Matouri Bay and my lucky lure

Let me start by saying a found a stowaway lure in my camping gear. After my wheel bearing went out I hung it from my rearview mirror and have had good luck ever since.

My lucky charm

So, I woke up at the holiday park in Paihia and decided to make another try to head north up to Cape Reinga.

My first stop was back at Kerikeri where I was first sidetracked a few days ago with an oil change and a job interview. 

In Kerikeri I went to the historic stone house which was pretty but a little boring.

Wishing well at the stone house

Then onto Rainbow  Falls which was another gorgeous waterfall that completely lived up to it's name by having a constant rainbow in its mist.

Rainbow Falls

Rainbow falls from the river

I tried to capture it in my photos, but like most things here, my pictures just don't do it justice.Then I walked along the river for about an hour and a half. It was beautiful and the day was incredibly warm and sunny.  

Looking goofy in front of the falls haha

Then back on the road and on to my first stop for my trek north for the day. The first place in my itinerary was Matouri Bay to see the Rainbow Warrior monument and I'm happy to say I didn't make it any further than that.

I drove down a steep cliff to Matouri bay. It's a tiny bay with a beautiful beach. There's not much in the small, green valley besides the beach and the holiday park campgrounds.

I pulled up in the parking lot. I woke up tired that morning, having a day where all I wanted to do was go to sleep in a soft bed and have a warm room all to myself. One of those days where I wish I could teleport home for 8 hours. Have a beer with friends and sleep in a real house. 

So, I pulled up in the parking lot and thought about just crawling into the back of my car and napping. 

Instead, I dragged myself out of my car and walked over the grassy burm to the beach. 

When I sat down on the beach and looked out into the ocean I saw a pod of dolphins right next to the shore. Swimming, jumping, and slapping the water with the their tails. It was amazing. I've never seen dolphins so close.

If you look very closely, you can see a dolphin tail

I walked up and down the beach trying to get a good photo of them. I think I may have one where you can see a tiny tail or a few dorsal fins, but not much more. 

After about 30 minutes I booked a night at the holiday park and went back to watch the dolphins. There was an older couple digging for shellfish. So I struck up a conversation with them and asked what they were getting and how to cook them. Then I grabbed about 30 for myself with plans to make them for dinner. I'm STILL not sure what they were called, pippers or puppies? I don't know, the kiwi accent can be hard to understand.
When I went to the kitchen to cook them I met about 20 guys. Apparently the New Zealand navy dive team was training at Matouri beach for a few days. They fed me a delicious dinner and invited me to their caravans and chalets for beers. They were all so nice and friendly. There were some Maori's, Canadians, Kiwi's and Australians.

He let me take a pic as long as I promised to blur his face :) And not post it on facebook. AND make sure there were no beers visible.

A handful of them went out after dark on a training mission to clear a landing lane at Matouri beach. The rest of the crew was supposed to try and spot them, with sentries placed along the beach and on the hill.  My mission, as I was told, was to get the rest of the guys at camp drunk and distract them from the team's maneuvers. Mission accomplished.
Although I think it was me they got drunk, but that's a minor detail.
These guys had heaps of seafood they had caught and they cut open a raw, totally fresh sea urchin for me to try. Incredibly tasty, actually.
Apparently the dolphins had been in the bay all day. So I watched a video of some of the guys holding onto the front of their boat underwater and swimming/driving with them. Amazing. There are no words to describe how awesome it looked.
When the mission was over I got to sit in on their debriefing. So cool.
Then it was time to party into the wee hours. I learned some cool kiwi slang, a few points on rugby, how to 2 step, and lots of off-color jokes. I also learned that November 20 is kick a ginger day.  I guess it's from South Park because they were surprised I didn't know about it before. Apparently they take it seriously here and a couple of us were issued fair warning.
I also learned that surprisingly, I have red hair?
A the end of the night, there was just a few of us left standing. One kiwi nicknamed boomhower, cuz you couldn't understand 90% of what he said and the 3 Canadians. They invited me to a Maori beach house to go surfing with them in a few weeks. I really hope I can go.
It was late, and I had plans to get up at 6:30am to tag along with some of the guys out onto their boat to see the dolphins. I gave back the jacket I had been borrowing and the owner gave me his appellate as a souvenir. Bad Ass.

