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Published: October 26th 2010
Our first stop after setting off from the B&B with our motorhome was the supermarket to stock up on the essentials like beer and wine and of course the not so essentials like food. We headed out of Auckland travelling over to the east coast for our first stop at Waiwera, the campsite was a little basic but the location was stunning, we parked the motorhome right on the sea front with the sea just yards away. There were hot water pools nearby and we went for a walk along the sea front, it was quite cold but the sand under our feet was warm. We spotted a couple of unusual birds on the shore amongst a group of oyster catchers and then found an area marked off to the public on the dunes with signs saying that the rare New Zealand Dotterel (or Red Breasted Plover) was nesting.
We spent the first night in our motorhome which was extremely well equipped, however I found that the quilt was not quite warm enough for the cold night, the temperatures at night half those in the day so I was quite cold, so decided we must buy an extra quilt as
soon as we could. Next morning we awoke to the sound of the ocean outside our door and had breakfast overlooking the sea - bliss, if this is what retirement is about then we are both happy with this. Not many people about but we were quickly joined by a couple of ducks with ten ducklings who settled themselves just outside the step of our motorhome, obviously waiting for any crumbs and once they realised they were not getting fed the 12 or them moved off to the next motorhome to try their luck. After breakfast we headed North crossing the island to the west coast to visit the Kauri Museum at Matakohe in the Northlands area. This huge museum provided a stimulating insight into the kauri (giant New Zealand trees), how the settlers harvested timber and gum from these trees and what life was like in early NZ. Also in the grounds of the museum was the original Post Office (1909 to 1988) built from the kauri tree and the centre for the local community, an original School used from 1878 to 1972 and a Pioneer Church built in 1867 also made of kauri timber. We spent an interesting
time exploring the museum and then headed off to our overnight camp, stopping en route to buy that extra quilt and a few more supplies. Our campsite was situated in the Trounson Forest, nestled amongst lush native bush and surrounded by a fresh water river and we parked the motorhome overlooking the river (it could have been on the banks of Loch Lomond) it was delightful, we saw kingfisher as well as some Australian Rosella parrots (Peter & Margaret our friends in Calne, Wiltshire said we would see these in Australia but we have seen them already and they are truly colourful so we hope to see some more). The facilities at the campsite were good and we spent a lovely evening chatting to other campers in the kitchen area whilst we cooked our evening meal and awoke to peace and quiet along side the river - bliss. The following morning we set off full of confidence that the satnav would be our guide to our next destination crossing to the east coast to a place called Kerikeri (like Kerry twice!) and off we went. We started to get a bit concerned when the tarmac ran out and the track
became very narrow! divorce coming Nick - so we turned around, ignoring the satnav (who we have named Mo by the way), and returned to the campsite and started all over again. Mo was becoming a bit upset and kept telling us to do a ‘u’ turn but we ignored this and carried on and all went well. Our aim for the day was to travel through the Waipoua Forest and stop off to see Tane Mahuta the 1,200 year giant Kauri tree with a girth of 46ft, the oldest tree in nz, but believe it or not we nearly missed it. We then continued on through the Forest, stopped for lunches at a view point overlooking the Hokianga Harbour entrance and the views were superb, we were joined by some wild chicken who wanted to share our lunch and tried to get into the motorhome! We finally arrived at our next overnight stop in Kerikeri (by this time we were following Mo’s instructions). We took a stroll or rather a Paul’s brisk walk to the Stone Store (New Zealand’s oldest stone building) and the Kemp House (oldest surviving New Zealand building) both were closed but we were able to
meander around the buildings and the riverside park in the evening sun. We booked two nights at the campsite as we have planned a day trip to Cape Reinga (nz’s most northerly point) and 90 mile beach by local transport as because of the restrictions with the motorehome we are unable to go on the river crossing. We cooked our supper in the camp kitchen and whilst there we met a backpacker who was cooking possum which a friend of his had trapped, he offered us some and to our surprise it did taste quite good. He said he had eaten most things including ‘bear’ in Canada but he had never tasted anything quite like the possum - we agreed!!! We were up early for our tour to Cape Reinga and we were collected at the end of the campsite by our tour guide for the day at 0800 hrs so an early start for us pensioners! Our first stop after travelling on bumpy unsealed roads was the Puketi Kauri Forest where the scenic walk features a fine stand of ancient Kauri trees and then we moved on up the east coast . We saw various birds of prey as
