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12 Mile remains
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DescriptionIn the general Twelve Mile area I noticed remains of what appears to be an old flying fox heading from rocks near the shore out to a small off shore islet. Was this a flying fox/cage arrangement? If so what was it for; fishing access presumably?
Response:
Nancy Phil
There were three set up out the Coast road. 12 Mile 17 Mile and Punakaiki at the back of the Blowholes all usable with a Bosuns chair. Following the tragedy involving three family members the Police cut them because of the potential for corrosion of the other two as they were constructed from old mine haulage ropes.Date of Photo16th March 2019
Map[1] ContributorGlenn Johnston
Response:
Nancy Phil
There were three set up out the Coast road. 12 Mile 17 Mile and Punakaiki at the back of the Blowholes all usable with a Bosuns chair. Following the tragedy involving three family members the Police cut them because of the potential for corrosion of the other two as they were constructed from old mine haulage ropes.Date of Photo16th March 2019
Map[1] ContributorGlenn JohnstonShown in this image
Location (city or town)12 Mile
From Facebook
Date Created16th March 2019CommentsGlenn Johnston The first photo of an eroding shoreline rock stack shows a "pulley" wheel and wire rope. On the other side of the stack are associated relics. The second photo on Recollect shows the off shore islet with remains of foundations for the end of the ropeway.
Peter Robertson There was a flying fox over to the rock.I think this would be the one that collapsed in the late 60's and three(?) people were lost from one family,including a young boy
Jenny Masters Peter Robertson you are right about the accident but it was Easter of 75 it was my husbands cousin & his brother in law & father in law. Only 1 body was ever recovered. Very sad
Des O'Connell Jenny Masters I think it was the 11 mile where the rope broke there is a walking track still there down to the rock
Glenn Johnston Des O'Connell I think this would be the same place as it is a little south of 12 Mile but I said general Twelve Mile area as I thought most people would know where that was.
Lorraine O'Donoghue Wasn’t it for a small coal mine originally or am I wrong?
George Gardner Right on the nail Lorraine.
Heather Newby We have that on Recollect.. Just search 12 mile
Glenn Johnston Thanks Heather and others. I'll have a look on Recollect. I'm aware of the history of the Seal Island one near Fox River but not this one!
Glenn Johnston I didn't spot anything on Recollect about the Twelve Mile flying Fox except for my own two recent photos. There is plenty about the Seal Island coal flume though!
Heather Newby Maye Dunn
Maye Dunn Heather Newby saw this. I can't recall a flying Fox at 12 Mile not to say there wasn't one there. But definitely remember the one at 17 Mile. Moe Bowes might know.
Heather Newby Lyn Moe
Lyn Moe Hi Heather, It was my wife's family. Out at the moment, can you answer this Brent McLean
Nancy Phil There were three set up out the Coast road. 12 Mile 17 Mile and Punakaiki at the back of the Blowholes all usable with a Bosuns chair. Following the tragedy involving three family members the Police cut them because of the potential for corrosion of the other two as they were constructed from old mine haulage ropes.
Crow Bay
One at the twelve mile, 2 at 17 mile.one at Puni and we put one up at the bach. I helped put a new one up at 17 mile in the sixties. When we replaced it the rock was left without a rope over night. The next day we were sitting in the little breakaway where the transformers were at the bottom of Murphys hill in the Strongman and Doug Kaye was sitting quietly when someone said to him "Why are you so quiet Kayo?" He replied " I am worried about that bloody rock. Its the first time it hasn't had a rope on it for years and the buggar might float away!" Noel Wright was a cousin and he perished with his father in law and brother in law when the rope parted as they were crossing.
Maye Dunn Good West Coast story..
Helen Joan Forrest Nice to read all the comments. Good recollections of a story I had forgotten about. Very sad story.
Glenn Johnston Crow Bay So what was the purpose of the "Twelve Mile flying fox" and the others? Were they for fishing access?
Maye Dunn Yes Glenn..
