Back in Auckland 13th - 18th April

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Back in Auckland

After returning our rental campervan without a hitch despite it having gained a hole in the floor (we could actually see the road until Lisa improvised and stuck a plastic bag in to stop the draught!) and a thick layer of dead insects, we checked into our hotel which was slap bang in the middle of Auckland. Not only did we get our own bathroom and kitchen, but it was $10 cheaper per night than the YHA! Our first day was spent buying essentials for our trip in South America and booking boat trips for later in the week.

Rangitoto Island

Our first highlight of the week was a visit to the young island of Rangitoto said to have erupted just over 600 years ago. We took a boat from Auckland and 20 minutes later we set foot on the wharf before embarking on our quest to the summit. At 260m this walk was harder than we thought it would be. We put our strain down to the black, volcanic rock absorbing the sun´s rays and not our lack of fitness! The views back to Auckland were great though and well worth the climb.

With 2 hours to kill we decided to walk to McKenzie Bay and follow the coastal track back to Rangitoto Wharf were we would catch the ferry back to Auckland. It quickly became obvious that most of the visitors to this island only did the summit track as we saw 4 people on the entire walk back to the wharf. The weather was great and we enjoyed lunch on a deserted beach at McKenzie Bay. The walk is listed on the map as 2.5 hours, on the signs as 3.5 hours, but in reality takes less than 2 hours - perhaps this is what put people off doing this part. In fact, due to the fact that the last ferry back outside of peak season is 15:30 we took something of a risk in deciding to attempt this walk as I am not sure we would have coped very well spending a night out here by ourselves (especially without food).

Waiheke Island

We knew we would have more time on Waiheke as there were more return ferries than from Rangitoto. We decided to spend our time walking again and went from the ferry wharf at Matiatia around Church Bay and through to Blackpool. On this walk we saw 2 people and 3 dogs. The walk was punctuated by a plethora of picnic tables all seemingly placed to give you great views of the surrounding water calmly lapping into the picturesque bays.

We deviated slightly to attend a premium wine tasting session at the well placed ´Mudbrick Winery´. Normally $10 a tasting, a sharp-eyed consumer - namely me had noticed $10 vouchers in a tourist guide. We made sure we had 2 so that by the time we came here our wine tasting was completely free! They are a boutique winery so their wine is only available in New Zealand, but we were particularly enamoured with their Shiraz (or Syrah as the rest of the world seems to call it).

Following our tasting we continued into the hamlet of Oneroa where one wrong turn saw us on a beach staring at 3 strange birds called New Zealand Dotterils (or at least we think that is what they are called, but if anyone knows differently then please let us know!). We walked back along surprisingly busy roads stopping briefly to buy me a new pair of flip flops to replace the ones (or one specifically) lost somewhere between Te Anau and Milford Sound.

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