Rotorua to Turangi

Just as well our 61km trip from Welcome Bay to Ngongotaha didn't take too long as sites on the top shingled area were at a premium when we arrived.  There was plenty of room on the lower grassed areas but with bad weather coming, we wanted to be on the hard standing.

We found a space beside an empty reserved site, with the camper van returning later in the day.  

 

One of the few remaining sits on the top level.

Since so many motor-homers are bike enthusiasts - just see how many vans have bikes on the back, we assumed that many in camp were taking part in the annual Whaka 100 biking event.  With everything from fun rides for kids, 10, 25, 50, and 100km rides, plus the National Championship, there is something for all skill levels.  No, we don't cycle ourselves, in fact I remember at one camp we were asked "where are your bikes?"  I don't think we would look good in lycra!

This camp borders a farm and comforting rural sounds wafted over the fence, cows mooing softly.  We were disappointed to see a woman from a nearby campervan walk up to the fence and empty her coffee pot over the farmer's land - how rude was that.  And against NZMCA rules, I'm sure.  The rain came down in the afternoon, and all through the night.

The next morning it had cleared, and we hooked up and headed for Turangi, via Reporoa, which has a handy comfort stop.  Reporoa is a farming area and was first settled by returned servicemen.  The Fonterra Repora dairy factory, opened in 1968,  brought a boost to the local economy.

Quick stop in Reporoa

It's always a pleasant drive beside Lake Taupo.

After 137kms we arrived at Turangi, our stop for the night.  Although quite a large camp, it always seems under utitilised to us, in fact we prefer to stop here rather than the newish NZMCA Park at Taupo.

Staying the night at Turangi

It was pleasing to see that a start had been made on the new dump station at the park.  Robin was chatting to the custodian who mentioned the concrete had only been poured a few days, and was yet to harden.  Unbelievable but true, a camper tried to walk over the concrete and empty their toilet cassette even though the area is obviously not yet commissioned.  Now the custodians have to  park themselves either side of the concrete pad to stop such stupidity.  Some people are just so stupid!

Concrete pad for the new dump station

Gemma enjoyed some outside time, sitting by  the step, till a noisy van sent her scurrying back inside.  She thinks she is brave, but she is such a scaredy cat!

Gemma at Turangi

And then the rain came down, and the diesel heater was turned on.  Luckily it doesn't take too long at all to warm up the caravan.

Weekend at Pohangina

 Spring has sprung at home and the tree in our front yard is bursting with tender new leaves.  Although a little cloudy, we were looking forward to a nice weekend away.

Gemma decided to make life difficult for us, with all the hustle and bustle of packing the caravan going on.  Why not give my people a hard time and hide for a while, she thought.  We were all ready to go and searched here, searched there, to no avail, then searched again.  Robin finally found her curled up and keeping low in a place I had already checked twice!  I don't know why she acts like this, after all she goes away in the caravan once a month at least so should be well used to the routine by now.  Finally she was secured in the car and we got on our way.

Here she is, in the car at last

We were heading off to the Pohangina Domain, formerly the village school.  As we had a lunch date with my daughter, we were the first to arrive, put our van on site, and left before anyone else arrived.  The ground was  very soft and our caravan unfortunately made a few ruts while we backed the van where we wanted it.  The old school grounds are surrounded by lovely mature trees, and there are plenty of native birds everywhere.  And because it is a rural area, lambs were bleating, cattle were mooing, and the roosters were crowing!

The name Pohangina translates to "ulcerated night", suggesting that the valley had been a place of bloodshed between the local Rangitane people and their enemies.

First to arrive

By the time we arrived back  from lunch, most of the others had arrived, settled themselves, and were out enjoying the sunshine.

Some of the vans on site

We had a visitor join us for the weekend, and I'm sure he was a little upset when his car and van got stuck in the soft ground.  No worries, there was plenty of help to unhook his car from the caravan, and with the help of a couple of mats under the wheels, the car was driven away to firmer ground.

Plenty of advice here

Then it was Owen to the rescue with his shiny black Toyota HiLux, his strop hooked up to Graham's van, pulled it out of the mud, and parked it neatly.  Thanks Owen, for your help.

Owen to the rescue

On Saturday afternoon the Rally Family, Stuart and Helen, took us on a tiki tour to the Totara Reserve camping area.  The reserve was not yet open for campers, the gate was locked, but we were able to walk through and check it out.

While some enjoyed a long walk, others sat in the sun and chatted away.  This is a nice camp, and extremely popular over the summer months.  Then it was afternoon tea time.  We walked back to the cars, took out our folding chairs, thermoses and bikkies, sat in a circle on a grassy knoll, and sat enjoying our cuppas in the lovely sunshine.

