If you think the rain in Bolton is bad you should see what we have driven through today. The further north we came the heavier the rain. The roads were blocked and the rivers burst their banks. We were originally going up to Russell and the Bay of Islands but the power was off so we stopped here at about 1:30. I decided I would go for a walk and have a look at the town and see if I could buy some wine. I thought I would only be about 20 mins so I didn't tell Jennie or the kids I was going. The floods were getting higher so all the shops were closing and I couldn't find anywhere open. Eventually after about 1 and a half hours I realised I was lost and called into a petrol station for directions. I was miles away but one of the customers was travelling that way so he gave me a lift close to the campsite. I was gone about 2 hours and I still didn't have any wine! Not very exciting so far but we are getting into the swing of things now. The weather is supposed to be brightening up tomorrow so I hope we can see the Bay of Islands. We have a mobile phone no in NZ now so if yu want to send us a message or need to contact us urgently the number is 0064212018910