Fox Glacier. Sunny experience!

We woke up at 7.00 am for a quick shower and the luxurious full English breakfast without the beans. We literally run to the Fox Guides Company to pay for the half day trot in the glacier and got our numbers to change the boats. Our mountain shoes are not high enough for the experience, so I got at least a number 42, the first time, I asked for something smaller and I was given a 41 with the recommendation to wear two pairs of shocks, mine, plus another one suitable for a 45, as the half that should be tight to your talon, was nearly reaching my knee… We were the luckiest ever for the last month, as today was the first sunny day in one month!!  And with a big smile on our face, off we went for an easy-peacey outing. We were also given the simplest crampons ever, to attach to the 50′s boats, making the perfect match. One hour walk up perfectly done wooden steps (800 0f them) and we were in the glacier, following the guide making ice glace with his axe, so even the least unfit could walk. Actually a lady turned back to the car park as she could not follow us up the perfectly done steps. We liked it very much, but we reckon that we could have easily done it ourselves without paying for the guide. Our friend Pep, would have laughed at us. But here is our contribution to the local industry!!

After the 4 hours walk we went back to Fox Village and we returned to the Matthewson lake, as we thought that given the brilliant day, we might get lucky and be able to take a beautiful picture of the mountains reflecting in the lake. So we sprinted the 40 minutes walk in half the time, and we got to the reflection island just to realize that the wind has destroyed the perfect water mirror, so that was it for the luck of the day.

Back to our car, by the way we rented a Daihatsu Sirion in Auckalnd and dani has been driving it since then for 3500 km, and here the roads are not motorways. Quite a few are unsealed, and the one lane bridge is common. So the plan was to drive all the way to Wanaka, but somehow we got diverted in Haast. The copilot decided that it was worth it to continue through and end route to Jackson Bay where apparently you had the most unforgettable views of the southern alps. That was another extra 45 km off our targeted road and destination. Not happy with this, mid-way this first detour, the copilot decided to add an additional one to see the read hills and the Cascade River Valley, so another 25 km. So in a 90 minutes period we reached two end-of-the-roads. In my view it was worth it, the drive along the river was beautiful, with the impressive Red Hills because of the high magnesium and iron concentrations. We crossed another tourist car that was driving double our speed, and we found them at the end of the road. As the Australian said: This is remote eiiiii!! Indeed I replied.

The isolated fishing hamlet of Jackson Bay was also very remote, nice views of the West coast with the mountains in the far end. Apparently there are colonies of crested penguins near the road, and we definitely saw about 3 signs warning us, but to no avail. They must be still passing the summer in Antarctica.

It was already 6.30 pm, so our plans to sleep in Wanaka were changed. Haast would be a more relaxed and calm place to sleep with no accommodation problems. The first one was fully booked, but the Haast Lodge has a room free!! Yupie!

Franz Josef glacier

We woke up this morning with an outstanding breakfast: eggs, bacon and sausages, all this with orange juice coffee and tea. We felt like marquises.

After such a breakfast we had 10 minutes to check out. Normally here check out time is 10am. So we packed everything in our little daihatsu sirion (now we know each other better) and headed towards Franz Josef Glacier. We were hesitating where we should do a walk in the glacier, in the Franz Josef or in the Fox. Both are 30km from each other and strangely enough, they both grow every year!! a bit of a contradiction for glaciers that are at less than 200 meters from the sea level… Finally we decided for the Fox, so we booked a half a day trekking in the Fox for tomorrow morning. We also booked accommodation in Fox Glacier at Ivory Towers backpackers, where we are now. 

We parked in the Franz Josef parking and walked for about one hour. We even tried climbing on a waterfall in order to go closer to the end of the glacier far from the stop signal where you go on your own risk, but we decided to turn around as we will be going tomorrow with a guide. After the walk we did a second walk to the sentinel rock where you have a nice view. After that we took the car in direction to Fox Glacier and we stopped at the Matheson lake that has a dark water that reflects the mountains in an amazing way. The problem, of course, was that it was cloudy so we did not see much. We did a walk around the lake.  We ate in a very nice spot. I even took a beer. After that we went to the parking where there was kind of a shop plus food place where we have a coffee in a nice wood terrace facing the mountains (see photo). From there to where we are now. A nice backpackers in a little town (Fox Glacier) with a couple of bars, where by the way, at 8pm they have a jazz concert of a guy playing guitar. We might go ;-)

