Rat, tat, tat, on the caravan door bright and early at 6.30am on Thursday morning, just as well we were up and dressed - Rick and his co-worker were ready to start work on our caravan. As they towed it around the back of the factory to work on, we had gathered our things, a water bottle, put Gemma in the car, and off we went out into the dark and foggy morning. There was only one thing to do at this time of day, we went out for breakfast. Luckily the café in Mitre 10 at The Base opened at 7.00am, so that is where we went. It gave Robin a chance to try his new Covid Contact Tracing App, and it worked perfectly. And look, there is plenty of hand sanitiser in store, small ones, medium sized, and great big containers full as well. We picked up a couple of bottles to keep in the cars.
What to have for breakfast? Scrambled eggs for me, and poached eggs with bacon for him, followed by a nice hot coffee. That should set us up for the day.
Early morning breakfasts
It was still early, so we drove down to Lake Rotoroa to sit and relax. There were plenty of ducks and pukeko relaxing on the lake edge, waiting for the sun to break through and warm things up, no doubt. Lake Rotoroa was formed about 20,000 years ago, when the Waikato River changed to flow out at Port Waikato It was originally a braided river, but most of its braided courses were left as lakes once the river cut its present lower level. Peat then dammed and increased the size of the lakes.
Lovely morning at Lake Rotoroa, Hamilton
The work was completed by 1.00pm and we soon hooked up and went off on our way. Our route to Waihi took us through Morrinsville, Te Aroha, and Paeroa, all interesting towns in their own right, but we didn’t have time this trip to stop and explore. Then it was an interesting drive through the Karangahake Gorge, a lovely scenic drive indeed.
Karangahake Gorge
We were staying for the next two nights at Waihi Beach NZMCA Park, a newish park and one we hadn't visited before. This park can take 60 vans, so plenty of room here. The sites are marked out, and water and rubbish facilities are available. I was pleased that the book swap system was open and available here, so I could swap my paperbacks for something new to read.
Waihi Beach NZMCA Park
Waihi is a gold town, and visiting Waihi is a chance to marvel at the huge Martha open pit at the end of the town. Yes, we have been here before, but it is still a sight to behold.
The Cornish Pumphouse, built in 1903, was undergoing restoration so was closed to the public. The steam engines and pumping equipment was used to pump out 7000 litres of water per minute from the historic underground Martha Mine. The pumphouse was retired from use in 1913 when the steam power was replaced by electricity. In the early 1930s the pumphouse was stripped of machinery and left derelict. Then in 2006, because of land movement under the structure, the pumphouse was moved 300mtr to it’s present site. The building was put on teflon pads, which slid along a stainless steel plate on concrete beams, moved by hydraulic rams. Amazing stuff indeed.
Cornish pumphouse
And standing tall and proud at the side of the road is the Poppet Head, an exact replica of those used in the early underground mining at Martha Mine. It was used to transport men, materials and the extracted rock. The operator followed bell signal commands from those working underground at the various levels.
Poppet Head
On the way back to camp we went via Waihi Beach. Such a pretty beach, a bit chilly this time of year, with a few hardy souls taking to the water with their surfboards. But where are the waves, we wondered?
Waihi Beach
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