where the river meets the road at Halvorson Bridge. They were one of the very first settler families in Whananaki pre-1900, coming from the UK and Norway. It was a thrill to hear the Halvorson story and especially Peter's story of a wonderful life alongside his wife of 60+ years, Beryl. Thanks Peter once again for sharin
Dallas Gurney
Apr 111 min read


The Week That Was in Whananaki: 05/04/26
Jodi Edwards and Dallas Gurney discuss the pressing issues in the district this week, as well as lots of other things that probably doesn't warrant being discussed on the radio but is a bit of fun. This week we talk about widening the footbridge, the Beach Association AGM, moments that stopped life in its tracks, the mangroves and plenty else in Whananaki's very own current events programme. Listen here!
Dallas Gurney
Apr 51 min read


NRC's Amy MacDonald on the flooding at the marae and Halverson Road
When Whananaki was hit with January’s storm bringing three months of winter rain in just a couple of days, Te Wairahi - the valley - was under water at the marae with the flooding of the river at Halverson Bridge. Closing the road. Flooding homes. Threatening lives. Frightening the local community. The Northland Regional Council is a guardian of our resources and responsible for flood protection in the region. We spoke to our local councillor Amy MacDonald about the int
Dallas Gurney
Apr 41 min read


Doreen Anderson: Meet Your Neighbour
Doreen Anderson is a former Whananaki General Store shopkeeper, aunty, local legend of the first degree... and all round wonderful person! Doreen came to Whananaki in the early 1980’s when she bought the local shop with husband Sam and set about running it with daughter (and another local legend), Laurel. Once thriving under the Young’s, by the time the Anderson’s had the shop it was run down, had hardly any stock and was a shadow of its former self. It took the Anderson’s
Dallas Gurney
Apr 41 min read


LIVE UPDATES: Red Heavy Rain Warning in Whananaki
We will be updating this blog with the latest information on the storm impacts in Whananaki and the surrounding District. FLOODING WATCH TOMMO'S CORNER - OPEN HALVERSON BRIDGE - OPEN MARAE - OPEN OTONGA - OPEN PIG'S HEAD ROAD - UNKNOWN @ FRI 7AM JUBILEE ROAD - OPEN HAILES ROAD - OPEN KAIIKANUI ROAD - RESTRICTED via PILOT VEHICLE FRI 7AM Roads are reopening including Whananaki North Road to SH1. Small debris on road, however no slips and no flooding except a small amount (pa
Dallas Gurney
Mar 254 min read


The Week That Was in Whananaki: 22/03/26
How did Whananaki vote in 2023? Our own voting stats from Whananaki School polling booth revealed! Plus jetskis in the estuary, we got a 1-star review (!) and is it time for a bus service from Whananaki to town? All this and more in this week's episode!
Dallas Gurney
Mar 221 min read


The Week That Was in Whananaki: 15/03/26
This week we talk the concert yesterday, the slip at Moureeses, a safe speed on Whananaki North Road and plenty else!
Dallas Gurney
Mar 151 min read


Tracey Mita: Meet Your Neighbour
It was awesome to sit down with Whaea T this week and find out more about someone special in the Whananaki community who quietly gets on with helping make paradise an awesome place and support those in our community who needs a hand. As soon as we arrived in Whananaki, Tracey had a smiling face, a big welcome and tons of energy. You can't miss her when you walk into a room she is in... chances are she'll be singing... but her enthusiasm is infectious and somehow represents t
Dallas Gurney
Mar 141 min read


Mark Arrowsmith: Meet Your Neighbour
A really special guest on Meet Your Neighbour this week as we met Mark Arrowsmith ! Mark, who now lives in Australia with wife Caroline and his family, was our fire chief for many years. Before coming to Whananaki, Mark was a senior firefighter in the UK, finishing his career working in the Department of the Deputy Prime Minister on the government's plans post 9/11. It was awesome to catch up with Mark, someone who's legacy lives on at the fire station to this very day. Lis
Dallas Gurney
Mar 71 min read


