Day 3

Waihi Beach from outside the bus

Waihi Beach

Me at Athernree pools near Waihi Beach

Day 3 we were going to do a walk around the Miranda wetlands but it was grey and dull so we drove SE to Waihi Beach.  The weather improved and we walked up and down the beach then went for a soak at some little thermal pools nearby.

Hot Pools day 2

The next day we drove to the Firth of Thames and parked at Miranda, looking across to the Coromandel Peninsula. We sampled the hot pools, particularly like the really hot sauna pool.

View from the bus (tide out)

 

The torso-man in the sauna pool

A hot pool loop

School holidays - Spring? - we set off to do a hot pool circuit.  First we went south of Whangarei  about  an hour and a half to Wenderholm, a reserve on the coast adjacent to Waiwera where we went to our first pools.  Nice camping place and good pools - very relaxing.

Whoops - sideways

 

Like the dwarf look?

 

 
                      Malcolm holds up a tree

Camped at Wenderholm

 

Sideways evening shot by estuary

 

Next morning - walk around headland

 

Native NZ spring flowering tree called kowhai

 

Malcolm on the headland walk

Home Again

All our worldly goods..

..have to go out of here...

 

...and into here!

 

Several days later...

...we did it!



 

 

We drove straight up the island back to Whangarei and after a few days by the bridge and behind the library we moved back into King Street.  This Summer's Grey Wanderings are over and now Malcolm can do the work on the bus that he had hoped to do last Winter!

An unexpected cold snap!

Matekuri Island

Te Waihou Walkway

We left Rotorua when we realised our battery was getting low - hadn't moved the bus in a while and it had been grey for the solar panels.  We need electricity to run the fan in the diesel heater!  So we drove to Lake Maraetai near Mangakino where we parked up with 2 other busses at Matekuri Island (actually a peninsula).  This was a quiet, picturesque spot where we spent the morning chatting with our neighbours yesterday.  Today we woke to 4 degrees and were surrounded by mist.  When it burnt off mid-morning we drove to near Putaruru where we are parked under an oak tree beside a waterfall in a rest area.  This afternoon we walked Te Waihou Walkway which goes beside a swift, clear river (Waihou) to the Blue Spring.  About 2 and 1/2 hours return.  Hopefully the cold snap has passed through and tomorrow will be warmer!! 

Rotorua

A grey day in Rotorua

Malcolm and museum

Hamurana Springs

Malcolm above the main spring

People rafting at Okere Falls

Me in the redwoods at Hamurana Springs

We've been at Rotorua for a few days, mostly sitting out the dull grey weather and rain.  Today was sunny so we did a bit of tiki-touring.  First we went to Hamurana Springs where water comes up after 70 years underground.  It is amazingly clear and pure.  The trees in the redwood forests there were pretty big, planted 100 years ago.  We drove around and to 4 lakes - Rotorua, Rotoiti, Okataina, Rotoehu - then went to Okere Falls where we did another walk and also watched kayakers and rafters going over some of the falls.  not a very arduous day but very pretty scenery! 

Kawerau

Kawerau

Hot pool complex behind where we were parked - Mt Edgecombe in background

Autumn freedom camping

On the track to Tarawera Falls

Kawerau may seem an unlikely destination but it is a freedom camping friendly town with free hot pools!  We parked up in the centre of town (it's small) and had a couple of soaks over the days we were there.  We got a permit and drove half an hour through forestry to a DOC camp at Lake Tarawera.  From here we walked to Tawarewa Falls.  The track goes beside quite a few other waterfalls before the river goes underground then comes out of a cliff face at the falls.  We were a bit underwhelmed as the pictures show a much higher waterfall - but it has been a dry summer!