Tomorrow 8.30 am to the Fox Glacier.

whales? nope… pancakes instead

We overslept, ummmmmm that was nice, warm and with a shower at night and in the morning, so different to the cold hut!! At 9.30 we were driving direction to Kaikourua when I decided to phone just to check if we could advance our booked tour a few hours. Surprise surprise, all day tours had been cancelled because of bad weather, the following day was going to be the same, so U turn to the West Coast. We were just a mere 700 km away from the Franz Joseph glacier, and given the windy roads, that could take the whole day. We said, let’s keep moving and we will see where we get. So back again on the same road but in different directions, leaving behind the wineries with that fantastic Cabernet Sauvignon. We were heading to Westport, on the west coast ( the europeans who named these cities did not have much imagination). On its way we traversed the Buller Gorge, with the impressive Buller river snaking around. Then direction to Punakaiki where the famous Pancakes rocks and Blowholes are our GPS decided to get seriously mad. As Dani drives, it is the copilot who tries to understand the map ( I am not very good with directions) and reads the road signals and follows the GPS. So following the map and my common sense I said to dani,next road to the left, and the GPS said to the right, ummmmmmm!!! Weird!! We continued a little bit, I entered the name of the village twice and tried to see what it said. Again, asking for a u turn and continue for another 200 km for the place that was just 40 km away. We pulled over and dani (the expert) had a look. We were on the correct road, the GPS wanted us to give us a huge detour around, as if we were not driving enough, we have so far driven 3300 km!!

Well finally on the right track we arrived to Punakaiki and went pass the city (the three houses) and directly to the main attraction. A 20 minutes tour take you around the coast to see very closely these rocks, which not even the geologists can determine how they were formed. They look exactly like thick pancakes piled up. The explanation was a little bit complicated to write here but basically over the last 100.000 years they have been formed due to the characteristics of the dolomite rock and the action of the tectonic plates underneath. In any case, they are a beautiful phenomenon to admire. Dani took at least 100 pictures, so I guess that one or two will be really good. After a quick snack at the Wild Cafe there we continued our trip down to, Greymouth, Hokitika and finally the Franz Joseph village. For a while we thought that this time we were going to sleep in the car, as all the places where I phoned were fully booked and when I finally found one with a double the connection failed due to poor network. And for the next 100 km no big villages so no network. I kept on trying and finally Montrose Backpacker answer and I booked.

Trying to connect to the internet, with the 2 free computers that are available I met Raul, from Erandio (Bizkaia) who is also travelling around with Lourdes from Santutxu (Bilbao, Bizkaia). What a coincidence!! THey also have a blog: nosgustapasear/blog and something else I have not retained, but we will check it out in Google.

17Km of unsynchronized kayaking

Tuesday at 7 we where up, but I did not want to get out of my sleeping bag, as it was freezing cold outside. In the end I had to go to the toilet, so I decided to get everything packed and prepared for the next experience. At 9.30 our guide, Cam, arrived with the paddles of the kayaks that were sitting in the beach since the day before. We got our basic instructions on how to advance and steer the kayak, what to do if the kayak tip over, plus the weather warning of wind storm (which is not very good when in the sea) and off we went. Me at the front marking the rhythm and dani in the back trying to follow and steering to the right or left. The first half an hour was fun, a little bit windy and full of energy paddling at full speed, we were always the first kayak, and we often had to wait for the other 3. We stopped at another island with seals and we got really close (because the wind pushes us to the rocks) to them, they are so cute!! Then the sea got quite rough and the waves splashed against me, my part of the kayak was flooded with water and I was sitting in a tiny swimming pool…

At 12.30 we stopped for lunch, some cheese and chicken sandwiches, indescribable roll and a chocolate cake plus chocolate cookies made with beef fat ( disgusting, but very tasty). At that point I have had enough, but we were not even at half way!!! This was the longest kayaking in the Abel Tasman National Park ( we maybe should have read the full description). So we continued, my left arm was already insensible, but my fist were getting the shape of the paddle and it was becoming increasingly difficult to open them , my muscles were all tight!! Dani complained that I had to be more regular with the paddle, but I was in pain, and could not concentrate. We got to another bay and a house that had been sold for the bagatelle of 10 million NZ dollars, the poor guy could only get to his paradisiacal home by boat and he was unlucky enough to have his part of the beach designed motor boats recreational area, so imagine the peace and calm with 50 tourists every day queuing in front of your bedroom.

