HUTTAH! Back in the city (ie Auckland - the land of cheap internet). My trip up north was incredible…
Day 1, 12 Mar: early start at 8am, boarded a small 12 seater van, threw my pack in the back and met the driver, Dave. We went around to the other hostels and picked up the rest of the crew. Finally on the road, we cross the bridge out of Melbourne and see the city from the water side. We stopped in Warkworth for tea, and got the main highway then, and went for the coastal road. We passed thru Whengateu and stopped at Goat Island to stick our heads out and look around. We had equipment to snorkel, but the sun was hiding behind clouds (NZ is called “The land of the long white cloud” by the Maori), so we opted not to. Another beach stop later, we walked around, but the sun was still hiding. We did a short track in Whangarei in a Kauri forrest and saw the water falls there; a fan tail bird followed us. We finally rock up to Paihia in the Bay of Islands in the evening, and saw the place where the Maori signed the founding treaty with the English.
During the drive, the scenery was highly pastoral. So many sheep and cows, a few llamas, barns, sheds, and troughs. The air came to life and smelled so vividly.
The hostel where I stayed, Pipi Patch, had the “Spring Break” feel. Lots of backpackers there on holiday, and there to get pissed. Lots of UK folk and Germans. One of the people on the Stray van with me said that the Kiwi Experience bus should rename itself to the Gap-Year Experience - most of those kids were 18/19.
Marcus, a German bloke on the Stray van, and I walked to the Woolworths to buy groceries. Ain’t nothin’ like peanut butter and bread - breakfast and lunch for the next two days (and some fruit). Anyway, Marcus’ meals were pasta with ketchup - crazy and curious and absolutely unfathomable. Those crazy Germans!
I like the bus traveling - it’s good for lone travellers like me. You meet people and spend time with them and get to know them. You make friends for the few days you see them, and then you go your separate ways. It’s great! I’ve met a Norwegian!
Day 2, 13 Mar: CAPE REINGA! Stray books you on the “Dune Rider” Cape Reinga tour. Tours are the main way to get up there, as there’s no electricity or safe drinking water. Very undeveloped. We went by way of the 90 mile beach (which is only 64 miles long - when they first measured it, in the 1800’s, they estimated their travel distance at 30 miles a day, and they did it in 3 days, so they called it the 90 mile beach). But, this beach is UNIFORM of 90 miles. You drive on it like a road (it’s classified as a road by NZ’s DOC 2 hours before and after low tide), and you drive for ages. So long, so beautiful, so impressive. Once we got to the end, we turned up a stream (yes, a stream) to head toward the cape. But first, we stopped at some inland sand dunes - to ride them on boogie boards. The sand was soft, and you went moderately fast (30 mph); only hiking up the dunes wasn’t too fun. After that, we went to a protected bay for lunch and finally to the CAPE!
The cape is nuts. You can see ocean around your for 300 degrees at least! You could watch both the sun rise and the sun set there. And the Tasman Sea crashing into the Pacific ocean is really quite loud.
On our way back, we stopped a fruit stand to buy some fresh fruit. mmMMmmmmm Nash pears. And the plums were tasty, too.
That night in the hot tub (yes, the hostel has a hot tub - didn’t I say “Spring Break” atmosphere?), I spoke with Ingrid (the Norwegian), and a random German guy about our countries. We talked about how each government worked, and the political structure, and current events. Did I have a lot to explain! The German, a rock climber, pointed out that many of the tracks here are very developed, and not rugged at all. It’s true - boardwalks with chicken wire on them (to prevent slipping if the wood is wet). But Ingrid came back with a good counterpoint: NZ gets more tourists each year than its entire population, so these are neccessary to protect the environment. From my many conversations with her, I’ve gathered that Norway is very eco-conscious.
Day 3, 14 Mar: A whole free day to myself. I took the ferry over to Russell, a small town across the bay, and walked all over. It’s very different from Paihia - much less touristy. Slow, relaxed, quiet, you can hear nature and hardly an engine! A short track took me to the top of a hill, and you could look out over the entire bay! On the back side of Russell is a secluded beach, that only the locals go to (I kinda stumbled into it), and I cruised there for a while, before heading back to the hostel. There, Ingrid came back with James and Owen (two Irish guys on the Stray bus) and I proposed a big curry. They were game, and we feasted on a marvelous green coconut curry.
Day 4, 15 Mar: Back to Auckland today. But I did get to see the Paihia library before I left. It’s very nice, and they had an art exhibit upstairs with good local paintings, and they were playing Manu Chao!
So now, I’m in Auckland for tonight only. Tomorrow I’m off to Raglan - a place world famous for black sand beaches and great surf. It’s time to play in the ocean, no more bays!