We left the Tree House on a stormy morning and traveled over the Hokianga Estuary for the last time. We had been warned to get to the wharf early as there had been a number of Maori funerals lately, for which a few hundred people turn up for each meaning a huge backlog on the ferry. The water was unusually choppy but we docked in Rawene with no trouble. The southern bank of the estuary is slightly busier than the north with the 'resort' settlements of Opononi and Omapere perched above awesome beaches with hastily eroding back walls attacked by the surf refracted by the narrow estuary mouth. We decided to stay one night in Omapere at a backpackers owned by an English lady and her son who had moved out here in 2002. It had a great views over the water and towards the mountainous sand dunes that lie on the northern bank of the Hokianga. We had wanted to go sand boarding on them but the weather was not on our side! From here we took a short drive into the Waipoura forest (via a small beach on which I had got caught out by a massive wave and had suffered wet feet) to view Tane Mahuta - 'god of the forest'. This was the largest (by volume) Kauri tree in NZ, the Kauri being the second largest species of tree in the world and only found here. The track that led from the layby to the tree cut its way through some very dense sub-tropical rainforest, I wonder how the Maoris found this tree in such dense woodland. I cannot recall the exact dimensions of the tree, but it had a girth in the region of 13.5m and a truck height of 60m or so. It was estimated to be over 2000 years old. That night i sank into the softest mattress in the world and as such had a pretty naff sleep but woke up early ready for the drive back to Auckland. The drive went well and we passed some spectacular scenery as always. Here, I said my fair wells to R+R and agreed a date to rendezvous in Queenstown a month later. I checked back into Uenuku Lodge where I had originally stayed and managed to get my hands on a guide book (I had accidentally left mine in Napier) and a map that had all its pages to replace my previous freebie. It was good to see that the same people I had met there a few weeks earlier were still there, waiting for someone to buy their car/trying to find a job, etc.
I woke up to fine weather which boosted me out of my sleeping bag and back onto the road. I was heading for New Plymouth on the West coast of the North Island sandwiched between Mt. Taranaki and the sea. I was a long drive of about 6hrs but it was sweetened by the superb views the break in the weather had afforded me, South of Hamilton I passed by Waitomo caves - an attraction I had visited last time I was here set in small rolling hills that reminded me of an intense version of Dorset. Further south west I entered cattle stud territory and not a sheep in sight. The road crossed mountains and passed through gorges to rival Cheddar before hugging the coast all the way into town. It was rush hour in New Plymouth and was getting dark as I checked into Shoestring Backpackers. The very average hostel was freezing now the sun had gone down but at least there was a wood burner in the lounge. I dumped my bag and put my milk in the fridge before going for a twilight wander around town. The waterfront wad adorned with a promenade of which a giant kinetic sculpture called the Wind Wand, was the centrepiece. I like kinetic sculptures normally but this was just a bit boring. A tall pole with a slight bend in it ad a red light on top that moved in the wind. hmmm. After an overpriced coffee I went back to the hostel underwhelmed and did some washing. Sitting watching TV sitting in full waterproofs (everything else was getting cleaned) I tried to get talking to a fat middle-aged Canadian who was staying there. He had a serious lack of a sense of humour which led to a very short conversation. I went to bed early with plans to get up early, have a quick look around town again and then move on South to Wanganui to try and escape the worst of the 'weather bomb' that was due to hit the North.
By 10am I had left the town and headed south on SH3 skirting around the inland face (East) of Mt. Taranaki, instead of taking the 'Surf Highway' around the coast due to concerns of the impending doom the media were telling us of on every radio station. I had visions of massive waves crashing onto the road so decided to play it safe. Mt Taranaki has been likened to Mt Fuji in Japan. It is a classic snow capped cone volcano that looks the same from every angle. This morning the summit was cloaked in a velvety dark cloud but still looked awesome. I got to Wanganui before lunch and set about to find a bed for the night. To my surprise every cheap bed in the town had been booked due to a netball tournament! Not wanting to spend anymore than I needed to on a bed I phoned up a hostel in one of Wellington's suburbs and booked a bed. Wanganui was quite a quaint town by NZ standards on the banks of NZ longest river the Whanganui. I took a trip up the Durie elevator - an marvelous Victorian contraption. Durie Hill is a steep hill on the opposite side of the river from the town. With the foresight that the hill would be used for accommodation, they bored and 200m tunnel into the hill and installed a lift up the centre of it that pops out on the top! now the residents of the hill use it every day as a means of getting to school and work. After a Cornish pastie in an Irish pub I hit the road again just as the rain had started to fall.
Moana Lodge in Plimmerton just north of the capital is an extremely comfortable hostel that I would recommend to anyone of any age. I got some fresh fish and chips and relaxed in a comfy sofa. Today I braved the weather and headed into Wellington and took myself to Te Papa - the National Museum of NZ. It was really good and took up the whole day. I'm now relaxing in front of the fire with a tea and a muffin! I've booked my ferry to Picton for Tuesday 29th which leaves me with one full day to explore the rest of this compact city.
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