Friday, 3rd May 2024 - Auckland to Paihia

Up nice and early this morning for a buffet breakfast at the Pullman before heading back to the airport and our hire car - the usual buffet that one can get anywhere but at least they had real coffee to go with it.

We booked the car through Europcar and were going to settle for a Kia Seltos but were "convinced" by the man at the desk to take a plug-in hybrid Kia Sorento as we would save considerably on fuel costs - an excellent idea in theory except there turned out to be nowhere that we could plug in "easily" in either Paihia or Rotarua so the plug-in bit didn't work out.  Despite that it was a lovely car to drive and as a hybrid was pretty efficient - so no complaints.

Mind you, with all the building work happening at the airport we did have something to complain about.  At the moment, the hire cars are about a 1km walk from the airport which was a bit of a pain with our luggage.  Fortunately, we only have a single suitcase each.

It was a bit of a challenge getting out of the airport but once on the expressway, it was a straightforward drive north even if we did have to go through the centre of Auckland.  

At Maungaturoto we left the main road north and headed west as our intent was to run up the west coast as far as Omarere before turning east to Paihia.

We had thought about going through the Kauri Museum at Matakohe but as it was a long drive decided to push on for a walk to the top of Tokatoka Peak.  Was probably a bad decision as the track was a bit wet and slippery and the climb quite steep - more of an issue coming down than going up.  The outlook for the peak was pretty impressive all the same but we were a bit exhausted by the time we got down again.  They take their biosecurity pretty seriously in New Zealand and at the base of the peak we came across the first of many "cleaning stations" where you are asked to cleanse your boots before proceeding.

We called into Dargaville for a late lunch at the Blah Blah Blah Cafe (and very nice it was) before heading north again to Tāne Mahutu in the Waipoura Forest (the largest remaining tract of native forest in this part of the world).  Tāne Mahuta is New Zealand's largest kauri tree, which is approximately 2,000 years old and still growing. Nearly 18 metres to the first branch and 4.4 metres in diameter, Tāne Mahuta is rightly called 'The Lord of the Forest' and is quite a spectacle.  While there we talked to the ranger about the challenges to the Kauri forests.  Apparently, dieback is a real issue and the reason for the cleansing station - quite an elaborate one here.  While the cleansing station encourages humans to do the right thing it unfortunately doesn't prevent other intruders - rats and possums (neither native to New Zealand) from adding to the dieback issue.

From Omapera we headed east initially along the shores of Hokianga Harbour then through the forest to arrive at Piahia around 5.00pm.  Our accommodation for the next week is Busby Manor Resort.  A fairly basic spot just across the road from the beach.  Room is quite adequate - a bit squishy but comfy with everything we need.