We crossed the worst mile in the area, in terms of wind conditions and possibilities of getting stamped against the rocks, and we arrived to split apple which is a rock that is split perfectly in two. We heard the Maori version of two worries fighting together with the tamahoe and one accidentally hitting the rock and the geologist version which is that water fissured into the rock splitting it in two. This was our last stop before the final, the last 30 minutes were never ending story part 4, but we finally got closer and raced into the beach, we nearly won, Cam arrived 5 minutes early, not minutes but a while before us.

We took the team picture, wash our feet, change clothes and to the car, as the plan was to sleep in Blenheim so on Wednesday we could get to Kaikourua for the whale watching in the afternoon. We had booked it on Monday for 3.30, but ideally we should arrive by 12.30 pm. We were tired so we got to Renwick, which is in the Marlborough area were all the wineries are. A nice place with a match box size bedroom, but at 9 pm we were in bed, already sleeping.

abel tasman trekking

Glorious Sunday ended nicely in Nelson and we went to bed late for again another early morning. We had one hour and 15 minutes drive up to Kaiteriteri the starting point to our Abel Tasman trekking with kayaking. At 8.30 am we were there in the kayak booth queuing to get instructions on the adventure. We went to the beach where we got our briefing on what to bring and what to pack for the aquataxi to take for us. We only took the camera, cheese, ham, bread, 3 apples, 5 cookies, 3 litters of water and the hut booking confirmation. Off we went for 2 hours of speed boat with stops in tiny cute beaches and bays where some passengers disembarked for their own experiences. Mid way there we stopped in Tonga island where a colony of seals live, mothers and their pups, so beautiful, the seals swimming around us and jumping out of the water like dolphins. It was a sunny day, but in the boat we got frozen with the wind and water splashes. We finally arrived to Totaranui where our trekking started, 17 km of easy coast trekking passing little beaches until we got to Awaroa, where the main pass was. In this part of the world they also have tides, as we do in the Cantabric Sea. The difference is that in the Basque coast, when the tide is low you have a huge beach and when is up you have a 1 m beach, not a major thing. Whereas here with 4 m of difference, the low tide allows you to cross places where you had boats sailing before. We arrived before the low tide so we waited for an hour whilst we had our lunch and then decided to remove the legs of our trousers and cross ( the water reached knee level). The beach had literally mountains of clamp shells, that we are unsure from where came. Quite impressive.

We went then to the Awaroa Lodge for a refreshment and relaxing break listening to Norah Jones. The next tide crossing was at Onetahuti, and we arrived on time, we continued through the Abel Tasman National park till our final destination for the day, Bark bay, where we had our hut. We had our dinner outside, again cheese and ham with bread, and went inside before we could not feel our hands any more. The hut was pretty basic, two rooms with 14 bunk beds each, another room with 2 tables and that is it. Drinking water outside and 3 toilets some 50 meters away, not very convenient for my pipi trip every night… No heating, no light, so at 8 pm dani went to bed and after 4 solitaires with dani’s mobile I went. The room was chilly, as some girls in the upper beds left the windows open, grrrrrrrr Our sleeping bags are suitable for 7 degrees at comfort, and -5 extreme. So I guess we were somewhere in between cause I was not comfortably warm inside.

South Island with the right foot

The backpackers place we stayed in Wellington was cool, but a bit noisy.  They were partying all night and our room was close to the party ;-)

Wellington was a bit like San Francisco, with hills and little Victorian houses. It is far nicer than Auckland. Anyway, early in the morning we woke up, had a shower and headed towards the Ferry that would take us to Picton. We had to be there at 7.30am. It was a bit hard to find but the GPS helped us once again. For those of you interested the gps is a Garmin Oregon 300 with the maps that I found from New Zealand that are Open Source for Garmin. They have proved to be great! All the Points of Interest (POI) are great so every day we put the city where we go, and once in the city the accommodation and we find the backpackers immediately.  The ferry we booked the previous day over the phone. We have a New Zealand sim card in Nuria’s phone and I would say that 50% of the numbers you dial are 0800 so free. The rest are not but is very handy to have a local number and a cheap way to call to the backpackers and other activities to book. The ferry was huge and it takes 3.5 hours to get to Picton in the south island. The day weather today was incredible!. Not a single cloud. We spent most of the trip ouside. The views when you enter the south island are incredible. I took a photo with Nuria’s phone so you can see what I mean. Once in Picton we went to the i-site (information office) and then with all the information in hand we called (a 0800-2-kayak) and booked a 2 day rando+kayak for tomorrow and the day after. First day you drive, they take you with a fast boat up north, then you walk all day and sleep in hut close to the beach. The following day you take the kayak and continue all day until where you leave the car. Cool isn’t it? The weather forecast is good, so we are so looking forward! One full day trekking and one full day with kayak.

