Now that our van is registered and on the road, we stopped at the local Pak'n'Save (kiwi No-Frills) to pickup supplies, food, chilly bin, a case of cheap Kiwi Lager, a couple cheap NZ wines, and we're on tour...
Auckland is a nice city, but it's nice to get out and see the countryside where all the real gems are.
Our First stop on our week-and-a-half tour of the Northland (everything north of Auckland) is Whatipu Beach - one hour west of Auckland, and an amazing hilly, rugged landscape.
We stayed at Whatipu Lodge, a beautifull place right by the sea, with cabins you can rent. But we just stayed in our van on the camping grounds, with toilets, shelter/cooking area, and cold showers.
We visited the nearby caves, and on the Sunday we did an amazing hike called the Omanawanui/Kura Track - a true great walk on its own, but a good leg workout- the track starts going straight up the seaside cliffs with lots of scrambling over rocks, then gives a stunning view of the area for miles from the top.
It then follows along the hills for a while, before decending straight down, crossing the road, and down to the valley in between the hills.
It then follows the river, criss-crosses it in a few places (glad we brought sandals too!) and ends back at the campground to complete the loop. We took about 5 hours on it in total, but what a variety of scenery: coastal cliffs and Kauri forest, then Jungle-ish palms and ferns in the valley, its really a bit of everything. Slept good that night!
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