Dawn At Whangaroa Harbour – looking at Totara North

February 13

This morning we got up fairly early and drove to Totara North, to Campbell Road, where the Wairaku Track begins. Both Whangaroa and Totara North are sleepy little fishing villages and I loved the atmosphere they had in the morning.

Stream crossing on Wairaku Track

The first half hour of the track is a gradual uphill on a gravel 4-wheel drive road. Then at the crest of the hill, a much narrower tramping track intersects from the right. It’s slight downhill or dead flat for an hour and a half to Lane Cove. Twice we had to cross the stream on logs and randomly placed rocks. These sort of crossings leave me shaking. I really never want to continue a tramp soaking wet or even with just wet shoes. But I made it and Fred filmed me with glee. (Someone take that camera away from him!)

View as we climbed Duke’s Nose

Base of rock wall climb, Duke’s Nose

Just before Lane Cove is a junction. Turn left to Lane Cove or turn right for Duke’s Nose. We figured if we didn’t do Duke’s Nose right away, we’d be racing the clock for our water taxi back. So off we went, passing a few signs on how strenuous the track is and only meant for the very fit (who, us?). Yes, the track is steep, but it’s doable and after Mount Manaia, it was a walk in the park – sort of.

The fun part is at the very end. The last 10 meters of climbing is assisted with a heavy chain. Really only the first section, about 2 meters, is difficult. After that there are plenty of footholds. Once at the top, you feel so accomplished. I think I shouted out, “I’m king of the world!” The view was drop-dead gorgeous! It’s a very large plateau, so you can walk around and find the best place to have your picnic. We could see the water-taxi making his 11am run from our vantage point.

Chain assist at top of Duke’s Nose

We made our way down and it was easier than I thought it would be. A young lady was heading up the track and we stopped to talk. She was from Minnesota and was so happy to have a sunburn in February!

Water taxi at Lane Cove

At Lane Cove, the water-taxi picked us up at 12:30. There is no jetty at the cove and the taxi backed in as far as it could and Mark, our driver, lowered a ramp. We had to wade in the water up to our knees. It was no big deal except the shore is covered in very sharp oyster shells. Ouch!

Rainbow Falls

We had a couple of stops along the way around the harbour.  Once back at the dock at Totara North, we were met by Tony and he drove us back up the hill to our car. Such fantastic service for $20 per person! I can’t speak more highly of this entire adventure and Whangaroa Harbour itself.

Our next 3 nights were at Bay of Islands, south of Whangaroa Harbour.  We took the scenic coastal route.  Nice views, but nothing outstanding.  Closer to our destination of Paihia, we detoured through Kerikeri and walked the short distance to Rainbow Falls.  Then we drove through the town of Kerikeri back to the main motorway. It was bustling. It was our first sight of highly visited places and compared to Whangarei Heads and Whangaroa Harbour, it was quite a difference!

Paihia was packed with people as well.  We found Bali Hai Motel, a bit south of the main town where it was quieter.  Barbara was extremely welcoming and helped us get set up for the ferry the next day to Urupukapuka Island.

February 14

It was bright and sunny this morning and we walked the short distance to town. It took us about 10-15 minutes. I was happy with the location of Bali Hai, close enough to walk to town, far enough to stay out of its madness. We had 40 minutes before our departure and needed to pick up some apples that we had forgotten on our previous day’s shopping.

Otehei Bay, Urupukapuka Island

Closer to the jetty, we purchased some coffee and found a bench to sit on, enjoy the sunshine, and people-watch.  It started to get busy on the wharf. People were lining up at a couple of places.  One line kept growing and growing, extending from one end of the wharf all the way to the road.  There must have been about 150 people boarding this one boat.  I was glad we hadn’t booked that cruise.  We had been told that we were looking for the little yellow Explore boat that would come to the side dock. “Little” was the word that made me the happiest.   There must have only been about 2 dozen people on our boat.

Sailboat in bay of Urupukapuka Island

One of many coastal gorges on Urupukapuka Island

The seas were calm and we passed by two other large islands before arriving at Otehei Bay at Urupukapuka Island. The bay had a nice dock, a large beach, a café, and a few other buildings. We headed left to where the tracks began.

It was an especially hot day.  The tracks around the island are mostly in open pastureland and have lots of hills.  There were many places with grand, coastal views.  A few geocaches were scattered about, keeping us occupied.  But Fred and I quickly decided it was too hot to do much more walking and after eating our lunch, headed back to Otehei Bay for a beer and fries.  I’m not a real beer drinker. But when it’s hot and you’re tired, it sure tasted good. We had a nice spot on the beach at a shaded picnic table. It was fun watching the seagulls chase each other and kids throwing themselves on the beanbag chairs.

Once back at the wharf at Paihia, we opted to do the coastal track back to Bali Hai.  It was high tide and a bit of an adventure trying to keep to the narrow ledge and our feet dry.  We found some steps that led to the side road on which Bali Hai Motel is located.  I think we were crossing through someone’s back yard to get to the street.  But we made it without much issue.

Looking out at the Bay of Islands

February 15

We started our morning with the 1-hour track to Paihia Lookout.  It was shady and not too steep.  At the end was a view of the bay and we saw a cruise ship anchored.  Those things are massive!  I was glad our plans took us out of town.

Cruiseship at Bay of Islands

We took the short ferry ride with our car from Opua to explore Russell and points beyond.  Our goal that day was to arrive at Elliot Bay at about 11am or later for the 12:41pm low tide. This gave us a little extra time so we thought we’d let geocaches be our guide.

Jack’s Bay

Steep! – Not!

The first cache was at Jack’s Bay. There was a short gravel road to where the track to the beach started. It used to be a public camping ground. It is now private property, but New Zealand law stipulates that beaches are public property so there is a track to access the bay. Funny how there was an official-looking sign that stated the track was steep, with many steps, and you must be very fit to attempt it.

None of this was true.

We found the cache on the beach, which was very nice and surrounded by some very expensive homes, and moved on.

Flock of Birds at Elliot Bay

Looking through the sea cave, Elliot Bay

After finding another cache, we arrived at Elliot Bay.  This was a huge bay with a $2 parking fee (very unusual for New Zealand, but it’s Maori land).  At the end of the bay was a rocky section with arches and tidepools.  A seacave is walkable at low tide and comes out at a secluded cove.  It was great fun exploring this area away from the tourist crowds.

Duck at Paroa Bay Winery

As we returned, we made the diversion up Paroa Bay Road to a winery I found online, located there.  This is a very new winery and the wines were really good!  We had flights the next day so only purchased one bottle, but ordered a case to be shipped home.  The winery is located on a former golf course, so it is very picturesque, with rolling hills of green.  We were the only ones there and were invited to stay awhile to enjoy the grounds.  We ate our lunch on a deck over a pond and fed the ducks scraps of bread.
We drove to the town of Russell and explored both the beach at Tapeka and hiked up to Lover’s Leap.  Then we drove back and checked out the sundial at Flagstaff Hill.  The mosaic at the foot of the sundial is interesting and we had fun figuring out where we were and where we’d been.

Sundial, Flagstaff Hill

Tonight, we have the job of packing everything up and saying goodbye to Northland. Our flights tomorrow take us to Nelson, South Island.

The Adventure Continues>>>