After this we drove to the Marlborough wine region where we stopped in a winery, the Highfield winery, where we had first a wine tasting and then lunch, in a beautiful environment. Great food and great wine.

After lunch we stopped in a supermarket to buy some stuff for tomorrow and then we took the “Queen Charlotte” drive and headed to Nelson, where we are now.

Tongariro Alpine Crossing Tururu!!

Mordor of the Lord of the Rings, the three volcanoes together, the emerald lake and amazing scenery. The lonely planet recommended to do this tramping in one day, exhausting, but we were well prepared with our latest acquisition in Taupo: our Keen sandals, similar to Teva but with a weirder look. This trekking was the other only thing I wanted to do in the North Island together with the diving in Tutukaka, well so guess what, before it was tutu kaka and this time is Tongariro, Tururu! Since Wednesday the weather had not been very good, and actually Thursday while we were in the Coromandel it was pretty terrible. So Friday stopped raining when we left Rotorua, but in Taupo they already told us that Saturday was not going to be good for the Crossing. We headed to the national park and realized that visibility was probably about 10 meters, so not good. The night at the Skotel hotel was one of the best ones. This morning we got up full of energy for the trekking, but it was raining and visibility was nil. We went to the visitor center to enquiry about possibilities and hear and accept the inevitable. It was not advisable to do the crossing and definitely not worth it as we will not be able to do anything. The guide said that Sunday was not going to be better, so morally destroyed for the bad luck we decided to give it a miss and go to Wellington, which is a 4 hours drive alongside the Wanganui river, the longest in NZ. The rally driver was again happy to drive in this mountain roads like one of the locals, who were so impressed with his driving that gave us way to overtake them… In one of the turns a guide in the shoulder road tells us with mimics to slow down, and we did so, just in time to avoid driving over a group of sheeps that were crossing the road.

Some 40 km away from Wellington we found the Kapiti coast so we decided to stop for lunch at Paraparaumo, but the beach was not actually that beautiful so we continued another 15 km to the following nice beach and had a sandwich in front of the sea, with the seagulls waiting for some crumbs.

We found the hotel, and it is again a good choice, I am quite good selecting places to sleep now. This is an old typical house quite close to the city center, with a huge wooden terrace in the entrance and our room ( which was the last one left) looks like it was originally the garage. We left our bags, changed clothes, as there is sun here!!! and went to Cuba street where all the shops and bars are. We followed the walking circuit in the guide and arrived to the civic center where there was a jazz concert as we are in the Wellington Jazz week! So we sat and listened for a while, then continued our walk to stop for the summer ale and the Marlborough Chardonnay in a nice terrace. At 7 we were already starving and found a Japanese which looked good. We had the sushi and sashimi combo and then beef teriyaki and been tepanyaki set ( which came with salad, rice and miso soup, ummmmmmmmm, delicious!! Even better than .

Now I cannot move, I ate too much, so I am going to bed, tomorrow alarm clock at 6 am…

Rotorua, geysers, Taupo and Tongariro

We woke up in the western environment of the cactus backpackers. Our little room was in a patio and the whole hostel was old but cool. We meet some people while having dinner. An Australian guy with an incredible accent and some other.

The weather was crap. It has been crap all day. Raining non-stop. So what to do? No sky dive as we would have liked. We walked around Rotorua and then headed to Te Puia, a Maori thermal reserve. The scenery is unusual. From the car park you start smelling this typical smell from the geysers and hot springs. You approach and you see a forest that looks like it is burning. Even with the rain it looked like burning in dozens of places, but it is just steam.

There was a typical Maori representation and we walked around until about 2pm. After having seen very unusual road signs like ducks crossing, cows crossing, kiwis, we finally saw one kiwi!! Our first encounter with NZ national mascot. It was confined to some 40 square meters, but there it was, in front of us looking for something to eat in the soil. It is a very different bird, more like a mammal than a bird.