Maureen, Helen, Owen, Don, Jenny and Robin

The school room was available for the evenings to our group for a small fee, and we gathered there on Saturday night.  But the power wasn't working!  several hundred homes in the area.  We tried various switches, but to no avail.  Eventually someone went on the internet and discovered it was a local fault affecting several hundred homes in the area.  Whew, it wasn't something we had done, luckily.  The power eventually came on, and Helen and Stuart got underway with our evening activity.  They had secured the driving tests for new and renewing drivers, so we answered the 35 questions to the best of our ability, and memories.  I think most of us would have got our licenses renewed.  In a real test, people are allowed only three incorrect answers to get a pass.

Sunday morning was warm and sunny and Helen and Stuart were busy for quite some time cooking on their BBQ.  What were they doing, we wondered.  Cooking up pikelets for everyone for morning tea, that's what!  Served with jam and cream, they certainly went down well, and were most appreciated.  Thanks so much Helen and Stuart, it's been a great rally indeed.

Cooking up pikelets for morning tea

Final Days down South

You know you are in wine country when you travel along with vines planted on both sides of the road.  We were heading for Blenheim, where there are vineyards galore.  The vines have been pruned back hard for winter, waiting for the spring growth. 

Vines growing everywhere

Our stop for the next couple of nights was the Waterlea Racecourse.  Some of the grassy areas for parking had been roped off, but we found a suitable gravel site.  This CAP (charges apply parking) has water, dump station, and toilets available, but no rubbish bins.  

There we are, not far from the grand stand

The weather was a combination of rain, showers and occasional sunshine.  We took the opportunity to visit the local laundromat early one evening.  Our cunning plan was to take care of the laundry, then buy fish and chips from the shop next door for our dinner.  That worked well.

The next morning we drove out to Renwick, the home of Burleigh Gourmet Pies.  We discovered this bakery when we were down in December 2022, after reading about the famous Burleigh pies.  We bought one each for lunch, and some frozen ones to take home with us to enjoy later.

Who doesn't love a great pie!

Then it was back to where we started, Koromiko.  This camp has now been purchased by NZMCA after quite some time spent on negotiations.  New signage has been installed, and shortly the main road will be extended to add a turning bay into Freeths Road  in time for the summer traffic, we were told.  The weather was wet, with strong wing gusts shaking the caravan.  

The lasted NZMCA park

Just a few vans on site

The weather had been overcast over the last few days with little sunshine charging the batteries so Robin set the generator running for a couple of hours.

Generator time again

A storm came rolling in as the day wore on, and was fully fledged by night time.  We could swear that the thunder was right over head, and each noisy clap spooked Gemma.  She ran around the van looking for a hiding place, hunkering down on the carpet at the foot of the bed, with the overhanging duvet giving her the illusion of cover.  Lightening cracked around us, torrential rain came down, and the caravan was buffeted all night by strong wind gusts.  Dear oh dear, what would our sailing be like the following day, we wondered.

Luckily the storm had gone the next morning, just leaving the wind gusts behind.  Time for the final part of our journey, crossing Cook Strait.  We were hoping the return trip would not be too rough, after all that bad weather the previous day.

Boarding Blue Bridge again

Gemma stays in the caravan

We had a light lunch in the cafe as the trip got underway.  Gliding through the Marlborough Sounds, I went out on deck to take a photo or two.  This part of the journey is sheltered and usually nice and calm.

Marlborough Sounds

The remainder of the journey was surprisingly calm, hard to believe after the terrible weather the previous day.  A friendly Irishman (yes, we have traveled to Ireland, we told him)  saw my camera and asked if we would like a photo.  He and his wife were very impressed that we made such good use of our caravan and traveled far and wide around our beautiful country.  "You two are enjoying life and living the dream", he commented.

Two happy campers

Oh look, we are almost in Wellington.  Time to head down to the car deck and get ready.  Off we went, passing the Sky Stadium, known locally as the Cake Tin, and we got on to the motorway.

Sky Stadium

We decided to stop at Plimmerton NZMCA Park for the night, as it was getting dark, and we didn't want to arrive home and unload the van at night time.  A quick meal, and it was early to bed, it had been a big day and we were exhausted.  The next morning after  breakfast we hooked up for the final leg of the journey.

Our final night at Plimmerton

Driving up the Coast Road there was no sign of Kapiti Island, it was was out there somewhere but hidden away under the cloud.  All I could see was the rocky coastline as we drove along.

No sign of Kapiti Island

Home at last we unpacked the van, put the first load of washing on, and sat and relaxed over a late lunch.  Phew, it's good to be home again.  We had 10 days away this trip, and traveled 1110 kms.

