The Far North...

Our first ‘holiday’ away in NZ was to northland for a few days. We travelled up in our camper van, Dubbin, and stayed in Kamo (the campsites are virtually empty in spring and so we had no trouble with space or facilities).

The next day we travelled up to the Bay of Islands where we stopped at Paihia and took the ferry across to Russel, the first capital of New Zealand. Here we had a look around the lovely small town and stopped for lunch looking out across the bay. When we returned we travelled the short distance north to Waitangi, the site of the Treaty between the native Maori people and the English government.

The weather started to become more unsettled as we travelled on to Keri-Keri, where some of the country’s oldest standing buildings are to be found. The Stone Store and Kemp House are part of the New Zealand Historic Places Trust, which allows free access to National Trust members from the UK (as long as you remember to take your card).

We continued on up the coast until we teach Kaitia where we contacted Nick and got directions to their place. Nick is an old friend from when I went to school here in NZ, and he lives in an old converted country farmhouse with Carol and their eight children, the youngest having been born only a few months earlier.

We spent the weekend here and joined in with the family activities around the home, walked up into the hills and bush, played football, and fished for eels in the river. They have a wonderful family atmosphere and everyone pulls together sharing chores and responsibilities. Carol is a superb home keeper and teacher and Nick can make just about anything with his hands. We had a lovely time and we arranged to visit them again as soon as we could.

After leaving our friends we travelled down to the beautiful Hokianga harbour where we paused to admire the stunning scenery. From there we entered the primeval Waipoua forest to camp the night at the DOC site. The next day we walked to visit some of the magnificent Kauri trees before continuing on our way.

Our last stop was at a coastal campsite at the Mangawhai Heads where there a large spectacular surf beaches.

We had a great break, even if it was too short.