Kids try out work of a Pukaha ranger

Pukaha Mt Bruce junior ranger Alisha Horo, 11, of Carterton, with drawings of Kahurangi the kokako that she and fellow rangers coloured in. PHOTO/LYNDA FERINGA

Pukaha Mt Bruce's Junior Ranger programme has proved a hit with kids this summer.

Pukaha general manager Helen Tickner said the programme had been a popular Christmas present, with kids enrolled eager to return for another visit.

"What is quite nice is we've had kids on the programme ask to come back with their families."

The summer holiday sessions are fully booked for the rest of the holidays, but spots were available during the next break, Mrs Tickner said.

Foster Hammond, 11, of Carterton, had just finished his day as a ranger and said it was a special birthday treat.

"I liked doing the eel feed. It's cool because we get to see the eels up close."

Alisha Horo, 11, of Carterton, said one of the best parts of the day was meeting Kahurangi the kokako.

"It was really cool the way she calls things."

Getting to see and experience things only reserved for rangers was a big part of the fun, she said.

"It was really fun because we got to go into the forest and see all the cool things that we wouldn't normally get to see."

Isla Hamilton, 9, of Carterton and Jacob Clark, 7, of Greytown, said seeing the kiwi and feeding the eels were the best part of their day.

"We get to go behind the scenes and do stuff that a ranger might do," Isla said.

The Junior Ranger programme is open to children aged 6 to 12 years and runs every school holidays from Monday to Friday from 11am to 3pm.