Akitio and Porangahau

 There was rain and high winds overnight during our last night at Pongaroa, leaving me feeling a little uneasy with the stand of large trees towering over our caravan.  Luckily nothing untoward happened in the dead of night, and we awoke unscathed.  The weather hadn't improved at all, and Farmer Paul who looks after the camp, called around to collect the fees.  It was a 46km trip to our next stop, Akitio.  Along the way we noticed a lot of damage to roads, edges crumbling away and many cones in place after a bad storm.  Looks like there is a lot of repairs  still to be done.

There was major work being done on a hill side adjacent to the road in one area, seems there must have been a huge slip there and work was being done to stabilize the hill face.  There were two diggers hard at work, one down low and the other right up the top of the hill.  I guess all the recent rain would not be helping with the hill work.  The Stop-Go man wasn't standing out in the rain getting wet, instead he was tucked up nice and dry in the ute with his sign close to hand, and waved us on after getting radio instructions from the other end of the road works.

Hard at work in the rain

Driving over the long one-way bridge across the Akitio River we reached our destination.  

Crossing the Akitio River

 The area was originally dominated by two estates, the Marainanga Estate of 38,000 acres and the Akitio Estate of 50,000 acres.  The region has been partitioned and subdivided over the years, with the Akitio Estate now at 9,000 acres is still the largest in the area.  This is a sheep and beef farming district and the small town has a school, volunteer fire brigade, a motor camp and a freed camping area by the beach.

Welcome to Akitio

The weather was not kind to us during our stay here.  The beach was on side, and we were parked across the road from the volunteer fire brigade.  Luckily the siren did not go off during the middle of the night.

Akitio volunteer fire brigade

We found ourselves a site on the grassy freedom camping area, plenty of room here for our group.  Water, rubbish bins and a toilet block was available.

Camping at the beach

Dave and Deb joined us here in their campervan, as well as Stuart, who arrived to join his wife Helen.  We told Stuart how well Helen had been doing towing the van on her own, not something I personally would be able to do, I'm sure.  The beach, just out our door,  was covered in driftwood.  

Akitio beach

Morning tea sheltering between the vans, 

It was just one night here, so we packed up and set off again, to arrive at Te Paerahi Beach, Porangahau.  We backtracked part of the way, and then continued on, driving over multiple roadworks, the result of Cyclone Gabrielle which caused such a lot of damage about 18 months ago. 

 Along the way we stopped at the site of "The longest Placename in New Zealand".  There is a nice large area to pull off the road, and we discovered that self contained vans can stay stay for a night or two - we didn't know that.

That's a very long name indeed

The name translates to "The place where Tamatea, the man with the big knees, who slid, climbed and swallowed mountains, known as land eater, played his nose flute to his loved one".  The story goes that Tamatea was so grieved over the loss of his brother that he stayed at the battle site for some days.  Each morning he would sit on the hill and play a lament on his flute.

Te Paerahi Beach was another freedom camping area, not one we had stayed at before.  A toilet block was available, plus a drinking fountain, but no tap water available to top up the vans.  There were other vans there too, but still plenty of room for our seven vans.

The wide sandy beach was beautiful, and most of us strolled along it during our stay here.  There were no piles of driftwood cluttering up this beach, unlike the previous one we stayed at.

Te Paerahi Beach, Pongaroa

That was a long day

We set off on a reccie trip on Saturday to make plans for the upcoming Safari trip we are organising  for the caravan club.   Packing up our picnic lunch we  set off bright and early at 8.00am, the morning just seemed to be waking up. 

Ready for our adventure

It was a bit misty driving over the Pahiatua Track, with the first few wind turbines shrouded in mist, then it cleared as we drove down from the top.  

It's a fairly long drive to the Wairarapa from home, taking us two hours.  Guess we should have left home a little earlier.  First stop was at Henley Lake for a comfort stop and we noticed plenty of freedom campers in residence.  Lots of water laying about on the ground too, no doubt the resident ducks and geese will enjoy splashing about in all those puddles.

