Archive | New Zealand – North Island

Wellies in Wellington

25 May

 

I thought that Wellington was pretty small considering it is the capital of New Zealand. However, it was a really nice place, with a lot of nice restaurants, bars and fun entertainment (like very cool cinemas). The only big negative factor was that it rained the WHOLE time we were there! I am not joking, it was so windy and rainy. Overall thought, I really liked the place.

I should also mention that there is a debate occurring over here, whether there should be a sign put up on the mountains saying ‘Wellywood’, like the same as the ‘Hollywood’ sign, I know I nearly cried NOOO when I heard about this Idea as well. Luckily, I think they are going off the idea now, Thank God!

Whanganui

23 May

We stayed the night near Wanganui River. The people who are here must be giants…I did not meet any giants thought.

They also have big dinosaurs as pets, they scared me…

Only joking. Back to reality. On our way down to Whanganui River, we stopped off at a sheep farm, to look at all the farmers giving the sheep a haircut. I have never seen anything like it, just cutting away at a really fast speed. Steve (the owner) told us that one person could get through 300 sheep a day, crazy!

Anyways, back to what I wanted to tell you about, we paddled down Whanganui River in a nice red canoe.  Starting off at Whakahora, we paddled down 11km down the river to , where we stopped for lunch. Then we carried on 16km further downstream. The scenery was so beautiful, even when it rained. The scenery made me feel like I was in a middle of a fairy tale, like the ones I got told when I was little about Trolls and Princesses. This is actually where they filmed some scenes of Lord of the Rings, beautiful.

 

Then we got picked up by a jet boat, which brought us back upstream. They just tied the long canoes on the back of the speed boats and off we went, crazy people!

Waitomo

21 May

Today we did some hard-core Black Water Rafting. This included getting into some tight wetsuits (which made us point and laugh at each other) and finding a float-able ring that fitted to our bums. Then we climbed down into the Raukuri Cave, floating down the underground river, twisting and turning. We also jumped backwards into waterfalls, it was so scary as its pitch black, gives you a right adrenalin rush! It was great fun!

At one point we turned all our flashlights of, just floating down river looking at the roof of the caves, to see lots of glow worms doing their glowing at the top. Glowworms are actually the fungus gnat, but I think they named them Glowworms as that sounds nicer (imagine saying I’m gonna go and look at some fungus gnat today, not a winner). Anyways, they glowed very nicely.

 

Rotorua and Hells Gate

20 May

Wai-O Tapu Wonderland is a park situated at the most colourful and diverse volcanic area. No it is not a adventure park, it is actually a Scenic Reserve, where areas are covered with collapsed craters, pools of mud, water and steaming fumaroles. As you walk around the park you see ‘pools’ with many different colours and named for their shapes and appearances (e.g. Devil’s Bath, The Champagne Pool and so on). It is actually quite an odd sight, but also very nice.

After a long day walking around sight-seeing in Rotorua and at Wai-O-Tapu, we headed for Hells Gate Geothermal Park. First we walked around looking at the different mud pools, some very hot, others cold (we could put our hands in some of them). Afterwards we had a lovely MUD Bath. We got a private little mud bath which was lovely. Then after a quick cold shower (to get all the mud off) we had a Sulphur Spa. The whole experience was so relaxing and your skin felt super soft!

Karangahake Gorge

19 May

We stayed at the Dickey Flat camp site, which is situated by the Karangahake Gorge. This is a very historic walk, as you walk along many old gold mines, as well as walking by beautiful scenery (along the Waitawheta River). We also had to go through some dark and long tunnels, making it a bit spooky and exciting.

The Coromandel Region

17 May

In my opinion Coromandel had some of the North Island’s most beautiful beaches. Driving up by the coast, looking over the powerful waves hitting the shores, you do not have to do much to get a great photo.

as you drive along the beach you see some ancient pohutukawa trees (Far North Coromandel)..they are brilliant.We stopped in Coromandel, a lovely small town, and tried some mussels. The mussels were marinated in different sauces, including BBQ, sweet chili, garlic and so on. However I think i should keep to mussels cooked in white wine sauce from now on…

 

Our next stop in the Coromandel region was the Cathedral Cove. It took a 40 minute walk to the beach, but it was well worth it. The “hidden” beach where the Cove was had a natural waterfall and the Cathedral Cove huge natural stone arch was something of natures beautiful creation.

The Hot Water Beach was next, for two hours on each side of the tide we could access the area in front of some rocky outcrop hot water ooze up from the sand. So ready with a spade we dug ourselves a hot water pool. It was one of the weirdest things i have ever done. The water was really hot in the little pool we made, so nice and relaxing. However, I have to admit that my bum was very hot and red afterwards, think i might have burned it a little bit.

Tapotupotu Bay and Waipoua Forest

14 May

Woke up and had breakfast on Tapotupotu Bay…there is no better way to wake up and have breakfast…

We then went to some hot springs, which had lots of different pools, with different temperatures. Some were oily and warm, other pools were boiling hot, so hot we could not go into them (we would literally cook), and some that were nice temperatures. It makes you body relax, but it smells a lot!

We stopped for lunch at Opononi by the coast.

Then we had a stroll on the beach…

Our last stop was at the Waipoua Kauri Forest, where there are some huge trees. There we saw Tane Mahuta, which is the largest kauri tree alive, and is known as the farther of the trees. I have never seen such a large trunk! It was wow!


We camped in the forest at night, falling asleep to the sounds of the wildlife.

NORTHLAND

13 May

We then headed for the Far North, a more remote but beautiful area. Our first stop was at the Ninety Mile Beach (which actually is Ninety Kilometre Beach, but that does not sound as good ey?). The Ninety Mile beach lays on the top and west coast of New Zealand. We drove along the beach for a while, it was so beautiful.

 

Further up the strech of the beach, there were some gigantic sand dunes surrounded by the Aupouri Forest. The contrast of the pale sand and the sharp green next to each other was amazing. We also had to cross over a little stream to get to the sand dunes, it is undescribable.

The day ended at the very top of the North Island (I should note that there is actually a more northern point a walk away). However, the Cape Regeina lighthouse, gives a right feel to be at the very end of new Zealand, looking out on the ocean.

 It is actually where the waters of Tasman Sea and Pacific Ocean meet. The ocean was incredible.

Paihia and the Bay of Islands

12 May

Our first journey with the car was to Paihia, north from Auckland. This little town is situated by the Bay of Islands, giving it an beautiful setting. I have to say that I really liked it here. We relaxed by the beach and had some lovely fish and chips.

We then headed out on a new mission at sea…fishing! It was a great trip as we went past lots of beautiful islands (Bay of Island consists of about 150 undeveloped islands). John actually beat me for the first time at fishing; as he managed to get a Kingfisher and many Snappers. However, I should add that I did catch something, but it was so big and strong that it got away with the whole hook, honest!

Toyota Estima – My Crib

11 May

Welcome to my home! We decided that the best way for us to travel around and about New Zealand was to get our own little camper-van (car with bed). This allows us to drive freely where and when we want, and lets us stay at some great destinations (sometimes in the middle of nowhere). Anyway, I have made a little introduction, so welcome to my house warming…