Category: New Zealand and Australia

Another nice day….

Friday morning we woke to more sunshine. After a breakfast of bagel sandwiches which we made in our room, we repacked the car and headed south towards Auckland. We probably enjoyed the view more than on our way up. Paul’s getting more used to driving and the roads up north. He hasn’t turned on the wipers by mistake in the last day and only once has he gone to get in the wrong side to get into the driver’s seat 😉.

We had a small area with some pretty rocky terrain. There was netting attached to the surface for holding back loose rocks.
We stayed on the toll road this time since there was about a 20 minute time difference. It was much more like our highways at home! It was 8 km in length and cost $2.60 payable on line.

We stayed on the main highway through Auckland so saw some of the downtown views from the bridge. We had a view of the Sky Tower which is just under 1100’ tall. It is the second highest structure in the southern hemisphere but no comparison to the CN Tower in Toronto which is 1800’ high!

The population of Auckland is estimated at just over 1.8 million compared to Toronto where it is 3.3 million I. The core and 7.1 million in the GTA.

We arrived at our motel for the night in Thames – Rolleston Motel. This one wasn’t as nice – still similar cooking facilities and it looks like it was updated more recently. The bed wasn’t very comfortable – thin mattress and hard – quite a contrast to the 10-12” plush mattresses we’ve become accustomed to! However, no screens on windows and no AC. Thankfully there was a pedestal fan in the room!

Tomorrow we travel the Coromandel Peninsula.

A trip along the coast

Thursday morning we took advantage of being able to cook and made bacon and eggs and toast. Then we set out to explore the area. We had originally planned to take a 4 1/2 hr boat ride in the Bay of Islands, but the weather was calling for clouds and rain, even thunderstorms. Neither of us felt like spending nearly $200 each (it included a buffet lunch on one of the islands) so we figured a self-driving route was the best alternative. Enroute to the coast, we happened upon a waterfall so we stopped and went the the lookout to get a view.

Paul out to get a different perspective on the falls!

Being summer holiday time for New Zealand, it was a busy area, even during the week. At the coast, we had some beautiful views of some of the closer islands. At this point, we had some good weather. No sign of rain yet.

Making our way to Paihia, the boats were plentiful. Looked like sailboats might have been heading out for some kind of race?

We drove through bits of drizzle occasionally, but it never lasted long and barely wet the road.

Heading north from Kerikeri, we found a sheltered cove. A few people were brave enough to swim – water temps are around 20 degrees C.

Returning to our motel, we stopped for some local corn for supper. Unfortunately, it was disappointing!

Tomorrow, we drive back through Auckland and head for the Coromandel Peninsula.