WIth the kiwi in mind, we headed towards Taupo where we actually wanted to do the sky diving. It has a huge lake. The biggest lake in the north island. We walked around. Looks like tomorrow they have the ironman competition. It was very busy and crowded. Even if it was raining all times.

We went to see the Huka falls, a very nice waterfall with an incredible amount of water, and then later on we drove to Tongariro National Park. We stopped before to a “save’n pack” to buy some meat and wine for dinner tonight. We also stopped at a i-site information spot to ask whether or not it was worth it to make the Tongariro alpine crossing tomorrow as the weather is really bad and visibility is zero. They told us no. Not worth it. This breaks our plans. We are now at the highest backpackers of New Zealand, in Skotel Apline Resort in Whakapapa and we just had a jacuzzi after a nice steak with salad and wine. All backpacker hostels have kitchen, for those who do not know ;-) The fact is that to me the alpine crossing is one of the best one day trekking in this country (18 Km) in around 7 hours, we should take a bus in one end and another in the other end or the car in one end and the bus in the other.  The information i-site here opens at 8am which is too late, as we should start walking at 7am, but there is no point in walking if it does not stop raining and the visibility improves…. otherwise it is a waste. They say that this is the most beautiful one day trekking of New Zealand. There are 3 volcanoes. The ones from the Lord of the Rings.  If cannot do it tomorrow, there is not much to do here, and that would postpone our trip to the south island with no guarantees that the weather would be better on Sunday…. Sunday was the day we have planned to take the ferry from Wellington to the South Island. We want to spend only one week in the north one, and the rest in the south. Everybody agrees that the south one is astonishing.

hot beach?

We got up in Thames prepared to go around the Coromandel Peninsula with more than enough time to arrive in Rotorua by mid afternoon. Well, we miscalculated the time and did not consider the roads. The day was very grey, not a single spot of sky was to be seen in the whole day, what is even worst it started raining after lunch. I have to say that Mr. Dani Loewe ( for the french rally champion) enjoyed very much the driving. He tried to put backwards gear instead of second gear at least 5 times and excuses himself saying that if everything in the car was on the other side, why the gears follow the same model!! Our first stop was in Coromandel Town which looks pretty much like Thames, but it is smaller and with more heritage buildings, western style from 1873. We bought the original smoked mussels, the ones with garlic, smoked tuna, smoked mackerel and another smocked fish I cannot remember the name but was equally tasty. We snaked around the peninsula and skipped the far North only because we had had more than enough of unsealed roads and we did not want to spend the day driving. So we went direction Whitianga to pass by before the Otama and Opito beaches which are meant to be extremely wide. Well, they are, but with rain and 25 nodes wind, they look somehow very much different compared to the pretty pictures in the shops. Then to Cathedral Cave and Hot Water Beaches. Cathedral Cave was amazing, a cave in the rock, by the beach with the sea entering in this enormous cave from both sides, very pretty. The next stop was this beach were you can dig a hole in the beach and have your own personal spa. There are hotsprings at temperatures of around 60 degrees, from a spent volcano that left a flow of lava underneath. Well, the theory very nice, the practice is that the tide was high so we could not reach the place, the wind was blowing us off to the outer space and rain was threatening to make an appearance. We walked around the beach taking photos of the angry sea and then go for lunch to taste local food and what is even better local wines and beer. I am enjoying very much the NZ Chardonnay. After the fantastic Apple pie with a ristreto for dani and energy tea for me at the cool Hot Waves Cafe we went down to Waihi to drive through the Karangahake Gorge which is one of the best drives in NZ. Maybe, but the weather was not accompanying it, as it was raining and could not appreciate the scenery. And then to Rototua, 143 km more. Dani nearly had a heart attack, as it was already 5.30 and given the windy roads we only arrived at 8.00 pm.

The Cactus Jack lodge is a fun place, thematic ( western) and with interesting people. We met an aussy with a very strong accent, and another  one with a nearly perfect British accent because, he said, that his parents did not want him to learn the bad things in NZ. Well for me, accent is part of your culture and you should never be ashamed of, even when you say Bonjour and they ask you from what part of Spain you are from.

Poor Knight Islands? another time…

We went to bed quite late after our dinner and conversation with Dominique ( the Swiss) Adam and Jo the British on a tour for a year. We spent another hour trying to find the key of the cozy room we were given, and could not find it anywhere… The night was terribly windy and rainy, it woke me up a couple of times., so when the alarm clock went off at 6.45 took me a while. But it was the day for the perfect diving in one of the 10 best places in the world, finally!