He also sang the Canadian National Anthem

As everyone went to bed I ended up joking about how cold I've been sleeping in my car. One guy was so awesome. He told me to grab my sleeping bag and bunk down in their caravan.  Warmest night in a week.
The next morning it was pouring. So no boat ride for me. Over coffee I exchanged info with some of the guys. They were leaving for a mission in Milford Sound but they're staying near Auckland and we hope to hang out again while they're here. I never made it to the Rainbow Warrior memorial, but it's just a good excuse to come back this way again. What a totally crazy, surprising and amazing day.

Working 9-5, maybe?

The past few days have been slow. I've been holed up at a Holiday Park in Paihia.


Beach view from my campground

Beach view, deux

I camped here last night and had plans to drive north today but I was sidetracked by minor logistics. Things like job searching and getting sorely needed work done on my car.

*fist shake that my wagon has 6" of clearance and I can't even change the oil *
I kinda, sorta, totally, immensely, unfathomably, miss my truck.
My baby.
 xoxoxo my sweet Armadillo.Thank you J Crew for looking after her while I'm gone!!
So, I decided to write a post with somewhat random thoughts and photos.

I'm trying to get a pic of the stars here. Trying.

If you don't like it, don't blame me. Blame my dwindling budget and the kiwi who sold me a car with 2 torn CV boots.
*fist shake that I test drove my car in a parking garage and couldn't hear the obvious clack of crappy CV boots*

Borrowing the immortal words of Monty Python-
"And now for something completey different".
A quick update:
I applied for a Jr Ranger job in the south island. I am very underqualified, but I went for it.
I applied for a job in Waitoma as a black water rafting, abseiling, glow worm cave, tour guide. They contacted me for more info and I hope to hear from them in a couple of days.
In the meantime, I backtracked to Russel today to interview for a temporary job at a winery. Pruning and weeding for their spring season. It's a 2 week job, and it pays! Which sounds redundant, but here there is a ton of unskilled temp work available, but only in exchange for accomodation. No money at all!
I think I got the job. They'll call me tomorrow if I'm selected for the 2 weeks of back breaking labor...fingers crossed!
I enquired around Paihia today for some, ANY temporary work. If I'm lucky, I may have a 4 hour shift next week pouring delicous beer for the discerning patron at a place called the Road Runner Tavern.

So, with time on my side I checked out Hurua falls just outside of Paihia.



                                      

                                                   Hurau falls

I call this one "Hurua Falls + 1"

After Wharangei Falls, Hurua falls was kinda anti-climatic. Still pretty though.

Hurua falls, again



There were birds everywhere on this ledge by the falls.
I think this one was their king.

So I drove all around today. Up to Kerikeri on my way north until I got sidetracked by incredibly nice strangers and a $95 oil change. SCORE.

Then back down to Russel for my vineyard interview. So, I decided it was a good day to grab a beer and fries and watch monday night football (at 1:30pm on Tuesday) then camp at the holiday park again because it has hot showers and a kitchen. Ungh!

Back at camp, I rented a kayak for an hour and had a blast.

It was my 3rd time in a kayak and my 1st time on the ocean with it. Although really I was in a harbour.

       

Beaching the kayak to give the old shoulder a break

I don't miss a singe opportunity to document my goofy face!

The wind was strong and the water kinda choppy, at least it seemed that way...

Then, I was back to camp. And enjoying the sunset.

                          But not before I put my kayak away and sipped a few Double Brown beers.


I call this one "kayaks at rest"

Now to sleep in my freezing car. Its a little colder tonight. Last night I slept on my air matress with 2 pairs of socks, a beanie wrapped around my feet, my sweats with pants over them, 2 long sleeved shirts, a regular shirt, a sweatshirt and my fluffy jacket on. I stuffed my running hoodie and thermal over me inside my bag. My rain jacket was wrapped around the outside of my bag and I put my sweater between my torso and my air matress. Then I completely zipped up my sleeping bag until there was not a single tiny gap (not even to breathe) and I was actually warm enough to sleep through the night.
I'm hoping for the same luck tonight.

