Category: New Zealand
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A visit to Hobbiton, and more rain
We ended yesterday with a really nice meal in Matamata, at a small Mediterranean restaurant. As is typical for us, we had a couple appetizers and one main course. As appetizers, Chris had grilled mussels, which neither of us had had (really good) and I had pan seared Haloumi over a tasty mix of chickpeas,…
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A wet couple of days!
We left Auckland a couple days ago, which was good since Auckland experienced very heavy rain and flooding last night. We were snug in our B&B in Paeroa, listening to the pounding rain on the roof while we slept the first night and as we lazed around basically all the following day. It ended up…
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Leaving Auckland to head south
It was a productive and restful day in Auckland, getting laundry done and doing a bit of shopping. We went to a Japanese restaurant a scant block from our house, treating ourselves to dinner out before heading into camp-land again. From Auckland, we took the ferry from Auckland City ferry terminal, which was just down…
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Crossing Kaiapara Harbor
The day finally arrived to cross Kaiapara Harbor, leaving the Northland back to Auckland, where we started 8 days previously. Due to the tides, we were scheduled to be picked up on the beach at 7AM and so we woke at 5AM to break camp and pack. The sunrise was amazing. All of us were…
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To Pouto: A final ride to the boat
A couple months ago, I contacted a charter ferry company called Kaitaia Cruises to see if I could arrange passage for me and Chris across Kaipara Harbor, avoiding a harrowing road ride on major roads into Auckland from the north. They only do charters, so I asked if anyone had inquired about chartering the boat…
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Three days towards Pouto Point and our charter boat
It’s been hard to post things reliably, as phone/internet service has been spotty. It was a big day to get to Trounson’s Kauri Park from Rawene, and so we wanted to have a short day today, into the small city of Dargaville. It’s the biggest town we have been in since leaving Auckland, and it…
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BIG TREE and a big day!
The first two days of riding were deliberately short, meaning about 20 to 25 miles per day, averaging about 2,000 feet of elevation gain per day. We were just getting started, after all, and that was enough! The hills were much more than Europe too. Then somehow, we decided that after 2 days of riding,…
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Amazing green: Ahipara to Rawene
After drying our tent and airing out sleeping bags and assorted items, we took to the road about 11am or so. It’s always this way on the first day of camping. It takes some time to adjust to the rhythms of a different country’s campsites and also for us, figure out where to put what…
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Auckland, New Zealand! Waiting out the cyclone…
We landed to Auckland just before 1AM, and then navigated customs and immigration, including the bio-security screening that necessitated someone unfolding and examining our tent carefully for contamination before returning it to us. Hundreds were in line, so it took some time. At 3AM we got in a cab and suffered through our driver’s long-winded…