Centennial road trip re-enacts parliamentary tour of Northland's byways in 1917

All hands were needed to haul back vehicles which left boggy Northland roads during the 1917 tour.

A century ago New Zealand was in the grip of World War I, in which 18,500 members of the country's 1.16 million population were killed and 50,000 were wounded.

Despite the gravity of the national situation, Kaitaia businessman Colonel Allen Bell managed to persuade Parliamentarians to participate in a car tour to show them the need for road improvements in the "winterless" North.

MPs, Roads Board members, business managers and a handful of reporters were among the 100 people in 33 cars who set out on the tour in January 1917, possibly enticed by the same spirit of adventure which got young Kiwi men keen to sign up to fight the Hun in Europe.

After two weeks in Northland, many on the parliamentary tour must have felt as enthusiastic about adventure as soldiers given a taste of the trenches.

The region's roads were appalling and the travellers endured a fortnight of choking dust, torrential rain, deep mud, burst tyres and capsizes as they made their way from Devonport in Auckland to Kaitaia via the east coast and returned through Ahipara, Herekino, Broadwood, the Hokianga, Kaikohe and Dargaville, from where some took a steamer down the Kaipara Harbour to Helensville.

Also in the original tour group were telegraph operators, photographers, an ambulance man, three land scouts and a biographer. Only 10 cars completed the journey, such were the Northland roads and conditions.

Crossing the river at Peria in 1917.

Next week 42 cars, all at least 100 years old, will leave Auckland for a centennial re-enactment of the parliamentary tour, hopefully finding Northland roads and weather more agreeable than conditions encountered by participants in 1917.

The 705km eight-day Centennial Tour, starting from Devonport on January 29 and finishing with a civic reception at the Auckland Town Hall on February 5, has been organised by the North Shore branch of the NZ Vintage Car Club with assistance from the Wellsford-Warkworth, Northland and Far North branches of the club.

Some Centennial Tour drivers and passengers will be in period dress and will include MPs. Two cars will have started the run earlier in Wellington after picking up a letter from Speaker of the House which will be passed on to the mayors in Whangarei, the Far North and Auckland.

Craig Marshall from Auckland will be on the Centennial tour at the wheel of a 1915 American La France race-about powered by a 14.5-litre motor.

Centennial cars will follow the original route where possible. They will avoid motorways and use secondary roads so they do not hold up traffic. An overnight stop at Kaikohe has not been included because accommodation could not be arranged.

The tour follows a 90-year anniversary re-enactment tour in 2007.

Cars will be on public display at several places around the North during the Centennial Tour.

They can be viewed at:

Warkworth: A&P Showgrounds. 10.30am-12.30pm January 29.
Waipu: Caledonia Park, 2pm-2.30pm January 29.
Whangarei: Kiwi North Heritage Park, 10am-1pm January 30.
Paihia: Village Green, 9.30am-12.30pm, February 1.
Kaitaia: Te Ahu Centre, 3pm-4.30pm, February 2.
Omapere: Opononi Area School - Te Kura Takiwa o Opononi, 9.30am-10am February 4.
Dargaville: Harding Park, 2.30pm,-3.30pm February 4.