Kai Iwi Lakes

 

Finally we got a couple of good warm, sunny days so we loaded 

 up the bus and headed off for Kai Iwi Lakes - they are on the west coast, about an hour and a half from here.

We parked overlooking the biggest lake and then walked around it....

A nice, two hour stroll.

Then we drove into Dargaville and parked at the NZMCA Park. In the late afternoon we strolled around town...

Statue commemorating the gum diggers, mainly from Dalmatia (Croatia)

The park is at an old boatyard, complete with historic boatsheds...

where we spent happy hour (or two) with the other motorhomers, followed by this sunset.

Rainy Rotorua

First stop after leaving Cambridge was Tirau, world famous in New Zealand for its corrugated everything. The sheep and ram are buildings...

Even the sign outside the dairy is corrugated.

In Rotorua we freedom camped on Hinemoa Street, right beside the Polynesian Spa (hot pools)...

...and right beside this little pond, complete with fountain.

After a visit to the hot pools with our friends, Malcolm and I went for a walk along this part of the lake, first passing an area full of sculpture...

...and the museum.

This part of the lakeside had steaming mud,lots of birdlife,

and more sculpture.

Looping back to the bus we walked through the museum grounds...

these are two of the carvings around the monument.

Then off to a restaurant for dinner with our friends.