Ohaupo and Back

It was off to Ohaupo for Robin, towing the caravan merrily behind him.  Our Leisureline was booked in to get some repairs done in September.  But because Robin was going to hospital next week to get his second knee replacement done, Grant suggested he bring the van up early and leave it on site in storage.  Away he went on Saturday, with me and the cat staying at home. 

Off he goes

Travel on Saturday was in clear conditions, but is was rather windy at Waiouru.  Mount Ruapehu was nowhere to be seen, it was completely covered in low cloud.  He stayed at the Ohakune Club overnight, together with quite a few other vans.  It seems that these people were waiting for the mountain to clear, so they could get some skiing done.  I had suggested that Robin dine in the club that evening, but no, that didn't happen, the kitchen was closed and no meals available.  After a beer or two in the bar, he had to cook his own meal in the caravan instead.  It was very windy overnight with heavy rain beating on the roof.

Sunday was extremely wet for the drive to Otorohanga NZMCA camp.  Nothing much open there on a Sunday night except the local fish and chip shop, so that would have to do for his dinner.

Then a short half hour trip on Monday morning and he arrived at Leisureline Ohaupo to drop the van off into the care of Grant.  Ohaupo translates to “The place where the  wind blows at night”  It didn’t take too long for Robin to pack up the remaining food, his clothes and other bits and pieces, then he departed on the long drive home.  It was very wet driving along the Desert Road and all the way to Hunterville, with the temperature dropping down to 3 degrees.  He stopped for a bite at Turangi, then it was steady as you go all the way home, arriving here at 4.30pm.  That was a fair bit of driving and he noticed that the fuel consumption was certainly much less on the return journey, without the van on the back of the Jeep.  Robin was certainly rather tired after his long day, and after a home cooked meal he was tucked up in bed by 8.30pm!

Weekend Rally at Carterton

We had a fine but rather chilly weekend away.  Probably very lucky during winter, no rain, and most importantly, no wind.  Pulling out of our village we could see the Tararua Ranges looking lovely with their snow capped tops.

A fuzzy photo, but you can get the idea

We drove up and over the Pahiatua Track, when the wind turbines were turning rather lazily with just a little wind at the top to get them moving.

We reached the top

Driving on through Wairarapa we passed by the Pūkaha National Wildlife Centre which show cases some of our glorious native birds.  Then through Masterton, stopping at the Truck Stop to top up with fuel, and most importantly, refill the tank of our diesel heater.  A must in this cold wintry weather.

Topping up the diesel

The trip from Masterton to our destination at Carterton was extremely slow with roadworks taking place, and road cones galore.  It was stop-go very slowly for quite a while, until at last we were on our way at a reasonable speed.  Our weekend was spent at Carterton Holiday Park with our caravan club buddies.

Because of the wet conditions the caretakers wanted us all park on hard standing and not on the grass sites, so our vans were on different sides of the camp.  This is one of our favourite camps, nice sites, spotless facilities and a large dining room to gather in, water taps on every site together with on site drains to take our grey water, and a dump station.  What more could we want?

We were on this side

And the others across the way

Friday night was Fish and Chip night and Murray and Sue came to dine with us and we enjoyed our fish and chips together.  Very tasty they were too, with plenty of left over chips to use for a future chip butty in a day or so.  There was an informal get together in the evening, with plenty of catch ups and chatter going on.

We were presented with a huge wrapped box by Owen and Helen and they left us to open it at our leisure.  What a job that was, inside the first carton was another, and another, and many more, all getting smaller.  We could tell they really enjoyed all this wrapping and sellotape sticking to go to so much trouble.  Finally we came to the very last teeny tiny box, and what's this inside?  New name badges – thanks so much Owen and Helen.

So many boxes to unwrap and open

Saturday was a free day to do as we pleased, some went out and about while others stayed in camp.  Robin spent the afternoon glued to the TV with other rugby enthusiast watching the second Bledisloe Test.  The All Blacks beat the Wallabies (Australia) but  there was a bit of nail biting going on for a while, I believe. During the breaks he had to come outside to check the Weber BBQ.  He was cooking up a leg of lamb as our contribution to the Pot Luck meal that evening.

Mmm, it smelled delicious

It’s been quite some time since we have had a Pot Luck meal at a rally, and what a feast it was.  A large pot of tasty soup and home made bread to start.  For the mains we had our lamb, chicken curry, cold chicken, home made saveloys, a crock pot full to the brim with a casserole, and a large dish of tasty mince and veggies topped with crispy sliced potatoes.  There was even a salad, cooked peas and potatoes too.  Plenty for everyone.

Owen and Don getting their dinner

But wait – there’s more.  There was a lovely selection of desserts too.  Trifles, meringues, a dish of sliced peaches, ice-cream, and Flo had baked a rhubarb pie, yummy.  We were full to bursting after that little lot!  Some stayed on for card games after dinner, but we decided on an early night.

After Sunday morning tea, more chat, and information given about the next upcoming rally, we packed up and headed for home.  Two vans were staying on for an extra day, so no need for them to rush around.  Instead of turning home the way we had come, we decided to complete the circle and travel the length of the Wairarapa, over the Rimutaka Hill, then up Transmission Gully.  We came across a group of road workers as we drove by, looks like they are working on a new round-about.  

We followed Stuart and Helen’s caravan onto the the Transmission Gully motorway, keeping them in sight for quite some time until they peeled off onto their exit, while we continued on our way home.  Traveling to the Wairarapa is a bit of a mission from Levin, it takes about two hours whether we drive north of south.  As the crow flies the Wairarapa towns are just over the Tararua Ranges – we really need a tunnel through, but that’s not likely to happen.

Stuart and Helen in front of us

We had a great time at the rally, fine but cold weather, great company, and a wonderful shared meal together.  Many thanks to Flo and John for organizing the weekend for us.