Ohura – as it was in 2022

A tiny settlement which refuses to die, Ōhura is not so much a ghost town as one that is being slowly resurrected.

The near-abandoned King Country settlement proved so intriguing to Taranaki photographer Tony Carter in 2015 that he visited it more than 30 times over the course of a year to take portraits of residents, many of whom had been shunned by society or chosen to turn their backs on it altogether.

While more than 100 people call the town home, it has an American ghost town vibe, with abandoned shops and overgrown sections.

Once a bustling coal mining township, Ōhura’s population peaked in 1961 at 654, but it subsequently faced a series of potentially fatal setbacks. The coal mines started to close in the late 70s; the prison, which then became the town’s major employer, shut in 2005; and it was badly flooded in 1998.

Now, though, its cheap house prices (Ōhura was named the most affordable town in New Zealand with a median price of $43,760 in 2021) are said to be luring buyers from around the North Island.

If you pay a visit, be sure to go to Mexican food truck Fiesta Fare, which has a five-star rating on Facebook and 4.9-star Google score.

“What an unexpected surprise to find such a lovely place in the tumbleweed village of Ohura,” one person said. “This place seems to attract interesting people.”

“The two and a half hour drive from Tokoroa for a burrito and quesadilla was well worth it,” another wrote.

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Reporter Lorna Thornber