We drove there and got a little bit lost in the middle, but the GPSs ( Dominique was also coming with us as he has missed the previous day because he overslept) helped us out. The sky was all cloudy and did not look very nice, but well not everything can be perfect. We arrived to the diving center at 8.10 ( we stopped over in the petrol station to buy something to eat for lunch), and there was Dominique listening to my friend ( the one who could have worked in the red district in Amsterdam) explaining something about 6 m waves and 25 nodes winds and blah blah blah. It took me 10 seconds to realize that we were not going to dive. She was going on and on about the weather and terrible conditions, and that it was dangerous and not worth it…I thought I was going to cry, the only thing I wanted to do in the North island was to dive in here, and now she was saying that the weather was not going to be good until Saturday. Saturday!! We are going to be close to Wellington on Saturday. I could not believe it, I was so angry, and there she was with her fake smile. Internally, I blamed her one thousand times, but it did not change anything, that was the end of my dream, no diving in NZ, SHIT!! or as the name of the village says for itself: Tutukaka ( Tutu : all in italian and Kaka shit in spanish) All Shit!!

Anyway, instead of diving, we took the road towards the woods. waipoua forest. They have the widest kauri trees of New Zealand. In the first stop you walk 20 minutes through the forest and there you start seeing incredible huge trees. Not because they are extremely high but because of the size of their trunk… In the photo is the widest one with nearly 14 meters girth and about 50 meters high. If you compare the high with the ones we saw near Sausalito in the US it is not that much (those were about 150m high), but this ones, seen from the bottom are something that I have never seen.

After the walks in the forest we headed towards the Coromandel peninsula, where we intended to sleep. We passed Auckland and we got there in the evening, around 7.30pm We slept in Thames, in a nice typical Kiwi house. Nice experience. We went to the supermarket and we had a proper dinner in the house, with wine and pasta ;-)

The following day we would explore the peninsula, but the weather it is not going to be nice.

Bay of Islands

So after our fantastic nice in Whangaroa, we drove back to Paihia so we could do the full day trip around the many islands in this beautiful bay. This time we had booked, so we had two places for Ms. Piez, close.

We started the tour following the dolphins, so some people could swim with them. These people were put on a net and then carried for some 10 minutes, until a nice spot was found, then off you go, try to follow the fastest dolphins ever…

For those staying on the boat it was quite fun, but I do not think that those in the water were of the same opinion. Then we continued until "hole in the rock" which is exactly that, a huge hole just enough wide to pass our big catamaran. There we saw a huge school of fish in front of the boat, swinging with the waves.

Back to the little islands we stop in a few of them to get an explanation of the story behind it. We had lunc h in Urupukapuka island were we went up to the lookup for excellent views, then back to the wharf and the little beach. I had a swim in these really nice waters, but dani considered that the 20*C was impossibly cold for him. Back to the boat, we continued our cruise with more explanations about the history of NZ and this area. At 16.15 we were back in Paihia and after an icecream and a walk around this lovely village, we headed south. Back to Tutukaka for the diving the following day at the Poor Nights Islands. This time I phoned and booked in advance, so everything should be fine for tomorrow.

We did not want to sleep again in the Holiday Park. It was ok but we preferred to get to know another place. So while dani was driving I was trying to read the guide and all the different pamphlets we have been piling in the car. I decided that Little Earth Lodge sounded nice and it was ranked very high in the BBH (90%) and it was also our guide pick. We got here at 18.30 and the place is beautiful. Set on a farm 4 km from town and next to Abbey Caves. The rooms are decorated with nice Japanese art and Balinese furnishing. So now we are going to have our dinner, noodles and fresh eggs from the chicken here!!

Dani has bought 2 and a half hours of internet, so we will be able to post this one and maybe check our emails!!

Cape Reinga

After a chilly night at Tutukaka holiday park, we woke up for a shower. Me, hating getting up early in the morning, could not see the machine to enter the 50 cents coin to have the 7 minutes hot shower, so I had a quick cold shower. We went to the diving center to check if it was ok for the day, but surprise, even being 7.45 in the morning we were told that it was fully booked. We could either find something else, but this was the only diving center in the area or wait until 8.30 to see if there were any cancellations. The lady was not very nice, I think, and she did not like us cause dani asked her straight away when she said that it was full, where we could find another operator. Anyway we waited patiently until 8.45, and then she came to tell us that unfortunately it was not possible, so we talked for 5 minutes, I confirmed my opinion about her other possible job in the red district in Amsterdam, and we left.