Crow Bay Yes Glen. The rig was simple. A pulley wheel with a bolt though for an axle. two short flat steel pieces coming off it with holes in the lower section for a piece of thin wire rope that came out of the wheel end and was lone enough to go down from the top and thru a piece of pipe that was the seat . allowing enough room for you to sit in with your gear. The first half of the journey was fast because of the sag in the rope. But after that it was all up hill and you pulled yourself along. Running over your hand with the pulley wheel whilst pulling yourself along was a problem that scared a few off. But once you chewed up your hand a few times you got the hang of it. My brother in law revolutionised it by getting bearings pressed in to the pulleys and speeding it up heaps. When the new rope was up at 17 mile you could get back as far as you could then launch yourself off the rock and make it across in one run with just a few pats of the rope at the end to get there. Paul and Doug Kaye caught over 80 snapper out there one day.
Judy Crestani Dad took me across the 17 mile and Punakaiki rocks. They were good fishing spots. Dad would tie a rope around my waist and pull me across. Dianne Scalmer told me her Dad took her across the 12 mile. That was scary but the scariest was going down the rope ladder at Maybelle Bay. I think that was also stopped at the same time as the Police cut the wires going across to the rocks. A story we were told as kids driving past the 12 mile was Mums cousin, one of the Morris girls would put something up on her window if the fishing inspectors were around to warn friends that may have too many crayfish.Glenn Johnston Having a rope tied to you or the chair and then being pulled across was probably a very good idea for safety reasons considering the number of injuries that occurred on systems where pulling or pushing by hand on the main cable near where the pulley/block ran was part of the operating system.
Brett McLean Sadly it was my wife's brother (Noel Wright) that was one of the 3 persons that drowned while crossing on the flying fox to go fishing on that rock, the cause was that the wire rope had rusted through, there is a small rock close to the one in the photo that the wire rope passes over, the sea would hit this rock and the spray would hit the rope especially when the seas were stormy, this is where the rope broke, all 3 must of been on the rope at the same time, I was there the next day when the rope was pulled in and it was badly rusted away on the end, sadly nothing was on the rope, the police were going to send down some divers to look for any bodies but the sea was too rough. There was a short length of rope still attached to that pulley in the photo at that time, so I presume it has rusted away over time.RIP Noel, Douglas & Douglas Jnr.
Glenn Johnston There is still some rope there if you look closely. It is running upwards in a diagonal from left to right. On Recollect the photos can be enlarged.
Lyn Galvin A very sad time for all our family Noel was a pretty special cousin to us all RIP all the three of them
Lyn Moe My wife's father and brother were with Noel, there were a few ropes used but the ladder going over to FIschers ledge took a lot of nerve.
Lyn Moe The accident was in 1972.
Peter Robertson There was a flying fox over to the rock.I think this would be the one that collapsed in the late 60's and three(?) people were lost from one family,including a young boy
Jenny Masters Peter Robertson you are right about the accident but it was Easter of 75 it was my husbands cousin & his brother in law & father in law. Only 1 body was ever recovered. Very sad
Des O'Connell Jenny Masters I think it was the 11 mile where the rope broke there is a walking track still there down to the rock
Glenn Johnston Des O'Connell I think this would be the same place as it is a little south of 12 Mile but I said general Twelve Mile area as I thought most people would know where that was.
Lorraine O'Donoghue Wasn’t it for a small coal mine originally or am I wrong?
George Gardner Right on the nail Lorraine.
Heather Newby We have that on Recollect.. Just search 12 mile
Glenn Johnston Thanks Heather and others. I'll have a look on Recollect. I'm aware of the history of the Seal Island one near Fox River but not this one!
Glenn Johnston I didn't spot anything on Recollect about the Twelve Mile flying Fox except for my own two recent photos. There is plenty about the Seal Island coal flume though!
Heather Newby Maye Dunn
Maye Dunn Heather Newby saw this. I can't recall a flying Fox at 12 Mile not to say there wasn't one there. But definitely remember the one at 17 Mile. Moe Bowes might know.
