Well, after a long flight here we are... New Zealand!!
We've started our trip from Auckland, heading straight out to the wild windswept black beaches of Muriwai. Its a beautiful, rugged place, with massive Gannet colonies and huge black sand beaches. However, the weather was more like an autumn day in Bridlington, so after a refreshing couple of days we headed north to the beautiful, sparkling Bay of Islands & Doubtless Bay in the North. While shopping in a little grocery store on stilts over the water, our attention was suddenly caught by a whole school/pod (still debating...) of killer whales swimming in the bay. Amazing! Better than the view from Morrisons carpark in Wetherby.
Then it was off to camp next to Hurari Falls and take a great walk through the mangrove swamps, then down the coast for a spot of relaxation in the natural thermal pools....and not so natural death-defying waterslides providing excellent sinus/rectal washouts at no extra cost. Bonus.
After a good clearout, we headed back down passing the NZ's biggest tree, the Kauri 'Lord of the Forest'. Jesus... its big. Only the oh-so-dull Kauri museum could detract from its majesty. Theres only so many Kauri wood chests of drawers, gum blobs, wood working manekins and displays of chainsaws you can take.
As this leg of the trip is focused on trying some new sports, we kicked off with a spot of canyoning, in the stunning coastal village of Piha. To those readers unaware of this pastime, its simple... get dressed up in rubber & jump/abseil from large cliffs and waterfalls into deep and freezing cold pools. Brilliant fun...even in the rain!
Its worth mentioning at this point that the pie is the staple food of the average Kiwi, a triumph for common sense, and a tradition I (and Rachael, reluctantly) am all too willing to observe.
So here we are, sat in an internet cafe in the Surf capital of Raglan, where tomorrow we will hit the beach...probably literally.
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