Cruising into a Crisis; Part 1

Real-time

It's very hard to comprehend how much the world, our world, has changed since this photo was taken just one month ago. As we usually do on our way to and from Napier, we called into one of favourite campsites for a couple of nights before continuing on to say cheerio to Mum & Dad in Napier.

Night Sky- Glenfalls

Glenfalls DOC camp is beside the Mohaka River and not too far off the Napier-Taupo Road. We'd wanted to stop for one last camp at Glenfalls before we returned to the South Island. It could be 18 months or so before we'll be back in the North Island. We'd also been having some exceptionally hot days (35c+) and the thought of cooling off in the river was very enticing.

We'd spent the previous few weeks in Tauranga after making a dash up the country in mid January from Lake Benmore in the Mackenzie District where we'd be having a lovely time waiting for the summer heat to kick in. We needed to sort our gear out which we'd had in storage for the last 8 years, we'd gone unconditional on a property we bought in Twizel, with settlement in mid-April.

We were going to whittle down our gear and only take essential items & furniture to Twizel. As it turned out we decided to ship it all to Twizel and sort it there; finding somewhere to sort it in Tauranga, the triple handling, disposing of furniture we didn't want and even the extremely hot days, all worked against us. Crown Furniture Removals came and filled two containers; yes, we did have a lot of gear! The containers were then shipped off to Christchurch where they will be held until we take over the property.

Sunrise- Matata Lagoon

Happy to have that all sorted we spent the rest of the time catching up with family & friends, staying at the Mount Holiday Park and the Matata DOC Camp to escape the sweltering heat and visiting friends in Kawerau before heading off to Napier.

Grandchildren, Maddie & Joel enjoying a Sunday paddle at Sulphur Point, Tauranga

Towards the end of our first week in Napier, I started to feel a little anxious about getting back to the South Island. New Zealand's first case of Covid-19 virus was about two weeks old and new cases were still in single figures. All of them had been traced back to overseas travel and there were no cases of community transmission. Yet.

I just had a niggling feeling of wanting to be across the Strait and in the South Island should anything happen. What? I had no idea. Like most people, never in my wildest dreams (David's favourite saying) did I think a lockdown would happen. Heck, I don't even think we knew what a lockdown was or what it would entail a week ago.

Ferry Landing Reserve, Ballance Bridge & the Manawatu River- Woodville

When WHO (World Health Organisation) declared an official pandemic on Wednesday, March 11th, I felt it was time for us to make a plan. I booked our crossing with Bluebridge for Thursday, March 19th and this time, for the very first time, I also booked a cabin. I have no idea why, it wasn't because of the virus, that didn't seem such a threat then. I just felt it would give us a place to rest after an early start. And as it turned out, it was very fortuitous. 

From March 14th, many large gatherings and events were cancelled and all people entering New Zealand had to self-isolate for 14 days. But there are still only 8 confirmed Covid-19 cases in the country. 

Titahi Bay Boatsheds, Wellington- South Side

We still weren't in any rush though, we said our goodbyes to Mum & Dad and headed out of Napier on Monday 16th. We stopped overnight in the freedom camping area at Ferry Landing Reserve near Woodville and then travelled onto the Plimmerton NZMCA Park for the next two nights. We'd leave for the ferry from there. I even had time to photograph the Titahi Bay Boat Sheds, something I'd been wanting to do everytime we passed through Wellington but had never had the chance.

Titahi Bay Boatsheds, Wellington- North Side

Thursday, March 19th. There were now twenty eight Covid-19 cases confirmed and over 7000 people self-isolating (or meant to be, with reports coming in of people arriving in the country and still sightseeing). That cabin earnt it's weight in gold as we self-isolated away from other passengers.

Canada Geese & Onepoto Road Boat Sheds, Porirua Harbour

I was still a little anxious about the crossing and whether I'd chosen a good day to sail. I don't usually book until 2-3 days out just in case there's a major weather event or a southerly blowing. Luckily we had a very smooth crossing and I felt a great sense of relief when we pulled into Picton, not only because of the good weather but we'd also made it back to the otherside. 

Rumours were swirling around on various motorhoming social media pages that the Cook Strait might close, many people had started to worry that the ferries would stop running and they'd not get home. Others also said that the Government would never close Cook Strait. Hmmm....I wasn't so sure.

Lake Grassmere Salt Ponds

Obviously others thought the same as me, there were many motorhomers lined up at the Picton ferry terminals and parked up in town waiting to cross back to the North Island.

February & March are the height of the holiday season for many retired motorhomers; the Christmas and New Year rush is over, children are back at school and families have returned to their home bases, the weather is usually much more settled and the South Island is a premium destination to visit at this time of the year.

Harvesting salt at Lake Grassmere Salt Works

Adding to the usual influx of motorhomers to the South Island, the NZMCA National Rally & AGM was held in Oamaru in early March, with the occupants of a several hundred extra motorhomes attending the rally and then continuing on to Warbirds Over Wanaka, the Bluff Oyster Festival and Arrowtown Autumn Festival just to mention a few.  All of these events had been cancelled in the previous few days due to restrictions around the gatherings of large crowds.