We continued our trip for 1 hour and a half to arrive to the famous Bay of Islands and we decided to go for a cruise, but being our unlicky day, it was too late for that, so either we waited for the half day one, not that good or the following day. We looked at different options and dani found another very attractive one, which was a 22 hour cruise with over night and fishing included. Obviously it was full for today, tomorrow and only available on Wednesday, way too late for us.. Too bad we had to continue…

We headed north to Cape Reinga, the place where the Ocean and the Tasman Sea collide and sometimes 10 m high waves are formed. It is as well a sacred place in Maori as this is where the spirits go to the everafter. The road there is terrible, no sealed, which means for us, no road, just grave and loads of stones. So that is why our rented car is full of tiny spots where the painting has come off and it is all rusty. And the road officer who signaled the speed limits was called Fitipaldi in NZ. In these kind of roads you cannot overpass 100 km/hour. Obviously if you go over 50 Km/h you seriously risk your life. Any way we arrived to the peninsula and stopped first in 90 miles beach. which in reality is 90 km beach, but still quite a long one. If you do not have a rental car you can go north by the beach, but at your own risk as I read that you can see cars that were swallow by the sand… We continued through the fantastic road and we eventually reached the end. It was worth it, so nice views. You can also see the Three kings islands, funny name but it was because they were discovered on the 6 January.

After the twilight we went back and stopped in the giant sand dunes. Amazing! It reminded very much the mountaineering skiing, when you have to go up a terribly steep slope and you think you are going to slide backwards at any moment. It was good fun, specially trying to slide down with my bottom on dani’s shoes. ( He was not wearing them).

Dani also realised that some of the photos he was taking with the nikon were overexposed and suddenly he understood why (now dani writing): After nearly 20 days of travel I realised that if I leave the bracketing on, it will not only use it when I want but always. That means that 2/3 of the photos I took when not resetting bracketing are not well exposed. I am so mad at myself!!! At least I found the problem with 1 month of trip ahead… Also I have to say that I have driven about 750km in just two days…

We returned via the same road, though this time it seemed that it was a perfect line, who knows… The cows, sheeps and birds were in the same places. We went to a very nice village passed Doubtfull Bay, Whangarei, where we found a nice Lodge to sleep, Sunseeker lodge. The lady who picked up the phone asked me something with the NZ accent imposible to uderstand : do you have a babyhi car?? WHATTTTTTTTTT?? DO not worry , I guess it is no. She is the kindest woman I have met so far in NZ, really helpful and nice. She even asked her son to phone Luke’s cafe to make sure it was open for us for dinner. The dinner there good and the drinks from the bar next door as well, with again a very kind old lady.

And now good night.

Auckland and on the road

We wake up at our little room in the Aspen Lodge in Auckland. Early as usual. We went for breakfast and I updated the blog by buying some Internet wifi time. We have lost one day in our trip from Tahiti to New Zealand. I was even hesitating on the fact that I have booked the car at jucy for the first of March and I was convinced that it was 28 of February. Well, we simply lost a day.

First thing we left the bags in reception and we walked to Juicy rentals. Sunday. Pretty dead. We reached there and smooth. We got our daihatsu whatever car. I will have to actually go and read the model and update this… Anyway, we took our little white car and went to the Aspen Lodge, parked it there (free to park on the streets on Sundays) and went walking. Basically we walked around the park and around Queen street. Nice. We bought a sim card for Nuria’s phone with a New Zealand number, so we could call hostels, and everything else (and most of them have a 0800 numbers so free) and we could also give a number if they wanted to call us back. It was $35 with $10 of credit. Great deal.

We walked to the port, bought an ice cream but we soon went back to the hostel to pick up the bags and put them in the car in order to start the trip.

First thing was to cross the bridge with Devonport, in front of Auckland with an amazing view over the city. We had lunch there, and we continued our journey towards the north.

We stopped at the most visited waterfalls of New Zealand and we continued to Tutakaka, where we stayed in a camping (in a bungalow) hoping that the next day we could dive in the knight islands.

We had dinner in the only restaurant in the Marina and went to be.

By the way, this is the Nuria’s pearl.