 

                                                                                                                                                                            

Whrom Whangarei to Whananaki

The "wh" is pronounced like an "f" in maori.

Which means the town of Whakapapa is funny to slip into conversation. ha.ha.ha.

Sooooooooooooo....

Today I had an amazing day.

I drove from Whangarei to Whananaki. With several jaw dropping side trips.

My first stop on the way was just 10 minutes out of town at the Whangarei Falls. You can park at the top of the falls and then walk a short trail to the bottom.

Whangarei Falls

Whangarei Falls

The river trail

Guess who?

From the bottom of the falls, you can take another trail that meanders along the river and comes to yet more trails. I followed these trails to a canopy walkway through a Kauri forest and up to another waterfall.

It was incredibly beautiful and peaceful. I only saw 2 other people for the first hour up the Kauri forest trail. There was no one at the second waterfall.

Kauri Forest Trail

Falls at the top of the trail

From there I drove along the coast with a few beachside stops that I had planned from reading my lonely planet guide book. The roads here are very narrow and winding and people seem to drive them way too fast. Luckily there's not a lot of cars on them and I rarely have to pull onto the shoulder (like a good grandma) to let people pass me. While driving from the falls to my next destination, I saw a sign for a lighthouse walk. The turn flew by me at 40kph, haha, and I almost kept on going.
But I decided to turn around and take a look and here's what I found at the end of a gravel one lane road.

Top of the first hill

A vista point on a side trail

I walked up a small, bright green, grassy hill. Once at the top I looked down and found twin coves back to back. One cove was black rock, the other was golden sand, both with turqoise water.

Where these two coves meet theres a small land bridge to another island that is only accesible at low tide. The lighthouse sits on top of Tutukaka island.

On a beach between the coves

View from the lighthouse

Now, if I were a lighthouse enthusiast, a lover of lighthouses if you will, I would have been REALLY disappointed in this one. The lighthouse was a tiny white shack about 6 feet tall with a tall light on the top.
The hike up was pretty steep and the whole thing took about an hour and a half, not including photo stops and water breaks. I was so glad I didn't keep driving. I'm starting to think there are no wrong turns in NZ. Everything here is stunning. Just getting lost and driving around like a fool, which I've done, makes for awesome sightseeing.


Back on the beach between the coves

From the lighthouse reserve park I drove north along the coast to a beach I read about in lonely planet. This one was called Whale and was a short 10 minute hike from the pullout. It was a very pretty, secluded beach, but the day was getting cold and I only spent 45 minutes enjoying the view here.


Whale Beach

Whale Beach

The ocean here looks like bright and warm tropical water. It begs you to swim in it. It wants you to drink fruity cocktails on its sand. It lies.
It's as cold as ice. It's like northern California ocean in the winter. I stick my toes in and I need hot chocolate and my mommy.


View from my campsite in Whanaki

I took the looooong way, or as I like to call it, the scenic way, to my camp that night. I camped at another DOC (department of conservation). This one was at Otamure beach in north Whanaki. It was a great site. I parked on a big grassy meadow and walked 50 feet to the beach just in time to watch the sunset.

All these amazing places were within 2.5 hours drive from eachother. It was a completely fantasticly mind blowing day. Then I slept like a baby on my new air mattress that I had to blow up manually because I forgot to buy a pump. Old school baby.

Updates and Spelunking

Hi ya'll.
My internet is either really spotty or very expensive. So I have heaps more pictures to upload when I get decent service.
Today I went grocery shopping. Exciting I know! But it was storming so hard this morning I spent the day running errands and applying for jobs. Sice the weather was so bad I went back to Little Earth Lodge to book another night. The lodge is adjacent to a series of caves called Abbey Caves but I was advised not to explore them alone.
So back at LEL the weather cleared up to a bright but not very warm day. I met 2 French girls and 4 German guys and we grabbed helmets and water shoes and headlamps then tramped over to the first cave.

On the way we passed through a meadow with grazing sheep. Then through a rock forest.

