Wellsford

Trip Start Sep 03, 2007
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133
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Trip End Jun 17, 2009


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Flag of New Zealand  ,
Thursday, June 5, 2008

It had been frosty overnight as we awoke to a bright and sunny morning. Well, this is now officially winter. The car temperature reading was six deg, as we set off south on the 'Twin Coast Highway', so called because it is a circular route that runs on both sides of the narrow Northland. We paused in Kaitaia town to look at an old house that was decorated with tile mosaics.

The rolling countryside took us through big fields of cattle and some sheep, interspersed with small forests. Mid morning we reached the crossing point at 'Kohukohu', where we had nearly an hour to wait for the returning ferry. We sat in the sunshine, watching a couple of kingfishers dive bombing the small fish in the ebbing 'Hikianga Harbour'.

We stopped for lunch at 'Rawene' on the other side of the estuary, sitting out on a café deck over the glistening waters You looking at ME ???
You looking at ME ???
 . A relaxing and peaceful setting.

Onward round the edge of the coast at 'Omapere', where the great coastal sandhills ran down into the sea. An enormous sand bar was causing a great arc of breakers to swell up offshore in the blue sea.

Near 'Waimamaku' we stopped at 'Waipoua Kauri Forest'. The enormous kauri trees, which are special to New Zealand, once covered great areas of the country. The Maoris used them for boat building and housing but it was the Europeans shipbuilding and timber felling of these giants that absolutely decimated them. They are now protected and we were glad of the chance to be able to see these fabulous trees.

The kauri can live for 2000 years, grew up to 60 metres tall and have a 5 metre diameter. We had seen the American Sequoia and have learnt you can only compare like with like, the Kauri being as impressively majestic.

The two biggest are 'The God of the Forest' (Tane Mahuta), which is 51 metres high and 14 metres in girth and 'Father of the Forest' (Te Matua Ngahere) 30 metres high and 17 metres girth I'm ignoring you !
I'm ignoring you !
 . Definitely awesome sights.

The road twisted for 9 miles through the thick tropical forest, with several sights of tall kauris above the other trees.

Passing through smaller hamlets, there were many 'red hot poker' flowers amongst the now fading, colourfull New Zealand flowers in the well kept gardens.

We finally reached 'Wellsford' after dark and found a motel. Not wanting to cook we went out to a local café for a roast chicken and lamb supper, which cost us the princely sum of ten pounds!

Distance driven       300 Km                       186 miles
 
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