Having the car for the past week had cemented the idea of seeing the rest of New Zealand with our own wheels. Now back in Auckland City it was time to swap our car for a camper. I had increased the limit on my credit card to allow it to cover the $3000 bond. $3000 seemed like a lot of money to risk but the option of paying for insurance doubled the cost of renting the van so we took the risk. Being returning customers (after the car) we managed to blag a 10% discount so ended up only paying $23 a day for a Jucy Cabana which was basically a converted 8 seater Toyota. The tailgate opened up to reveal the stove, fridge and sink and the back either acted as sofa and table or folded flat as a decent sized bed.

After another few hours of Jucy faffing and a taxi to their airport branch we finally had our van and it was time to head off on our 4 week adventure around the rest of NZ. While we were waiting in the office we bumped into Chloe and Stu who we had met back in Fiji, they were also renting a camper and doing a similar route to us.

First stop for us was the Corimandel Peninsula which lies just East of Auckland and West of the Bay of Plenty. For our first night we kinda wimped out and ended up paying for a proper campsite. This wasn't the plan as we were supposed to be roughing it camping at the side of roads and anywhere else that was free! Anyway we ended up paying $10 each to stay in this Top 10 Holiday Park. Our first night went well, the bed was comfy but the duvet wasn't quite enough to fend of the night time chill so we ended up each buying a $10 sleeping bag which helped massively.

The next day we continued on up the Peninsula to Hot Water Beach. At low tide, this seemingly ordinary beach reveals a glimpse of New Zealand volcanic and geothermal power! There are two hot water springs that bubble up through the sand, both are around 60°C so the water is too hot to enjoy on its own but when you dig deep and allow the cool sea water to mix in the pools you end up with a perfectly natural geothermal spa. We arrived a little early and the sea hadn't receded enough but soon there were more and more people waiting to get digging. Nearby shops rent spades by the hour but being cheapskates we strolled down to the springs armed with a trusty saucepan. Small individual pools proved very unstable temperature wise and often ended up with unbearably hot water but as soon as we joined forces and created one large hole the temperate was more stable and you could actually enjoy the sandy spa! September was technically only the beginning of spring in NZ so it wasn't normal beach weather but this was no normal beach

After exploring another couple of local bays we headed south to Matamata. Matamata is more recently known as Hobbiton and is the home to the film set used in the Lord of the Rings films. We arrived in the dark and set about finding our first Freedom camp! The car park of the Firth Tower Museum was dark and empty with public toilets close by so we concealed our van in the dark, cooked up some pasta and chilled out watching a film on the vans DVD player. The Hobbiton tour was way too expensive for our budget so it was time to move on.

Rotorua was a slightly bigger town and to allow us to be in the centre we camped in a Base Hostels car park for $10. This was a good option as it allowed us to use the laundry etc and it came with a free meal! It also meant we could go out for a few drinks with Scott, Henrick and MT who arrived the same day!

Keen to sample more of NZ's volcanic wonder we first went to the Polynesian Spa. Unlike Hot Water Beach, these springs had been harnessed, controlled and turned into a fully fledged spa. We spent a couple of hours moving from pool to pool, each set at different temperatures from 36 to 42°C. Eventually you grew accustomed to the smell of sulphur in the air but every now and then you were reminded of Rotorua's volcanic underbelly. Fully relaxed we moved on to a half body massage.

We spent the evening in the Hostels 'Lava Bar' and joined in with the pool competition and a horizontal bungee. Running on a slippery pub floor with a bungee cord around your waist was a lot harder than it looked. I managed a respectable 3rd place but 1st prize was a free bungee jump!!

In the morning we met back up with the guys and went for a hike around the Sulphurous section of Lake Rotorua and through the Redwood Forest up to the lookout point. The view revealed truly how volcanic this area of New Zealand was. Clouds of sulphur and huge geysers are dotted precariously close to the town.

That evening Liann, MT, Scott and I went to Rainbow Springs in search of NZ's national bird, the Kiwi! Rainbow Springs Wildlife Park is only place to have a nocturnal enclosure for their Kiwi's. We arrived at around 9pm so had the park to ourselves which gave us the perfect opportunity to spot these shy flightless birds. With their small wings hidden by their round fur like feathery body it is easy to see why they named the fruit after them! The first one we spotted was a little startled and ran into a wall so I think it's fair to say that they are not the brightest of creatures, but what they lack in smarts they make up for in looks!

Since we arrived so late our ticket was still valid for the next day so we returned to see the other birds, fish and farm animals in the petting zoo.

Another whirlwind visit to a beautiful town was over, but we had to keep moving. As the days ticked by the map of New Zealand seemed to get bigger and bigger and the already lengthy list of activities grew longer and longer!