Mt. Maunganui and Rotorua 2 (the sequel) We left Hahei with heavy hearts, wishing we could have spent more time there. But we also wanted to see a few other spots around the bay of plenty before the Rotorua game. Not for the first time, we were finding ourselves tight for time. We motored along the coast admiring some simply breathtaking views and after making a couple of stops (including NZ's answer to the French Riviera - yeah right, chortle) ended up in the v...

Coromandel Peninsula After being stuck in a cave in Whangarei for several hours.... we set off later than expected with the goal of hitting Coromandel town. As the light faded and the hope of making the intended destination before the camp site office shut diminished, we decided to stop just north of Thames. The camp site owner was, what we now know to be typical of the out of towners, an unshaven, unwashed hippy who had a butterfly house business on the side. H...