Hokianga

Church at the Mangungu Mission Station

Mangungu

Jetty at low tide, Mangungu

Waiting for the ferry at Rawene, 1 horse town

Boat shed café at left...

...where I had this yummy macadamia cake

 

Sundial at Kohukohu

 

 

On Sunday we drove west to the Hokianga Harbour.  Where Kerikeri is quite sophisticated, with wineries, foodie markets, tourism etc Hokianga is more sleepy and old-fashioned.  Almost the first thing we saw as we left the main road for Horeke were 2 little Maori kids on a horse, plodding along the road.  At Mangungu we explored the mission grounds and spent some time on the jetty watching mullet in the shallows and swallows flying around us, catching insects.  The grave-yard was interesting too.  Many of the early settlers on the harbour drowned.

Next we took the winding road that loops inland then back out to the water again at Rawene.  This little settlement has some new art galleries and cafes but we visited our old favourite, the boat shed café that is built on piles over the water.

Then we took the ferry to Kohikohu.  The waterline café in the old butchers shop is closed now but there was a new one across the road.  We had ice-cream again though - too soon after the cake for lunch.  We wandered around the township - once a centre for logging of kauri, a mill and a shipyard - now a higgledy-piggledy assortment of old villas and cottages.  We once had a walk brochure that explained what each had been but didn't have that with us of course.  Luckily they now have old photos and information displayed around the streets so we did (re)learn something about what we were looking at.