YVR to WLG - Part 2

Ed. Note: The following post and those thereafter in this series are copied word for word from my paper journal. I have only edited my thoughts for punctuation and grammar.


April 25th, 2012

The beginning of an adventure...

Today, New Zealand and Australia celebrate ANZAC day, or Australia and New Zealand Army Corps day. This National Holiday means most businesses are closed and that everyone (it seems) wants to get out of the city! Michelle and I headed out of Waiheke to catch the 11am ferry to Auckland where we made the short jaunt from the ferry terminal to the Escape Campervan depot.

We had decided before leaving that the best way to explore the Northland of NZ was by car, but in order to make this the most economical choice, we decided to rent a campervan! Escape is a family run company with a fleet of 200 uniquely painted vehicles plying the roads of NZ. The roomy Toyota Hi-Ace vans sleep 2-3 and are pretty good on gas (which is good with petrol at $2.19/ltr at the moment!).

Michelle and I met the lovely attendant at the depot around noon and we were quickly on our way North. We pulled over at a tourist junction before a toll road to set our route and determine where we would sleep each night. We decided to stay at Department of Conservation (DOC) sites along the route as they were most convenient and economical with our camper. For less than $20/night the two of us could park alongside a beach or close to important attractions and have access to toilets and showers (albeit cold ones) whenever we pleased.

Sunrise from a different perspective

The first day took us up the East coast through Orewa, Mangawhai and Waipu (yes, pronounded why-poo) before we reached our DOC site on Uretiti beach. None of the towns along the way held much in the way of sites, but the scenery and long, winding roads along the coast and through the small mountains were more than enough entertainment.

Arriving at Uretiti Beach, we checked in with a friendly gate attendant who gave us the low-down on DOC camping... Find a spot, park and go! And after a quick loop of the facilities in the waning light of the day, we found a nice spot near what we assumed was the beach.

[April 26th, 2012]

Uretiti Beach at Sunrise

I awoke before sunrise, just as daylight was making our surroundings visible, [so] I grabbed my camera and headed to the beach. Our camper was right beside a short path that led over the dunes and to the beach. The few clouds in the sky and the incredibly strong ocean soon made for some unreal sunrise shots. I had never before sat and watched the sun come up out of the water, and it is also something I will never forget. Certainly one of the most serene and peaceful moments one could have, alone on a kiwi beach.

Michelle and I gathered up things in the van before heading North again to Whangarei. Here we dropped into the local i-site where an incredibly cute kiwi showed us a map of the town and pointed us in the direction of a good hike and caving site.

Whangarei Falls

We stopped for groceries first, then headed to the Whangarei Falls hike. After a quick 30 minute jaunt along a river we ended up at what is supposedly the most photgraphed waterfall in NZ. Certainly a nice setting and as Michelle pointed out, it was developed in such a way that the natural beauty was not lost.

Next stop today was at Abbey Caves. I had read that this was the place to go for the budget traveller looking for a glow-worm experience. It surely did not disappoint! The completely undeveloped cave network is accessed by a small road-side trail that winds down a hill and through a couple rocky pastures before pointing you in the direction of the first cave. Organ Cave required a quick drop through a rocky out crop on the side of a hill, which required some pretty adept skill to get into. I had forgotten my headlamp in the van at the top of the trail, but luckily Michelle had remembered her small torch. Though the head lamp would have been nice, the torch did its job as we quickly lost the daylight. We tried to remain as dry as possible (though the cute i-site girl did warn us our feet would be getting wet), but it was all for nothing as we were ankle deep in a stream within ten metres of the cave entrance. The little trek was quite something as we were quickly shown the length of the cave by the small, indigo glow worms. Though we only ventured 75 mentres into the cave, we spent about 45 minutes exploring all the nooks and crannies, and trying to capture the insane beauty of this underground labyrinth with our cameras. Michelle conquered her fear of the impenetrable darkness and I, well I was just glad the torch batteries didn't die out...

Again, we continued our travels north along the Twin Coast Discovery Highway from Whangarei through Helena Bay, Oakura and into Whengaruru. Also again, Michelle and I finished our days travel under the cover of darkness arriving at Puriri Bay well after the dinner hour. The drive was insanely windy and long. Long because the road was so windy and constantly changing elevation as it followed the coast. I made a quick spaghetti dinner (Wattie's Gourmet Spaghetti in Tomato Sauce) and crashed early.