Day 445-447: Auckland, New Zealand

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Friday, April 16th

The day before yesterday, while driving to Whatipu, the left front brakes started to make a noise, so after breakfast Ferdi tried to see how much pad was left on the brakes. He couldn't see the pads without taking the wheel off so we thought we'd better have it checked out by a guy with the right tools.

We left Piha just after 10am and headed into west Auckland. As we drove we noticed that the handbrake light kept coming on when we headed down hill and in our experience that meant we were running low on Brake Fluid so we stopped at the first garage we saw to top up. They had a workshop in the back and said they could also have a look at our brakes.

We had to wait a while, but it wasn't long before a very friendly guy came to have a look. When he took the wheels off we saw that the pads were almost worn away, so we asked him to change all four the front pads. They didn't have that kind of pad in stock so one of the staff quickly drove to collect them. Once the mechanic had the pads it was a quick installation and before we knew it we were ready to go. Getting such great and friendly service really brightened up our day. With many thanks we set off to a nearby park to have lunch.

After lunch we drove around looking for a place to do some shopping. We drove up and down and all around and eventually found a place where we could get our groceries. With our pantry stocked once more we set off into Auckland City. Here we picked up Jo, a fellow Travelblogger, for the trip up to Whangarei. We were going to visit Karen and Colin for a little Travelblog get-together.

We left Auckland just after 3pm and hoped to be in Whangarei by 6pm. At one point during the drive we heard something hit the side of the van but thought nothing of it. Later we passed a fence covered in hubcaps and we made the joke that we didn't need a spare one cause we had all four of ours.

We made good time and arrived at Karen and Colin's at 5:30. Here we noticed that we'd lost the front left hubcap somewhere along the way, even though it had been strapped to the rim with a zip-tie. It's very frustrating because those things aren't cheap. We guessed that that's what we heard hitting the side of the van on the way up.

Anyway, it was good to see the Walkers again. We had a cuppa before we all piled into their car and headed out for dinner, stopping on the way to pick up a few bottles of wine. Having an insatiable appetite for Indian food they took us to a brilliant restaurant where we enjoyed our wine and one of the best meals we've had in ages. It was a great outing.

Today's highlights:
1. Great service.
2. Meeting Jo for the first time.
3. Seeing Karen and Colin again.
4. Great dinner.

Saturday, April 17th

Talita had an active night, injuring her big toe while running away from a dream bear. We slept in separate beds in the guest room, so she crawled in with Ferdi until his snoring chased her back to her own bed.

We woke late, and after breakfast we all piled back into the Walker mobile and set off to the Whangarei Heads. On the way we stopped at a Gypsy Market and spent a while strolling amongst the interesting stalls. Ferdi finally got a new hat. His old one has gotten too small (or did his head get too big?). Anyway, the hat was a bargain and he loved it immediately.

To reach Peach Cove we hiked up and over a hill, descending steeply down many steps to reach sea-level. We had lunch snacks on the beach then headed back up the 827 steps and down the other side of the hill. Karen took us to their favourite ice cream shop and we could choose from all sorts of delicious flavours.

Back home we had a shower and then Karen prepared a delicious pumpkin soup dinner and we enjoyed a few glasses of wine while we watched a strange animated film, Footrot Flats.

Today's highlights:
1. Nice hike.
2. Great pumpkin soup for dinner.

Sunday, April 18th

We got up at 6am and drove an hour north to Paihia. Robbie had won a Dolphin watching and sailing trip and since she's at the other end of the world in SA she very generously gave it to us. We arrived early and had a quick breakfast. The trip was scheduled for 8am, but when we got there we were told that we'd only depart at 9am. We didn't mind cause we needed to send some emails and prepare a little better anyway.

Just before 9am we boarded the dolphin watching catamaran style boat. It is a hugely powerful and comfortable boat on which we'd spend the morning watching dolphins before transferring to the sailing yacht around noon. It wasn't long before we came upon two pods of dolphin frolicking in the ocean. We were hoping to swim with them and had come prepared with our masks and dive camera. Unfortunately (or fortunately?) there was a dolphin calf in the pod and NZ regulations do not allow the swimming with dolphins if there are young in the pod. It could disturb its feeding habits and might lead to its death. We were a bit disappointed because the dolphins were playing all around us, jumping and splashing and blowing water into the air and swimming with them would've been spectacular. Nonetheless it was an amazing experience and we were very impressed by the way the various operators handles themselves. There was no merciless chasing down and swarming of the dolphins like we've experienced in Zanzibar and Bali. Only three vessels were allowed near any pod at any one time, thereby giving the pod room to "breathe" and allowing them to enjoy the experience as much as we did (we hope).

After about half an hour amongst the dolphins we had to move on. As we powered away a dolphin gave us a farewell salute by jumping out between the wakes of our two engines. It was a beautiful goodbye.

Our next destination was the "famous" Hole in the Rock. We'd never heard of it before, but apparently it's quite the attraction. Our captain expertly guided the big boat through the hole, took us around the rock and then went in search of our yacht.

Our vessel for the afternoon was called Vigilant. It's a gorgeous 48ft (14.6m) sailing yacht and Tim was our skipper for the day. We were the only ones to transfer by inflatable to the yacht and the rest of the tourist must've thought we were rich or something. Onboard Tim wanted to know what we wanted to do for the afternoon, and seeing as we intend to build our own sailing dinghy soon we asked for a lesson in sailing. He was more than happy to oblige.

First we helped to raise the head sail, then the main sail. There was little wind to begin with, but conditions got better pretty soon and we set off at a good clip. Talita was first at the helm, getting a feel for the yacht and keeping it at the optimum angle to the wind. Soon it was Ferdi's turn. We absolutely loved it and felt completely at home steering this big vessel.

Before we'd wanted to build a sailing dinghy as our next boat, but after getting to sail the Vigilant we decided we'd like to build a small yacht with a cabin so that we can spent our weekends anchored in some or other remote bay.

While we took turns piloting the yacht we spotted various sea birds but the highlight was seeing a couple of Blue Penguin swimming around. We'd never seen them in the wild and it was great. We spent the whole afternoon cruising around the Bay of Islands, having an absolute blast!

Unfortunately all good things must come to and end and just before 4pm we arrived back at Paihia. Tim took us to the pier with a small rubber dinghy and we drove back to Karen and Colin's place. Here we picked up Jo and said goodbye to the friendly Walkers before heading back to Auckland.

When our stomachs started complaining we stopped for fish and chips in the small town of Waipu before continuing the long drive back to the city. We arrived at Jo's place in the centre of Auckland at 9pm, said our goodbyes, then drove to a campsite in Takapuna where we paid a kings ransom to stay the night. We were too tired to care. It had been a loooong but awesome day.

Today's highlights:
1. Getting to see the dolphins.
2. Sailing the Vigilant.

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Photos

Ferdi's new hat
It's much more comfy than the old one

Peach Cove
Our Lunch spot

The Gang
Colin, Karen, Jo, Talita & Ferdi

It's a good thing Ferdi had learned to tie a Bow Knot recently
cause on a yacht you need it

A Blue Penguin
Great to see these little guys in the wild

All good things come to an end
Tim transferring us to the pier

Comments

[Jo Trouble]

Great weekend!
Hi Ferdi & Talita, It was great meeting you guys too - thanks again for the ride up to Whangarei! Great dolphin shots :-)