Henley Lake

Then we set off on our reccie trip to check out where we would stay on the safari, the cost of camps we were interested in, the milage we might do on any given day, and any attractions in the area.  We drove here, there and everywhere

We drove up and down hills

Saw plenty of sheep

Showers followed us around, then we saw several rainbows keeping us company as we drove along.  

Yet another rainbow

There were road works galore, with lots of damage we noticed to various areas of the edge of the roadway falling away.  There were road cones everywhere and heavy machines parked on the side of the roads.  I think this area is still in recovery mode from a large storm which caused a lot of damage.

Yet more road works

Our picnic lunch was eaten looking out at a very attractive beach watching the small waves roll in.  And what's this, a seal was resting up by one of the rubbish bins.  Only a young one I think, and I carefully took his photo keeping my distance.

Our stop for lunch

Seal resting on the grass

We drove around some more, checking off the places on our list.  And passed by this massive area of work done - it looks like there was quite a landslide here at one stage.

Lots of remedial work done here

It was time to head home and by 5.30pm it was getting dark.  So it was quite a slow careful trip retracing our steps, watching out for the road cones and pot holes along unfamiliar roads in the pitch black.  No street lighting out here in the wop wops!  Eventually we made it over the Saddle Road and stopped at Dannevirke for a meal at Subway.

Dinner for two at Subway, Dannevirke

We still had a way to go and the car told us that it was running short of fuel and we wouldn't have quite enough to get back home.  That wouldn't do so we topped up and continued on our homewards journey.  Finally making it back home nearly 9 hours after starting out, and travelling 610kms.  It had been quite a day!

Trip to Hawkes Bay

 We have a family Memorial to attend in Hastings this weekend, so decided to set out early and have a four day trip, instead of rushing there and back.  Our trip up was anything but rushed, due to a couple of detours and the  huge amount of orange road cones everywhere.  The first detour we encountered was close to home, when the road out of our village was closed and we went all round the streets to get back on track.  That took a little bit of time, but soon we were on our way.  

We were joined by a long stream of motor bike riders just north of Levin, and they traveled just ahead of us up and over the Saddle Road.  There was not too much wind blowing up the top as some of the wind turbines were very sluggish indeed.  Just before Dannevirke we were directed on a very long detour indeed, taking us along Top Grass Road.  We estimated this detour was about 15km long, taking us along some roads not traveled before.  

At last we rejoined SH2, and stopped for lunch at the Matamau Diner, north of Dannevirke for a coffee, to go with our lunch, something I had prepared earlier, as the saying goes.  Our caravan looked very tiny indeed, dwarfed by the huge trucks which had also stopped for lunch.

First time we have stopped here.

Then we continued on our way, meeting up with more road works, stop and go signs, and millions of road cones.  That's the way to make money, we reckon, manufacture road cones for all these miles of road works!

At last we arrived at Napier NZMCA park, this was a really slow trip indeed.

Eriksen Road Park is very roomy,  but much of the area had been roped off.  Not because of flooding, as we thought, but because areas of the lawn had been reseeded.

There was still plenty of sites available, we found ourselves one, settled down, and made a cuppa.  Yes, we needed one after the long slow trip.

Home for the next four nights

It was fish and chips from the Filter Room for dinner, they certainly are delicious.  Robin had a bit of a wait as several orders delivered by Uber Eats went out first.  

Robin is on dinner duty tonight

It will be a chilly 6 degrees tonight.  But we are tucked up tight, nice and comfy with the diesel heater keeping us warm.  I'm sure Gemma will spent the night cuddled up on the bed with us too.

Time to head home

On our last day in Napier, we went out to lunch with Helen and Owen.  Where to but the “world famous in Hawkes Bay” Silky Oak Chocolates.

