Touring the North Island

We've spent the last week touring the North Island of New Zealand. After flying into Auckland, we rented a car and drove via the east coast (all the while chanting left, left, left to keep on the correct side of the road) first to Tauranga on the Bay of Plenty. Interesting sights along the way, other than quiet roads and bucolic pastures full of sheep, were the murals in Katikati. Some were a bit crudely drawn, but others quite accomplished trompe l'oeil.

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Dunno who this statue is, but the little girl was pretty cute.

Stayed in the 130-year-old Taipororo Mansion Guesthouse (registered historic place) that was an unusually laid back B&B (which didn't serve breakfast).

Next day it was on to Matamata (better known to us as Hobbiton from Lord of the Rings and the upcoming Hobbit). Not much to see there if you didn't want to spend two hours on a tour to see the sets on a sheep farm. But there were some amusing things built out of corrugated metal. 

And an excellent coffee shop. We are learning the peculiarities of New Zealand coffee culture. Generally very good, but some odd names. I've settled on long blacks (essentially a 2-shot americano, but more reliably not over-watered as too often happens at home). David's decided he likes flat whites (essentially a latte). And then there's a fluffy for kids, which is a cappuccino without the espresso.

Pressing on, we stopped at Orakei Korako, a privately owned thermal area with geysers, bubbling mud, and earthquake-formed escarpments that is well worth seeing. You take a short boat ride across a lake and hike along a boardwalk past all these strange steaming, bubbling formations. Good signage on the plants, as well, for the botanically inclined.

This kid, belonging to one of the staff, I think, climbed into the captain's lap and asked to drive. With a little help from the captain, he did a pretty good job.

We were meant to take the Desert Road, recommended by David's friend Ramsey for its spectacular scenery, after Orakei Koraka but it turned out to be closed due to a major crash. We had to take a considerable detour around Lake Taupo to our motel in Taihape. The Aspen Court Motel is nothing to look at, but really well done. They even hand you a small bottle of milk on check-in so you have something to go with your morning coffee or tea. And an insulated press pot to make it in!

Breakfast at the Brown Sugar Cafe (Ramsey's recommendation) was the pinnacle so far of New Zealand coffee culture. I'm beginning to see that muesli with yoghurt and fruit will be my go-to NZ breakfast.

After a day of driving on a fairly busy highway, our third and final leg to Wellington started off with a very small, practically deserted road towards Mangaweka. We squeezed across a one-lane bridge and headed up a very narrow, twisty road among a bunch of sheep pastures and steep ravines. Somewhat extreme driving experience, But incredibly scenic.

Next a stop at the Mt Bruce National Wildlife Centre, where one could see kiwis in the captive breeding program (and tricked by lighting into being active in the daytime, albeit in a very dark building under red illumination) and kakas and eels being fed. Both of the latter are protected from predators, but not in captivity.

Finally, a stop in Greytown, home of Victorian architecture and an excellent bakery.

And then over the Rimutaka Hill Road, which made all previous extreme driving pale in comparison. Thank god for the "B" gear on our hybrid Camry for some great regenerative braking. Suddenly, we were in the capitol of New Zealand, Wellington, which clings to the narrow beaches and steep hillsides surrounding its Inner and Outer Harbours. 

 

Three days of visiting with Ramsey and his wife Despina passed pleasantly despite heavy rain for two of the days. Despina is a fabulous cook, so we were very well fed. We watched three excellent New Zealand films, "Boy", "Rain of the Children", and one whose name escapes us. All great insights into Maori and other New Zealand culture. Off to bed before it was quite New Years, because we had to catch the ferry to the South Island early the next morning.

The ferry takes you to Picton, where our Pedaltours tour will start on January 6. We had booked a room at the same motel we'll be staying at then, and we left our bike cases and extra luggage with them while we take a short, self-supported tour of Golden Bay. Took the Atomic Shuttle to Nelson this morning and rode to Te Puna Wai, a B&B built circa 1857 and owned by friends of Phil Bokovy, whom we know thru the Grizzly Peak Cyclists. Fabulous dinner at The Boat Shed Cafe only a short walk away. 

Bird of the day was an oystercatcher hunting mussels at waters edge.