When we got to the first cave you had to climb down 10 feet to get into it. All we could hear was rushing water and it was pitch black inside almost right away.

Entrance to the third cave

The inside of the cave was fantastic. The walls were gray, white, pink and yellow. Sometimes it was narrow and small, other parts were 30 feet tall and 15 feet wide. Sometimes we climbed over rocks and sometimes we were wading through freezing, waist deep water.

Once inside we all shut off our lights. Hundreds of glow worms were above us.  Like aqua colored stars set in the blackest of skies. They were all throughout the cave which took us about an hour to traverse to the end and back out again. I wish I could say I took amazing pictures, but unfortunately my camera skills have not evolved enough for pitch black photography.

The last cave had glow worms too but was much shorter. It went all the way under a hill and out the
other side. It took us about 20 minutes to get through. It was also amazing and unique from the other
caves with different rock formations and much deeper water.



Blurry pic- I'll just call this the action shot

 The last 10 feet I had to swim in the freezing water with my camera held high above my head. I was
having flashbacks to the time I took Lauren canyoning through the Zion subway.
Then I made dinner. My first home made dinner in 2 weeks. It wasn't great but I missed cooking a lot!

Outside the kitchen at LEL

Then out to downtown Whangarei with 2 girls, American and Irish, and 3 guys British and Dutch. We went to a place called Rynoz -shout out to my bro Ryan! The place was packed with rowdy locals and 2 girls got into a brawl right in front of me as we were leaving. Then onto a Irish pub called McMorriseys which was definitely more my scene. It had a small live band and a fire place. Very cozy. As I tried to find us a cab home I chatted with the drummer Nick who was a friendly local and gave me a NZ ball cap before he left. It was a fun but late night.

Getting Amongst It

So I finally left Auckland two days ago and began driving North into some of the most beautiful countryside I've ever seen. It's sometimes tropical. Sometimes farmland or beach. But always hilly and green. It's amazing.
I spent my last night in Auckland hanging out with my hostel friends. For good luck, and a sort of New Zealand christening, I jumped into the fountain in Albert Park.

Sky Tower from the roof at Frienz

Sky tower at night from Frienz rooftop

So my first day and night out of the city. I went to Bream Bay and camped at Uretiti Reserve Park. At Langs beach I put my feet in the New Zealand side of the pacific for the very first time. The night was freezing and I decided to buy an extra blanket before I camp again. Both beaches look out on the same giant bay.

Langs Beach in Bream Bay

Uretiti Beach was amazing. It stretched along the entire bay and the sand was so fine and soft and 

white. Like powdered sugar. There were jagged islands running along the horizon of the bay. 

Uretiti Beach looking back onto the campground

The stars here are out of this world. I looked up at the sky from the campground and saw a cloud of stars above me. Every constellation is completely new. I had to take a moment to appreciate that I was seeing stars I had never, ever seen before. 

Uretiti Beach

By the time I got to the Uretiti Park, something was wrong with my new car. A mere 185 km and I was already screwed. So early the next morning I drove to Whangarei and took my car to the nearest mechanic. My wheel bearing was shot and it cost me $330 to have it replaced at the garage. Everything really is twice as expensive here.

While my car was being fixed I spent the time wandering down around the harbour area. I went to half a dozen art galleries and a museum. Walked along the river and window shopped.

Boats along the harbour

Wave sculpture along the harbour

Once, my car was fixed I drove to a lookout at the top of Whangarei.

Then onto Little Earth Lodge where I stayed the night. The lodge is charmingly tiny and set amid tropical ferns and Kauri trees, with a big meadow on one side complete with a tiny pony and an old dog. It has only 10 rooms and each room has it's own sliding glass door that opens up to the patio and garden. My pictures don't do it justice. I'll have to take more and really capture the feel of the place.

The view from my patio

It's next to a place called Abby Caves which I wanted to explore but don't want to go on my own. It's storming like crazy here in NZ so I believe I'll stay one more day at LEL before heading north and camping some more. Hopefully, another backpacker at LEL will want to explore the caves with me. Today I'm running errands and wishing for warm weather.