Fire crews from Houhora and Kaitaia, and the Northland Electricity rescue helicopter, were dispatched to Tapotupotu to what was reported as a drowning but tragedy had been averted thanks to two plucky teenagers.

The sun, sand and surf of summer, it’s what the Far North is known for. And fishing, camping and tramping.

We asked our political leaders to have a cheery chat at holiday time and most were happy to.

The name Kaitaia means abundance of food. Doubtless Bay was named by Captain James Cook who, in sighting it, is reputed to have said ‘doubtless a bay’

The original name still used by local Maori is Te Kohanga o Te Tai Tokerau (the nest of the northern people) or Te Puna o Te Ao Marama (the wellspring of moonlight). The full name of the Harbour is Te Hokianga-nui-a-Kupe – the place of Kupe’s great return

In the middle of winter 2013 a group describing themselves as Auckland Spirit Chasers spent two nights in the Stone Store in Kerikeri and the adjacent Kemp House, two of the oldest buildings in the country.

The call has gone out to Far North rodeo organisers to hold the open bull ride spectacle at 2pm in future after the Kaitaia rodeo took until 7pm to be wrapped up last Thursday.

Kerikeri accounted for Mangonui with relative ease to successfully defend the One Day Challenge Trophy in Taipa.

On April 8, 1968, New Zealand was occupied with the Wahine disaster, but on the other side of the world Taipa woman Marion Duncan was facing an equally horrific disaster.

The death of a horse at Kaikohe, believed to be the result of taking fright when revellers welcomed the new year with fireworks, orphaned a 10-day-old foal and has reignited calls for fireworks to be banned.

New Year's Eve diners at Kerikeri restaurant The Italians enjoyed a particularly evening thanks to Neil Mayfield and his long-time girlfriend Tracey Tutin.

Far North District Council chief executive David Edmunds has resigned.

The Maori name for the largest township in the Far North is ‘dig, dig’. Not surprisingly, given the name, it is known as the horticultural centre of Northland and has been for centuries.

The name means ‘how sweet is the penguin’ - korora (blue penguin) and reka, meaning sweet. Russell was named after Lord John Russell, Secretary of State for the Colonies.

Named for the aromatic shrub held sacred by Maori and used for medicinal purposes. Kawakawa leaves (also known as peppertree) were placed over cuts and boils to speed healing and used for kidney disorders. Tea was made from an infusion of its leaves.

Kaikohe is a shortened version of the original, Kai kohekohe – meaning ‘to eat berries’. When early Maori were besieged, they were forced to hide in kohekohe trees where they survived by eating the fruit.

As house prices in Auckland and other main centres continue to soar, there's an emerging trend to sell the family home and move north.

The news that 51-year-old Mary Barra has been appointed as the first woman in the world to head a car company (General Motors in her case) is a surprise, not so much that it has happened because a woman at the helm of what is still a male-dominated indust

Much appreciated

Let's have standards

The organisers of the 2014 90 Mile Beach Snapper Bonanza surfcasting tournament sat down to their Christmas dinner happy in the knowledge that the five-day tournament was shaping up well.

Te Runanga o Te Rarawa has resolved to oppose deep sea oil drilling within its iwi area of interest in the Far North.

Ahipara couple Doug and Jackie Klever could not have wished for a better Christmas gift than the egg laid by one of New Zealand's most endangered birds on the beach at Ahipara.

A Kaitaia teenager has been charged with the aggravated robbery of a Kaitaia service station shortly before midnight on Boxing Day.

In securing the NAKFA Cup last Wednesday, the Rest of the World side cast a long shadow over the annual 7-a-side social midweek summer soccer series on the Kaitaia College top fields.

Throwbacks won the Awanui touch tournament played in fine midsummer conditions on Sunday, after taking out Algeezys in a nail-biting finale by 3-2.

Grinches win

Us at our best

By Shania Howard

A Kaikohe teenager with big dreams wants to shatter Northlanders' stereotypes of Maori, her school and her home town - and she's made a great start to that with a poem that has taken social media by storm.