It was hot and sunny, a typical Hawkes Bay day, so we sat outside the café under the awning.  Even under the awning it was so bright we needed to keep our sun glasses on to stop us squinting.  The age old question, what to order?  Robin ordered a BLT and I had a salmon roulade, and of course we needed one of their delicious iced chocolate drinks as well.

Our delicious lunch

Helen, Jenny, Robin and Owen at Silky Oak\

We called into the Chocolate Shop to buy some drinking chocolate, and to be honest a few little chocolates came home with us as well.  The staff member told us about the flood rushing through the buildings during Cyclone Gabrielle a year a go, and showed us how high up the internal walls the water rose.  All the stock had to be thrown out of course, and the business was closed for six months while repairs took place.

The following morning we packed up, said our goodbyes, and headed for home.  Just prior to Dannevirke we stopped and waited, and waited some more.  I guess that we were held up here on the road for a good 15 minutes at least.  What was wrong, we wondered?

Waiting, waiting

Onwards traffic rolled towards us, then finally we were given the all clear to proceed.  The workers were laying asphalt, what a hot job that must have been in the conditions.

Hot work on the roads

We stopped for lunch at a lay-by at the beginning of Dannevirke.  Oh look, there’s a fine looking Viking to welcome us.  While we sat relaxing in  the van eating our lunch, a couple of ambulances and police cars, sirens blaring, rushed back the way we had just come.  Obviously some sort of accident, lucky for us we were off the road when it happened.

Lunch stop at Dannevirke

On our way again, we headed over the Saddle Road.  Plenty of wind turbines were turning lazily on the top of the ranges.

Saddle Road

Then it was an easy drive the rest of the way home.  The caravan was unpacked in the stinking hot Levin weather, the first load of laundry was put on, and then we sank into our seats to get our breath back – whew, it was so hot and sticky!  We certainly didn’t notice the heat while driving with AC on.  That’s our Christmas/New Year holiday done and dusted.

Away We Go Again

Home from our Anniversary Trip a week and a half, and off we go again.  Where to this time?  We are heading off to join the ICA people for the  Christmas Rally in Te Aroha and then Matamata, taking two days to travel up there.  So once again, the caravan was packed and we were raring to go.  It was fine when we departed, but then the weather got steadily worse.  Such is our temperamental Spring weather here in New Zealand.

The van is almost packed

The blue skies soon disappeared to make way for grey clouds.  Our first stop was Taihape by the railway station, lots of room there for our car and caravan, plus a handy coffee cart.  A bus full of tourists were making the most of the public toilets, then were soon on their way.  We lunched in the van, with something I had prepared earlier, plus a latte from the coffee cart.

Lunch stop at Taihape

Then the heavy rain came, and didn’t stop, following us as we headed north.  Our original plan was to spend the night at Taupo NZMCA Park, but as the parking is all on grass there we decided against it.  So we stopped at Turangi, a much better idea to be parked up on hard standing in such wet weather.  This large park was fairly empty, plenty of spaces here, but as the hours rolled by, more vans rolled in, happy to be off the roads in such wet weather, just like us, I imagine.

At Turangi NZMCA Park

There was a tap  on the door, and a lady asked us if we would be interested in a trout fillet.  My goodness, of course we would, and she didn't want any payment for it either.  They had obviously had a good day out fishing as we saw her take fish to several other vans as well.  It’s  a long time since we had eaten trout, and I carefully wrapped it up and popped it in the freezer to enjoy another night.

Freshly caught trout

Our plans for dinner was to go to a local take-away shop for a roast meal.  Last time we were in Turangi, Robin purchased fish and chips, and discovered that the roasts are so popular with the locals that they sell out really early.  “Call in by 5.00pm” he was advised,  so we did.  The roast pork meals were delicious, plenty of roast veggies, and very generous servings of roast pork and crackle.  We can certainly recommend them, and the fish and chips were very nice too when we enjoyed them last time we were staying here.

