Most of us take a day on the water for granted. Load the boat, head out, wet a line. For a lot of people living with disabilities or health challenges, that day has never been an option. Access to Adventure, a Northland charitable trust, is out to change that, and Fisho is right behind them.
What is Access to Adventure?
Access to Adventure Charitable Trust exists to remove the barriers that stop people experiencing the ocean. Their platform is MV Pacific Hideaway, a 16-metre vessel being transformed into an accessible marine adventure boat for fishing, cruising, diving, wildlife encounters and tailored trips along the Northland coast and through the Hauraki Gulf.
The goal is simple and big: 1,000 people on the water every year, on free trips, once the refit is complete.
Why does this matter to anglers?
Because we know what a day out there does for you. The early start, the fresh air, the first bend in the rod. Access to Adventure puts it this way: a wheelchair user catching a fish offshore. A family sharing an experience they thought was impossible. A day defined by adventure, not limitation.
Participants aren't just passengers either. The idea is that people take an active role in the experience, and that's the bit that gets us.
Where is the project at?
The vision is set, the vessel is secured, and the refit is underway at Norsand in Whangārei. The redesign focuses on:
- Safe boarding and wheelchair movement around the boat
- A fully accessible bathroom, designed with input from people with lived experience
- Mechanical, electrical, structural and safety upgrades
The Trust is governed by a professional board, with trustees from the disability sector and from both the Northland and Auckland communities, and has a formal project management and health and safety framework in place.
How much do they still need to raise?
Around $900,000 is needed to get MV Pacific Hideaway on the water. More than $300,000 has been raised so far through grants, donors, sponsors and community fundraising, which leaves roughly $600,000 still to go.
Quiz nights: Whangārei and Waipū
Access to Adventure is running two quiz night fundraisers:
- Whangārei: Friday 30 October, 6pm, McKay Stadium Lounges, Kensington
- Bream Bay: Saturday 31 October, 6pm (quiz from 6.30pm), Coronation Hall, Waipū. Theme is "Come as the Letter P", with prizes for best dressed, auctions, raffles, DJ Hemi and the Waipū Lions running the bar
Tickets are $40 per person or $280 for a table of eight. Book by calling 027 265 3227 or emailing infoaccesstoadventure@gmail.com.
How can you help?
Fisho is right behind Access to Adventure, and we'd love the wider fishing community to get in behind them too. The quiz nights are just one part of it. The fundraising carries on until the boat is on the water. You can:
- Donate or become a sponsor through accesstoadventure.org.nz
- Offer goods, services or skills for the refit
- Share their story with your club, your crew and your business network
Get in touch with the team at infoaccesstoadventure@gmail.com. As they say themselves, what begins as a day on the water can become something far greater.