Ocean Views

 Moving slowly northwards, we stopped at two "new to us" Pops (Park over Properties) with ocean views.  There are so many places available to park up here in New Zealand, so it's always good to try somewhere new and exciting when we travel.

Leaving Wairau Tavern it was a short 52km  to our next stop, Conway Flat Ocean Edge.  The photos looked delightful, vans parked on the cliff overlooking the sea, room for large vehicles and pet friendly. We turned off SH1 at Hundalee and drove down to the coast, finally spotting several vans and motorhomes parked up in a large paddock.  This is the place.

We parked longways against the cliff edge, not too close, I worriedly told Robin,  not realising till later that the instructions were to park at 90 degrees.  Luckily there were not too many vans there, but I'm sure we would have been asked to move in the heart of summer.  Never mind. we will know for next time.  

Our stop for the night

Peeping over the cliff we could see the wavelets roll in.  This is a good area for fishing, we were told.    It was a lovely restful day indeed, and we were lulled to sleep with the soothing sounds at bedtime.  There was no show of catching the sun rise over the ocean the next morning, we slept so well that the sun was well up by the time we surfaced.  This is a wonderful place to stay and we certainly plan to return in a future South Island trip.

A great view of the coastline 

It was time to move on the following morning, to our second ocean view stay. The 140km drive up SH1 took us through the busy town of Kaikoura and along the previously earthquake damaged parts of the coastal road.  This netting structure hangs out like a verandah to protect the vehicles below from rockfall - we don't remember seeing this in place when we were down this way a couple of years ago.

And here are the tunnels again

Continuing on our way we saw glimpses of the snow capped Southern Alps again.

Snow on the mountains

We turned off SH1 at the tiny village of Ward, and the first thing we saw was this happy Mama pig.  She wandered over to the fence to show me her very best side.

Hello piggy

The instructions said to place our fees in the letter box next to the large white rock.  

There were a few other campers on site, and we found ourselves a spot overlooking the beach and settled down for the afternoon.    There is nothing nicer than being by the sea.

Overnighting at Chancet Pop

Gemma had a fine time exploring the grassy bank, safely secured with her lead of course.  Goodness knows what she was tracking in the grass, probably little bugs and insects I expect.  This kept her so occupied for such a long time that she didn't have her usual afternoon nap.  You know what cats are like, they generally sleep the day away.

Gemma is hunting tiny things hiding in the grass

Someone started a painted rock collection here and it has obviously grown and grown over time.  

The painted rock collection

The following morning we woke to a pink tinged shot of the sea and clouds.  The weather report promised  fine weather, but very windy conditions, not so good for towing at all. 

Pink tinged clouds in the morning

Another trip to Viv's Kitchen

 Our weekend weather was a mixed bag at Mt Lees Reserve.  Mainly sunny, but the wind was rather cold, making sitting outside a challenge.  The park was busy, with many day visitors bringing their dogs and family groups enjoying the walk through the native bush.  We saw and heard many beautiful native birds, tuis, kereru, and fantails, this really is such a beautiful place.

Parked up at Mt Lees Reserve

Gemma enjoyed some time outside, although we did need to keep a wary eye out on the dogs walking by, luckily there were no issues.

Gemma up on the picnic table

But she wasn't the only cat in camp, Dot had brought Honey along too.  The pair of the met outside a few times on their leads, after a quiet hiss, they touched noses and looked at each other.  

Two Birmans on a camping adventure

Since we were in the area, a visit to Viv's Kitchen on Saturday for lunch was a must.  This is always such a popular place, so it was just as well that we had a table for 12 booked.   Murray and Sue, recently returned from their South Island trip, joined us for lunch too.

There is always so many wonderful choices at Viv's.  Cream horns, of course, although I prefer the chocolate eclairs.  Some ordered a Big Breakfast, pies, savouries, whatever took their fancy.

Jenny, Murray, Robin, and Owen

Dot, Maureen, Sue, Russell, Geoff, Eileen, and Helen

Then we all went back to camp, sitting outside in the Autumn sunshine.  Sue and Murray told us tales of their 3 month trip traveling around the South Island.

Robin, Sue and Murray

There was quite a bit of excitement in the evening.  We could see flames burning in the dark, seemingly in the bush adjacent to where we were camping.  Owen bravely set off to investigate, and Geoff rang the Fire Service to report the fire.  Although the fire looked like it was close by and the native bush was all set to burst into flames, it was actually burning in another farm property - we were viewing the flames through the trees.  Eventually a fire engine arrived, and the excitement was over.

Sunday morning was an absolute stunner of a day - this is often the case after a weekend away, the weather on the last is perfect.  After morning tea, we packed up, said our goodbyes and headed off to our respective homes.  It was a very enjoyable rally.