Raukokore Church

Christ Church at Raukokore was built in 1894 on a rock point jutting into the Bay of Plenty, and it stands alone - no village around it, no trees to speak of, just a small white weatherboard Anglican church with a spire, the graveyard beside it and the sea on three sides. It was built by the local community with timber brought in by sea, and it is still in use. The isolation is the whole effect: driving the East Cape road, which winds along the coast for hundreds of kilometres with very little on it, you come round a bend and there it is. A colony of little blue penguins has nested under the church floor at times, which the congregation has accepted. It is a functioning place of worship on land of significance to local hapu, so the sensible approach is to look, photograph from a respectful distance and not treat the graveyard as scenery.

What you actually see

• The church on the point - white timber, alone, sea on three sides.
• The graveyard - beside it on the exposed point.
• The 1894 construction - community-built with timber brought by sea.
• The East Cape road - the long empty coast either side.

When to go

Any time. Early and late light on the white timber is best. It is a stop on a long drive rather than a destination.

Honest expectations

It is a working church and a burial ground - be respectful and quiet, and do not enter if a service is on. There are no facilities. SH35 is long and slow; fuel stops are far apart.

Nearby

Te Kaha is west; Waihau Bay and the East Cape lighthouse are east.