Road Closed Ahead

 

Road Close Ahead!

 

 

Symbolic photo though we didn't know it at the time!

Our wandering road is going to be curtailed for several months and we are going to be back in Whangarei - and even living in a house!

This sudden change of plans and lifestyle was brought about by an offer I couldn't refuse - working for a couple of terms at my old place of work, good old Kamo Primary School.

So I will not be blogging for a while but next summer we'll be off again - this time we'll be exploring the North Island.  Malcolm will have had time by then to do all the maintenance and little changes that we have decided on.  So we - and the bus - will be ready to roll then.  Watch this space!

 

A Wet Week in the Waikato

 

Malcolm at Miranda

Red sky at night, Wanderers delight?
Sunset looking across to the Coromandel

View from the beach, bus in centre

Malcolm meets Marilyn at Katikati 

funky piano

I meet a bronze Barry

Katikati is known as mural-town and there are lots

Not entirely accurate - but alliterative.  We have been parked for some of the time on the borders of Hauraki and the Western Bay of Plenty but we had to drive through the Waikato, so near enough.  It has been fairly wet anyway!  We went to Miranda Hot Pools when we were there and had a good soak, very relaxing.  It may not be flash like Hanmer Springs but the water is hot, it's not expensive and there was hardly anyone else there.  And that was before the rain started.

After we left Miranda we headed through the Karangahake Gorge to Waihi Beach.  We've never been here before and it must be lovely in sunny weather.  Between showers we had a walk on the beach.  Next stop - the end of the peninsula at Anzac Bay looking into the Tauranga Harbour.  Sandy beach, pohutakawas - but no sun.  There were some archaeologists doing a dig (there's a Maori pa on the headland) and finding bones.  Next thing some workers came and fenced off the whole reserve area with us in it!  The foreman came and told us the council would chuck us out if they come down in the morning, meanwhile we have it all to ourselves.

Whangarei to Miranda

Freedom camping Whangarei - the trees starting to show Autumn

Wellingtons Bay - I went for a swim

Drive out to Tutukaka

view from bus doorway, Miranda

beach walk late afternoon...

...the tide is way out

 

We ended up spending more time back in Whangarei and area than we anticipated - but it was all good.  We moved around every 3 days as per the rules.  Finally we have done all that needed doing for now and headed south again to Miranda on the Firth of Thames.  A fabulous sunny day to drive down here.  We had a late lunch, sat reading in the afternoon sunshine then had an evening walk.  Suddenly it got dark - the clocks went back at the weekend so it's dark at 6.30.  Seems like it was not long ago we were in the South Island and it was still light at 10.00!

Waimate North

View of Waimate church from the bus

Malcolm at the start of the walk in Puketi Forest

Lots of trees...

...big kauri...

...and more big kauri

Anyone fancy the lifestyle?  Here's a doer-upper!

We're spending a few days near the Bay of Islands at Waimate North Show-grounds which is a peaceful, scenic spot.  Yesterday we did a great walk in the Puketi Forest called Waihoanga Gorge Kauri Track.  We were surprised how many kauri were in there though unfortunately some were suffering from the dieback disease.  There was disinfectant (?)and a scrubbing brush to clean shoes as you enter the track so hopefully this is preventing the spread.  There were lots of birds as the area has volunteers who are very proactive in trapping introduced predators - and birds have been re-introduced into the forest and seem to be thriving.  We saw the more common ones - tui, fantail, tomtit, silvereyes, also some rosellas.  We heard other bird calls but don't know what they were as we are not experts - we need the app!

A weekend in Russell

Tapeka Point, looking towards Cape Brett

Me, Katherine, Jo and Elaine

Malcolm and me, Maureen and Ian, Jo and Alastair

Sunday morning relaxing - the bay above my laptop is where I later swam

On the bush walk down to the beach

view of Russell from our walk

At last!  A swim in the sea.  White dot above my head is the bus.

Sunday afternoon relaxation - it's a hard life but someone has to do it!

 

We spent a nice sunny weekend in Russell - despite the forecast of rain.  On Saturday we drove from Whangarei up the coast road and found the place we'd arranged to stay - a POP (park over property), which is free to members of NZMCA.  It is a great spot on a ridge looking across to Waitangi, as you see from the photo, just 5 minutes drive into Russell.  We met up with the others at their book-a-bach above the church and went for a walk to Tapeka Point in the afternoon.  Later we had a good meal at the RSA.