Heather Newby Lyn Moe
Lyn Moe Hi Heather, It was my wife's family. Out at the moment, can you answer this Brent McLean
Nancy Phil There were three set up out the Coast road. 12 Mile 17 Mile and Punakaiki at the back of the Blowholes all usable with a Bosuns chair. Following the tragedy involving three family members the Police cut them because of the potential for corrosion of the other two as they were constructed from old mine haulage ropes.
Crow Bay
One at the twelve mile, 2 at 17 mile.one at Puni and we put one up at the bach. I helped put a new one up at 17 mile in the sixties. When we replaced it the rock was left without a rope over night. The next day we were sitting in the little breakaway where the transformers were at the bottom of Murphys hill in the Strongman and Doug Kaye was sitting quietly when someone said to him "Why are you so quiet Kayo?" He replied " I am worried about that bloody rock. Its the first time it hasn't had a rope on it for years and the buggar might float away!" Noel Wright was a cousin and he perished with his father in law and brother in law when the rope parted as they were crossing.
Maye Dunn Good West Coast story..
Helen Joan Forrest Nice to read all the comments. Good recollections of a story I had forgotten about. Very sad story.
Glenn Johnston Crow Bay So what was the purpose of the "Twelve Mile flying fox" and the others? Were they for fishing access?
Maye Dunn Yes Glenn..
Crow Bay Yes Glen. The rig was simple. A pulley wheel with a bolt though for an axle. two short flat steel pieces coming off it with holes in the lower section for a piece of thin wire rope that came out of the wheel end and was lone enough to go down from the top and thru a piece of pipe that was the seat . allowing enough room for you to sit in with your gear. The first half of the journey was fast because of the sag in the rope. But after that it was all up hill and you pulled yourself along. Running over your hand with the pulley wheel whilst pulling yourself along was a problem that scared a few off. But once you chewed up your hand a few times you got the hang of it. My brother in law revolutionised it by getting bearings pressed in to the pulleys and speeding it up heaps. When the new rope was up at 17 mile you could get back as far as you could then launch yourself off the rock and make it across in one run with just a few pats of the rope at the end to get there. Paul and Doug Kaye caught over 80 snapper out there one day.
Judy Crestani Dad took me across the 17 mile and Punakaiki rocks. They were good fishing spots. Dad would tie a rope around my waist and pull me across. Dianne Scalmer told me her Dad took her across the 12 mile. That was scary but the scariest was going down the rope ladder at Maybelle Bay. I think that was also stopped at the same time as the Police cut the wires going across to the rocks. A story we were told as kids driving past the 12 mile was Mums cousin, one of the Morris girls would put something up on her window if the fishing inspectors were around to warn friends that may have too many crayfish.Glenn Johnston Having a rope tied to you or the chair and then being pulled across was probably a very good idea for safety reasons considering the number of injuries that occurred on systems where pulling or pushing by hand on the main cable near where the pulley/block ran was part of the operating system.
Brett McLean Sadly it was my wife's brother (Noel Wright) that was one of the 3 persons that drowned while crossing on the flying fox to go fishing on that rock, the cause was that the wire rope had rusted through, there is a small rock close to the one in the photo that the wire rope passes over, the sea would hit this rock and the spray would hit the rope especially when the seas were stormy, this is where the rope broke, all 3 must of been on the rope at the same time, I was there the next day when the rope was pulled in and it was badly rusted away on the end, sadly nothing was on the rope, the police were going to send down some divers to look for any bodies but the sea was too rough. There was a short length of rope still attached to that pulley in the photo at that time, so I presume it has rusted away over time.RIP Noel, Douglas & Douglas Jnr.
Glenn Johnston There is still some rope there if you look closely. It is running upwards in a diagonal from left to right. On Recollect the photos can be enlarged.
Lyn Galvin A very sad time for all our family Noel was a pretty special cousin to us all RIP all the three of them
Lyn Moe My wife's father and brother were with Noel, there were a few ropes used but the ladder going over to FIschers ledge took a lot of nerve.
Lyn Moe The accident was in 1972.
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West Coast New Zealand History (17th Mar 2019). 12 Mile remains. In Website West Coast New Zealand History. Retrieved 9th May 2026 03:09, from https://westcoast.recollect.co.nz/nodes/view/25010