Delicious food here

It kept raining off and on all night, and still hadn’t stopped in the morning when we were heading off again.  We could just make out Motuaiko Island in the middle of Lake Taupo through the rain and the mist.  The name Motuaiko is from the Maori language, with “motu” meaning island, and “taiko” being the name of the black petrel.

Motuaiko Island

There were very long delays at the Arimuri road works, we waited, and waited, and waited some more.  Finally we got the green light to go and came across another long line of motorists waiting to drive south.  This happed several times along this stretch of road works.  As it was a Sunday, none of the heavy machinery was working, just a few workers monitoring the traffic lights on the side of the road.

We are finally moving, and the other line is stopped in place

We are staying the night at Ponderosa Pop, (park over property) at Matangi, near Cambridge.  This is our first time here, and the helpful host guided us through the gate and around a corner to get us on site.  There are several long time stayers here, he told us, so it’s lucky he has a couple of large areas to park everyone.

Ponderosa Pop

We are moving on in the morning for the start of the ICA Rally at Te Aroha, so that will be interesting. It will be great to catch up with everyone again.  The ICA group only holds two or three rallies each year.

Murchison

The drive along SH6 to Murchison was through forested areas, a very pretty drive indeed.  116km later, we pulled into the Murchison NZMCA Park over Property.  The size of the park has certainly increased since we were last here several years ago.  Fresh water, rubbish facilities, and a dump station available, and $10 a night for two people.  We arrived at about 1.00pm so at that time of day there were plenty of sites available.  It was stinking hot, and as we found out later, the temperature was 30 degrees, no wonder we needed cold drinks and some R&R on arrival.

NZMCA at Murchison

Originally known as Hampden, the discovery of gold led to the establishment of the town.  Several old, rather interesting buildings are still standing, and right next to the NZMCA Camp is  the old Commercial Stables building.  Now it trades as Dust and Rust Vintage Store, selling all sorts of bits and pieces.

The old Commercial Stables

There have been tales of gunfights at this hotel on the corner in years gone by.  Things seem much more law abiding now.

Hampden Hotel

Murchison lies close to the Alpine Fault, and in 1929 a powerful quake centered in Murchison was felt throughout the country.  The town as evacuated, but 17 lives were lost, and the surrounding area was left in ruins, causing the Maruia River to gouge out a new channel, creating the Maruia Waterfall. 

An advertisement for “The longest swing bridge in New Zealand” caught our interest.  A 15km trip along the Upper Buller Gorge, and we arrived at the destination.  The swing bridge is only one part of the operation.  Jet boating, flying fox rides and gold panning are also on offer.

 

We decided the swing bridge would be enough excitement for us.  Goodness me, at 110m  long, and suspended 17m high above the Buller River, off we went.  Of course we had to stop in the middle to take some snaps of the river.  The Maori name for the river is Kawatiri, meaning “deep and swift”, and it certainly is.

Taken from the middle of the bridge

We made it across without any mishap, and a friendly person waiting on the other side kindly took our photo.  That wasn’t too bad at all, Robin managed very well with his knees.  We spent some time there watching streams of people walk across, eventually returning ourselves.

No problem, we made it

Not everyone could face the swing bridge – we were chatting to one young woman who decided she just couldn't step onto it, and stayed put as her family crossed over and took the flying fox back.  We bought a drink each and watched as the flying fox came hurtling back.  What a racket it made as it hit the arrestor wires and was brought to a sudden stop, it truly sounded like the passengers had smashed face first into a brick wall!  A group was getting a lesson in gold panning, and we could hear the throb of the jet boat engine as it was getting ready for a trip.  And more and more people made the trip across on the flying fox.

Driving back to camp we saw a whole long line of large containers up against the side of the hill.  Obviously there for protection after a major land slide, I imagine.  Still a work in progress, it seems.

Holding back the land slide/rock fall

After two nights here in Murchison, we are moving on again, next stop – Reefton