On Sunday morning the others visited our spot for coffee before heading back to Whangarei.  In the afternoon Malcolm and I went for a walk through the bush and down the road to a little bay where I had a swim in the sea.  A first for this summer - although it is actually autumn.  Well this is the winterless north and it seems pretty summery compared to some of the South Island!

Good Old Whangarei

mural on the toilets at Onerahi

Our harbour-side spot

looking down the harbour

last night's sunset

We are in Whangarei for a short while as we have things to attend to here.  It was great to drive over the Brynderwyns and see Whangarei Heads and the view out to sea, I always love that view.  The weather was noticeably warmer too - more Summer than Autumn.  First parking up place - the waterfront at Onerahi beside some pohutakawas.  Great sunsets.  Have been catching up with our friends.

Pirongia and Kawhia

Getting new tyres

Pirongia museum

Lunch at Pirongia cafe

Kawhia wharf

A contemporary ocean going waka outside the Marae

Malcolm soaks his feet in a hot pool

We moved to Pirongia to sit out the storm that is going to sweep over the country tomorrow.  (Very warm today and hazy cloud covering the sky).  Just as we drove into the settlement we got a puncture.  We drove to our freedom spot just on the edge of the village and called a tyre guy.  He found that we also had a flat tyre on the other side (the two inside tyres at the back) so to cut a long story short, we ended up getting 2 new tyres.  We weren't planning on doing that till we are back at home but at least this puncture occurred in a spot where it was easy to get assistance and not at any of the remote locations we've been to lately!

In the afternoon we went out to Kawhia - where we went out to Te Puia Springs, at an ocean beach just out of town (which is inside the harbour).  Te Puia is a beach, like hot water beach in the Coromandel, where you can dig a hole and have a soak.  The difference is that there is next to no-one at Kawhia, just a remote west coast beach.  At Kawhia township we saw the place where the Tainui Canoe was hauled ashore after making the trip from Hawaiki (Pacific Isalnds)when New Zealand was being colonised by Maori.  Kawhia and Raglan are areas we'd like to spend more time exploring some day.

New Plymouth

The river where we are camped

 

Near the start of the cycleway (Bell Block)

 

Me by the interesting bridge...

 

Malcolm on the way back, the mountain under that cloud

 

coastal views

 

historic water fountain in the city

 

hmm, where to go next?

 

Len Lye's wind wand on the waterfront

 

smoothie time!

 

 

We have been freedom camped at the poetically named Meeting of the Waters - where two rivers meet, just on the outskirts of New Plymouth.  There are nice walks in 2 directions but the only drawback is we are under trees and it is very shady, we lose the sun early.

Today we cycled the New Plymouth coastal walk/cycleway.  It was a good ride - the ocean views were really nice.  Shame Mt Taranaki/Egmont had cloud covering the top but it did clear later.  There was a funky outdoor cafe where we stopped on the way back for French pastries and fruit smoothies.  The cafe was run from a container, seating was brightly coloured beanbags and deck chairs and cool music was playing....  We sat there a while before continuing. 

Pilgramage to Jerusalem

We are staying at a farm - this redoubt built in the 1860's is on the property

Jerusalem from the road

The convent

 

The church at Jerusalem

The altar

 

Inside the church

Looking down at the river near Jerusalem

Snow-capped Tongariro

 

Today we went to Jerusalem - also Athens and London!  (Atene and Ranana).  We drove from Whanganui - clear blue sky and views to Mt Egmont/Taranaki into the river mists of the Whanganui River Road.  It is a narrow winding road to Jerusalem but is now sealed all the way.  After a while the mists burned off and we passed the few little settlements, actually they were all maraes.  Jerusalem itself is only the church and convent of the old Catholic mission, no other buildings.  The view of the church reflected in the river was beautiful.  It was about a 2 hour drive - getting more and more remote!  We decided to continue on to the end of the road at Pipiriki (13km) where we turned for Raetihi and at one stage we came out of the bush to the surprise views of Tongariro and Ngarahoe.  We returned to Whanganui on SH4 but it was still a windy, empty road.

We're staying at a farm just outside Whanganui.  There's a redoubt that was built by the settler here when the land wars were on.  It's 2 layers of Totara with clay in between to make the walls bullet proof.  There are little glass spy holes all around the walls.  luckily the conflict didn't come here.  It's very peaceful - we are in a paddock with a horse and some sheep.  The lady has chooks, ducks, calves, dogs....  Nice weather too :-)