The Eye of the Storm- Glenfalls

Dare I say it? We are parked in the 'eye of the storm' for a couple of days, a speck of quiet peacefulness between the hustle & bustle of Mt Maunganui & the Christmas chaos that will be Napier.  We're at one of our favourite DOC camps; Glenfalls, which is not far off the Napier-Taupo Road alongside the Mohaka River.

It’s very peaceful with just birdsong & the gentle burbling of the river in the background as company (oh and a few insect sounds, I just heard my first locust for the season & chased out a mighty big blowfly). Only a handful of vans were here overnight and they had all left by mid morning just as the sun came out from behind the clouds. We now have the place to ourselves.

Or so I thought. Around the corner of the van came a cocky ‘Bear Grylls’ and his phone full of trout photos. We had spoken to him last evening when we arrived; he was parked near the spot we wanted but was just leaving. His tent was further up the road at one of the other DOC camps along the Mohaka. He called in today to show David what he’d caught; the photo was of a trout being cooked in a frypan, the head & tail overhanging the sides. David couldn’t decide if the frypan was small or the trout large!

No doubt later this afternoon we’ll be joined by more overnighters and perhaps a few weekenders escaping the pre-Christmas rush.

Approaching Glenfalls last evening

It’s great to be back in Hawke's Bay, it’s obviously been a good winter as it’s so green everywhere and the paddocks are overflowing with lush pasture, there'll be some haymaking to be done soon enough. A little different to the last time we came through when all the hills were dried to a crisp tinder.

I'm sure there's going to be a few frustrated travellers on the Napier-Taupo Road over the holiday period. The Mohaka Bridge is down to single lane with lights on either end and a speed restriction as they strengthen the bridge. We waited around five minutes for the lights to change and there was quite a queue forming behind us. I doubt that everyone would get through on a light change during the busy times.