Tiger Moth's at airstrip reminds of Whananaki-past
It was nice to stand outside and watch the Tiger Moths come in today, albeit briefly, with Barney and Fiona. Donna had to persuade me out of the house. I really am an embarrassing hermit, but I’m glad I took the time to go and watch these beauties. Bright yellow, red, grey, blue - you could actually hear them before you could see them - buzzing like a bee with a chainsaw or an old lawnmower that had been tenderly maintained by the same hands for fifty years. A hundred even.
Dallas Gurney
Mar 42 min read


The Week That Was in Whananaki - 01/03/2026
Do we need a dishwasher at the hall?! Great wedding locations in Whananaki. The airstrip gets some special visitors this Wednesday. Whose our person of the week? And what could top the Al Brown raffle next year?! Listen below to Dallas Gurney and Jodi Edwards on Whananaki FM and join them live every Sunday at 10am.
Dallas Gurney
Mar 11 min read


Al Brown Raffle Winner Announced!
Congratulations to MIKE BOON who won the Al Brown raffle today, taking home a money can't buy experience of dinner for four at Al's Whananaki bach with him cooking dinner of course! Well done Mike! You can listen below to the draw and us calling Mike live on-air. Second prize of two cartons of Tipping Point wine went to HEATHER WILKINSON and third prize of two of Al's smashing books signed by the man himself went to JANINE FRANKLIN. And best of all the raffle raised $11.5K
Dallas Gurney
Feb 281 min read


Sealing Rockell Road & Hailes Road: The Time Has Come
In the 1940's, users of Rockell Road used to have to open a farm gate to access Moureeses Bay and further North (photo, AI, don't get too excited it's not real) “Not in my lifetime.” That was the answer my papa gave his 10-or-so year-old grandson, a young inquisitive Dallas, forty years ago when I asked whether the road to Moureeses would ever be sealed. He’s about to turn 97, so it turns out he is probably going to be right. But surely it’s about time this bubbled to the
Dallas Gurney
Feb 243 min read


NZ has been slowly weaned off K Bars
A pretty much exact (AI generated) image of precisely what a dairy looked like in NZ in the 1980's. I guess it’s good to be weaned slowly off something that is that addictive. That beautiful delight, a nostalgic comfort, wrapped in paper making life just a little more interesting. The smooth surface rolling through your fingers. Saliva glands sweating in anticipation. When I was a kid they were available at every corner dairy. Every service station. They flew out of this
Dallas Gurney
Feb 223 min read


The Week That Was in Whananaki - 22/02/026
Who is the funniest person in Whananaki? Why do locals on Kaiikanui Road need to wait for a pilot vehicle? Would you want a KFC in Whananaki?! Can you be buried at home? These questions and more on The Week That Was in Whananaki this week! Listen below to Dallas Gurney and Jodi Edwards on Whananaki FM and join them live every Sunday at 10am.
Dallas Gurney
Feb 221 min read


Daron Turner: Meet Your Neighbour
It was awesome to sit down with Daron Turner this week and hear about how he ended up here in paradise! From a trucker, to running trucking companies, then to being an entrepreneur in his own right - Daron's lived a fascinating life with family at the core. How was it joining the Whananaki-famous Donaldson clan? How did he meet Karla? What sort of a Harbour Master is he? And could we get rain back north of Kauri? Another local legend ticked off on Meet Your Neighbour thi
Dallas Gurney
Feb 211 min read


Samara Nicholas: Meet Your Neighbour
Samara Nicholas in her element! Smart, engaging and we reckon one of the most inspirational people in Whananaki... our special guest this week on Meet Your Neighbour is Samara Nicholas! Since co-founding the Mountains To Sea Conservation Trust at the tender age of 21, Samara and her team has grown it to a national organisation focused on inspiring and supporting grass roots conservation. It's had national success and acclaim, and now boasts a nationwide crew from around New
Dallas Gurney
Feb 71 min read


Al Brown: Meet Your Neighbour
Chef Al Brown loves Whananaki and we love you too Al. Our mission is to meet everybody in Whananaki one person at a time and this week we're very lucky to have Al Brown on Meet Your Neighbour! The chef and entrepreneur spends every weekend he can in paradise after discovering it via Dave & Nicky Wilson from Moureeses Bay a few years ago. And it's pretty clear talking to Al that he's here to stay. Lucky us! One of our fave people in Whananaki and an all round top man, Al Bro
Dallas Gurney
Jan 311 min read
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