25th January 2019. Auckland via Opononi & Waipoua forest

We said goodbye to the Bay of Islands this morning, and following an enthusiastic recommendation from our Maori guide yesterday we decided to drive west to see the threatened Kauri trees in the Waipoua forest. It was a beautiful morning again, and although we knew that we had a long drive ahead we decided to make it as leisurely a journey as possible.

The drive took us across the mountains and brought us out at Opononi. As the inlet came into view we could see the giant sand dunes on the other side. The water was a beautiful blue and glisteniing in the sun, so when a coffee shop was spotted on the side of the road it was the obvious place to stop for a coffee, like a lot of other people too!

Suitably refreshed we took the obligatory photos and headed on our way.

Not far up the road Geoff spotted a sign to a viewpoint and followed it. Another wonderful find! The views here were stunning and we have put some into the photo gallery that we have now found on the home page. Just scroll to the bottom! Had we had longer there were some decent walks to be done, but at that point we were further from Auckland then when we had started the day and we needed to keep moving!

The Waipoua forest wasn’t too far further. The Kauai trees that are there survive for hundreds and thousands of years and can grow to be a massive size. The largest one there at the moment has a girth of over 13 metres, the trunk is over 17metres high before its first branches, and it is thought to be over 2000 years. They were used to make the Maori canoes, and they have been logged too, but that has all had to stop as they are under threat, not just from humans but also a dieback disease. With these huge trees and all the variety of other trees and vegetation was a beautiful place to be.

It was then the long drive back to Auckland which we reached at tea time. Back to the same hotel and then out to dinner. We hadn’t thought to book anything in advance and when we got down to the harbour area it was really busy. The menu for a restaurant named “giraffe” looked interesting and they managed to fit us in as long as we didn’t mind sitting at the bar and watching all the chefs at work! We were hungry by then so said yes! We passed a very interesting 2 hours watching all the food being prepped in front of us and getting to chat to some of the staff too. I’m sure we had more to eat than we needed but it was good entertainment as well as good food!

And so ends another day! We are going to try and upload some videos, although still struggling with the best way to do it. You may need to search for them!

This blog started out primarily as a way of recording our adventure, but also as a way for David and Helen to have some idea of what we are up to. It is apparent from the contact we have had from various friends that we have a band of followers who are enjoying tracking us! This adds another dimension to the blog which is fun! However we don’t want to become slaves to it, so as the novelty wears off, there may be days where little or nothing is added. We might also continue to find ways to improve it! Any comments or problems, let us know!