It was a beautiful morning in Russell, but we had miles to go…… Today was our last long distance driving day of this trip. We took the vehicle ferry from Okiato Point to Opua and then drove north to the town of Paihia which is just across the bay from Russell. Paihia is a popular base camp for tourists visiting the Bay of Islands, and there are many hotels and restaurants. Just north of Paihia is the Treaty House in Waitangi which was the setting for ...

This morning swimmers were gathering on the beach for the Ocean Swim, a race from the shore of Russell across to the shore of Pahia, a 3.2km swim. The water is cold so the swimmers all had wet suits.We took a half-day narrated cruise from Russell through the Bay of Islands (a maritime and historic park named by Captain Cook). We saw a group of playful dolphins engaged in adult activities. Then we went out to the Cape Brett lighthouse and Piercy Island, which is k...

We are now officially in Northland, the northern part of the North Island.While on the wharf in Tutukaka, a fisherman recommended that we take the longer coastal road from Whangarei to Russell. We followed his advice and the typical hour’s drive turned into a 5 hour drive. We were definitely “off the beaten track” but we did pass some scenic beaches. We stopped for a walk on Manapouri beach, a lovely area where several campervans were freedom ca...

Poor Knights Islands Marine Reserve was rated by Cousteau as being one of the top ten diving spots in the world, so I knew this was a snorkel trip we couldn’t pass up. The islands are 24km off the coast near Tutukaka . We went on Dive!Tutukaka’s “Perfect Day” cruise. It was a great experience with beautiful scenery and wildlife, and we were lucky to have great weather. The boat was huge and could carry 65 passengers, but we only had 15 on ...

We had a long, difficult drive today so we set the alarm clock and were on the road by 7 AM. We stopped along the way to photograph some big Kauri trees. Kauri, which used to be plentiful, can live for 2000 years and only grow in Northland and on the Coromandel Penisula. The trees used to be harvested for timber and for the gum which is an important ingredient in varnish. We drove through Auckland at 10AM and were thankful that it wasn’t rush hour. The high...