We got up early again and went to Waitomo Caves early so that we could get the better tour. We arrived right at 9am but managed to get on the first tour. As it turned out there was only one other person so we had a pretty personalized tour. The tour was quite fascinating looking at some of the stalactites which were 3-4 meters long and the being told that they grow at a rate of cm per 100 years. We also saw the glow worms - they seemed like thousands of stars in ...

We were up early at the Trounson campground and headed south to Matakohe and the Kauri Museum. We arrived there just as it opened and spent 3 hours roaming through it. It is much bigger than the last time I was there and now includes a working sawmill and a townsite made of kauri wood. It is truly a fascinating place to visit and one can learn so much about NZ history there. We then headed south through Auckland but didn't find a campsite until we were south of H...

We were up early and left our campsite in Paihia and headed slightly north to KeriKeri to see the stone store and the oldest house in NZ. It was a beautiful day and we took the tour of the site which was very informative. The site was the first area where there was a long term relationship between the Maori and the Europeans. Hone Heke, the principal Maori chief looked after the missionaries and John Butler built the Keri Keri Mission house in 1821. The stone sto...

We were up at 5:30 for a 7:00 pm pickup by NZ Adventure for a trip to the northernmost part of the North Island. Our driver, Paul was a very entertaining fellow who recounted the social and geological history all along the route. I had done this trip with a company called Fullers, but this company was leap years better in service and interesting visits to places. We stopped at a place called Gumdiggers Park which is situated in an area which played a significant ...

Last night was our first night in the camper van. Lots of getting used to, especially for me. Like don't try and climb out of a sleeping berth facing forward. I woke everyone up as I fell onto the table smashing it off the wall. Today Gary said to me that I needed a safety harness. Only problem was that he said just as Jean took a mouthful of apple cider which was immediately expelled through her nose and all over me as she started laughing. We were up at 6am to ...