Blogs from Northland, North Island, New Zealand, Oceania - page 4

A beautiful sunrise this morning as we reluctantly farewelled Tokerau Beach and more reluctantly headed back to Kaitaia. Lance needed to renew his driver’s license and required a medical. Rather than leave till the end of month we decided to do now so it wouldn’t interfere in our Noah Genda lifestyle. Lance and I joked it was probably the most annoying/stressful thing we have had to organise in 66 days. New license in hand and off to Maitai Bay. Maitai Bay is out the end of the Karikari peninsula. A big DOC Camp that overlooks the beach. You have a choice of been down close to the beach (with no view) or up on the hill with a gorgeous view (I am sure you know what we picked). The weather is building for rain but we ... read more

It’s been freezing in Sunny Northland. You know it’s cold when the windows fog up and its starts hailing. We spent 6 nights at Pukenui enjoying the friendly locals and the company of the Pukenui Camping Ground Guests and Staff. With the weather being not the best there was a lot of baking and shared food amongst us all. The impromptu feed of raw fish in the camp kitchen for lunch, fishing off the wharf, smoked fish afternoon tea/dinner and a rugby game we wish to not remember. But I did enjoy the netball winJ. There was also a bit of R & M as Lance helped other campers repair their awnings etc. Day 63 A farewell to our new friends this morning and off to Kaitaia to re stock etc. There was a quick detour ... read more

Run Rabbit, Run Rabbit, Run, Run, Run…….. Looking across the paddock from where we were camping this morning, Lance saw this large black animal? After zooming in on the camera we found it to be one very large black rabbit (probably twice the size of our cat). They sure grow the rabbits big up here at Spirits BayJ. Enough mucking around with the wildlife it’s time to head to Rarawa Beach. A quick detour to Paua to make sure we were not missing out on something. Paua sits on the Parengarenga Harbour and also looks out across the waters to Kokota Sandspit, like Te Hapua (just a slightly different view). You are able to camp here but not really our cup of tea (not a lot to do and you are not allowed to fish here). ... read more

It’s been a quiet day in Pukenui today. Cool Squally showers hindered us from venturing too far. We managed a walk quick walk around the picturesque Houhora Harbour in the morning. There was plenty of activity with barges and commercial fishing boats heading in and out. If it wasn’t so windy we would have plonked ourselves on the hillside and spent more time watching all the comings and goings. The rain cleared late this afternoon so we walked inland from the Camping Ground to a place called Arethusia Reserve, a loop track around wetlands. This reserve was donated to the Forest & Bird Society. Some argue that this reserve has not been too successful (ponds have turned to swamp, wilding pines growing amongst the nice native plantings). But still it gave us something to do whilst ... read more

Awoke to thick fog across the Hokianga Harbour. It did start to break up but another lot rolled in and you could not see across the harbour at all, this made for a very earie morning. Packed up and off to South Head to do the Arai te Uru Heritage Walkway. Had coffee at the top of lookout carpark and waited for the fog to lift. This is another must do if you are this way. Incredible views North over the giant sand hills on the Northern shore, and East along the inland waterway of the Hokianga Harbour. Some great photo opportunities across the wild bar of the Hokianga Harbour entrance. A slight detour took us down to a small bay. Time for Lance to practice his throwing skills. It’s a boy thing…..you throw rocks and ... read more