Our annual fundraiser, always a sell out success:

VIP Kayak Day on 18th April 2026

Once a year only – so as not to disturb the wildlife too much – and with access generously granted by our neighbouring properties, our VIP Kayak Day is back!

Experience Te Henga wetland from the best possible perspective and raise funds for its protection at the same time. The navigable part of Waitākere River is accessible only from private land. On this one day, access will be allowed for our biggest fundraiser of the year – a two hour paddle in small groups on kayaks. Drift along the Waitakere River, which flows through Matuku Link, through to Te Henga wetland.

Tickets are $80 each, with all equipment (kayaks, paddles, life vests, etc.) and training provided. Minimum age is 12 years. For enquiries about younger participants or other questions, please contact us.  Book now, last year this sold out within two weeks!

Book now!

All proceeds go directly to Matuku Link, a community conservation and education project in Bethells/Te Henga. Your support helps us restore the wetland with plants from our nursery, protect wildlife through pest control, and provide wetland education programs for local primary schools at our Sustainable Wetland Education Centre. The smell of a sausage sizzle (regular, vegan & GF) will await you when you arrive at our Sustainable Wetland Education Centre (aka “the barn”), with home baking, locally roasted coffee and cold drinks all for sale to provide you sustenance before or after your kayak tour.

Bookings required, no door sales! Last year this sold out within two weeks. Proudly part of EcoFest.

Hope to see you there! – Annalily, colleagues, trustees, volunteers – and all the birds you’ll be supporting!

All images by our voluntary professional photographer Stefan Marks – thank you!

Our Wetland Education Programme for local low decile primary schools, is a huge success with over 1500 children a year visiting Matuku Link. Our incredible educators teach them to love wetlands and appreciate the bush, nature and the natural environment while doing a full day of hands-on science. Identifying macro-invertebrates, comparing and contrasting the water from a pond and a stream, testing for water clarity and admiring the size and lifecycle of our local tuna kuwharuwharu (long finned eels). They might spot a rare pateke, or a piwakawaka will join their session on bird calls and identification. With their newly learned skills of using the binoculars, they read bird bands and discuss the use of identifying different birds.

Delivery of this programme is only possible with the funding of the Mazda Foundation (towards the wages of our educator) and many smaller funders like Auckland Council, the Waitakere Ranges Local Board and The Trusts West. In this challenging funding climate, we can’t rely on these funding streams, so we are looking for 100 people, friends of Matuku Link, to forgo one coffee a week for a year and donate that $5 per week to us. Donate here.

If this sounds like you, please consider this proposal and visit our site to donate: www.matukulink.org.nz/support-us. We’re a charitable trust so all donations over $5 are tax deductible. For questions or other options, please contact me at hello@matukulink.org.nz Or contact one of our trustees to discuss: John Sumich, John Staniland, Chad Wilkie or Dale Bainbridge.

Thank you sincerely for your support, Annalily van den Broeke – 0212207136.

It’s hot, it’s dry…. and still the weeds are growing! Help us free our earlier planted trees from grasses overwhelming or convolvulus strangling them. We’d love you to join us at 111 Bethells Road at one of our Summer Sundays.  For H&S reasons: if you haven’t been before, please REGISTER here.

Summer Sundays starti at 10 am and finish at 1 pm with a shared lunch (or a bit earlier if it’s too hot!). Great fun for all ages!

• Sunday 19th January 
• Sunday 16th February
• Sunday 16th March

If you’re new, we’ll take you on a guided tour around the project, you might see pateke our rare brown teal, or admire our huge eels. If you’re a regular, you know how much fun this is, so bring your friends! All ages welcome, especially the tamariki.

• no need to bring your own gloves and spades, but if you do: everything needs to be squeaky clean because of kauri dieback
• for the shared lunch we’ll provide soup or salad & snacks (and homemade baking if you’re lucky!) & hot drinks to share, if you can bring something to add, that’s always appreciated.

If you’re more interested in coming during the week, join us on Tuesdays from 9 am till noon. But don’t forget if you haven’t been before to register HERE.

Hope to see you there! – Annalily & the trustees   0212207136 or hello@matukulink.org.nz