well as emus and wild turkeys on the route travelling through fields of avocado and courgettes. Cape Reinga was truly amazing with outstanding views and it is where the Tasman Sea and Pacific Ocean meet causing cross currents and whirlpools. The lighthouse is the first sight of NZ that sailors see when arriving from the Pacific. Cape Reinga is a place of intense cultural and spiritual significance to Maori as they believe it is the departure place for the spirits of the recently deceased. The spirits are believed to climb down the twisted pohutukawa tree on the cliff to reach the ocean; then they swim north to the ancestral land of Hawaiki. We spent a long time wandering around the cliffs and were lucky enough to have a lovely day the best they had this year in the area. Returning south on the west coast we travelled down the Te Paki stream (yes the coach did travel a long way through the water) to access 90 mile beach which consists of huge sand dunes. Our tour guide/driver, Whalley stopped the coach and opened the luggage compartment revealing numerous body boards and he said we all had to climb the dunes and sledge down. Not all of us took this up but we thought as pensioners we should give it a go and after an energetic climb up the soft sand Whalley gave us a demonstration on how to ‘board down’ and to my horror it must have been at least 100 feet high!!! However we both gave it a go and managed to board down the slope, Paul even went for a second attempt but I decided to video the occasion rather than have a second go. We then travelled along 90 mile beach at nearly 90 miles an hour or so it seemed…..90 mile beach goes on for ever but it is actually 64 long and we travelled most of it that day with the sea roaring on one side and the sand dunes on the other a truly memorable occasion and probably not to be repeated. The driver stopped and said he would go searching for shell fish whilst we admired the view. We took some amazing photos and he warned us not to go to far into the ocean as every 7th wave would be a huge and we were not to turn our backs on it. Whilst watching Whalley collect his shell fish we noticed that a large wave had engulfed him and before I knew it I was up to my knees in water so had to try and run out, but the wave was a lot quicker than me and I got rather wet to Paul’s amusement (need to start running again soon!). Paul tried the clams and said they were good so I decided I would give it a go and actually they were delicious. We continued on and stopped for a coffee at the ancient kauri kingdom. The ancient wood is found in swamps around the area and has been carbon dated at more than 45,000 years old and is the oldest workable wood in the world and is considered a valued heirloom. We saw a spiral staircase carved inside a kauri tree trunk. Paul then decided to try the ice cream that our tour guide recommended the Hoki Poki flavour and it was delicious. Tomorrow we head to Paihia where we have booked a dolphin cruise around the Bay of Islands. We camped in Waitangi and walked into Paihia to catch our boat around the islands. Within 10 minutes of leaving we encountered a pod of dolphin and spent some time watching them swim around the boat and then headed off to hole in the rock where the boat proceeded through a 12 metre wide gap (the boat was 8 metres wide so good seamanship required). Bob (Lymington) you would have done equally well - particularly as there are numerous sandbars to hone your skills! In the morning we visited Waitangi, it was in here on 6 February 1840 that the Treaty of Waitangi was first signed between Maori and the British Crown. The treaty established British control over New Zealand or governance (kawanatanga), depending on whether you are reading the English or Maori version. We saw the treaty house which was built in 1832 for the first British resident, James Busby and across the lawn was the very detailed whare runanga, a beautiful meeting house with intricate carvings, which was completed in 1940 to mark the centenary of the treaty. In the grounds we also saw the 35 metre waka taua (war canoe) Ngatokimatawhaorua which was built from gigantic kauri logs and on the hill the naval flagpole overlooking the bay of islands which marked the spot where the Crown and Maori chiefs signed the treaty. We then headed South towards Auckland and stopped at Whangarie Falls, a magnificent waterfall 26.3 metres high. We did a circular walk around before having a picnic listening to the roar of the falls and continued our journey. We arrived at Whangateau late in the evening and found a lovely campsite right by the estuary and had delicious barbecued steak overlooking the river and harbour where we watched a couple of red legged stilts, herons and various other water birds feeding at low tide. We awoke to a glorious sunny morning with the estuary lapping at the motorhome. We decided to stay an extra night as it was such a lovely site and would take the opportunity to visit the marine reserve at Goat Island which was just down the road. We visited the local shops and found a good butcher and baker although the supermarket was a little small. Goat Island Marine Reserve was established in 1975, allowing fish and crayfish to return in expanding numbers as no fishing is allowed in the reserve. This is the only place in NZ where you can see large snappers at touching distance and where you can encounter the red rock lobster in dozens at a time, we took a boat trip and managed to see lots of fish including giant snapper and even eagle rays close to the shore sheltering from the orcas. BBQ’d lamb chops on the menu tonight not snapper………… Paul had run out of beer and discovered that there was a micro brewery in the area, but oh dear it was closed. Tomorrow we move out of the Northlands and into the Coromandel area.
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leithan cradick
non-member comment
Hi U2 Really finding your adventures very interesting, be safe and look after each other. Love Lx