Marfells Beach DOC Camp, Marlborough

We called into the Blenheim Racecourse as we had a couple of errands to do in town and thought we'd stay the night there but when we saw how full the park was we decided to carry on south and stay at the DOC camp at Marfells Beach. We'd do the errands when we reached Christchurch.

We had a late lunch parked on the side of the racecourse drive, all the while motorhomes just kept on arriving. And we sensed a quiet urgency in the orderly stream of 40-50 RVs heading north on State Highway 1 during our 32km trip south to the Marfells Beach turnoff. We waved as they streamed past, waving extra hard as we spotted friends & on-the-road acquaintances heading in the opposite direction.

I started to relax a little once we were parked up on our usual site at the end of the Marfell's camp. We then heard that the government had closed our borders to all but New Zealand citizens and permanent residents, things were starting to ramp up. But still we had no idea what was to come.

Wild spinach would have provided campers with plenty of greens
 if the camp had been open during lock-down.

We thought we'll be fine now that we're in the South Island, we even decided to spend a couple of days at Marfells; it was lovely, warm and sunny and there was no hurry to get to Twizel. Settlement was still three weeks away.

But nature decided otherwise and we woke to a howling gale and the rig being sandblasted so we made the decision to pull out and head to Kaikoura.

To be continued....Part 2

Back 'Out There' & Heading North

Real-time

Finally we are back on the road; we left Napier feeling a little sad having to say goodbye to Mum & Dad after spending two months on their backdoor step. We'll miss Mum's lovely home cooked meals and our happy hours with them both, along with long hot showers and the washing machine! But it was time to move on, and I'm sure I heard Dad say "Thank God they've gone" as we pulled out (getting his own back with a family saying that's said as we wave visitors off from camp).

After four days of heavy rain, the weather had cleared and the sun shone; real Hawkes Bay sunshine although there was a nip in the air. And once we were on the Napier-Taupo Road we could see why, the Kaweka Range had a lovely coating of spring snow on it.

The road had been closed several times during the rain storm but other than a little bit of flooding here and there and the odd bare cliff face where a slip had come down this was the only Stop/Go  section on the road.

We'd decided to do short trips each day as we eased our way back into travelling (actually we had an appointment in Tauranga two days later so there was no hurry). The Central Plateau mountains looked spectacular at the bottom of the lake...

...as we headed to the NZMCA Taupo Park near the airport for the night. We parked in the exact same spot as we'd parked just two months prior when we had smoked trout for lunch with friends Amanda & Paul who happen to be touring the States in their motorhome at the moment. I messaged her that we had the billy boiled and where the heck were they.

Next morning it was onto the Ngongotaha NZMCA Park in Rotorua for the night. We like to stay hitched when we're stopping overnight so it's quick and easy to pull out the next morning. But it does depend on how level the sites are, it's no good if the nose has to be lowered because it can't go any lower than the fifth-wheel hitch in the back of the ute.

Tauranga was out next port of call, we had an appointment in the city but, hmm....where to leave 'Out There' for a couple of hours in a busy city. We had a quick look along the side streets near where our appointment was but we should have known better, they were all full (and the roads very narrow). So it was off to a very familiar carpark at the Bridge Marina and not too far from our old boat berth which set me off reminiscing.  

On the way over we also checked out the carpark in front of our old office building at Sulphur Poinr but with such a perfect day the carparks there were full of boaties' cars and trailers and the six or so free camping spaces there were all taken (not that we were intending to stay overnight, just for a few hours). 

We had lunch overlooking the marina and I also managed to take a few photos of the calm waters; by the time we arrived back to collect the van, the afternoon breeze had kicked in and the beautiful reflections were gone.

We made it out of the city before the afternoon traffic peaked although that Tauranga-Katikati road is never not busy. It was a relief when we pulled out of the traffic and headed down a quite country lane to our next overnight stop at Tuapiro Reserve just north of Katikati.

This is one of the many freedom camping sites located throughout the city and around the district that the Western Bay of Plenty & Tauranga City Councils oversee. This is a win/win situation for all concerned (and one many other councils should take note of); we get to camp in places that overlook some spectacular scenery...

Overlooking Bowentown, Matakana Island and straight out the the entrance from the inner harbour.

...and the councils get to have honorary security guards over-nighting in quiet, end of the road reserves. I'm sure this arrangement has curtailed much of the unsavory activities that sometimes happen in these out of the way places. Tuapiro Reserve is one of the larger areas and camping is allowed in three areas of the carpark, there is also a maximum 3 night stay here. Our neighbours for the night were a convoy of three small car and caravan units and three campervans who arrived later on in the evening.

The Tauranga Inner Harbour has extensive tidal mudflats at low ride and at this end you can hardly see the channel from the reserve. And in fact up near Omokoroa it's possible to walk (and sometimes drive) across to Matakana Island. In our early days of sailing the harbour we were once caught out by the quickly departing tide and had to sit it out for quite a few hours until the tide turned and we were released from the seabed's muddy grip. 

The mudflats are a great place for a variety of shore and sea birds to fish for their dinner, here a wary Kingfisher/Kotare keeps an eye on me as he waits for a crab or small fish to poke it's head out from it's mud home.

I'm pleased to report that sunrises are still on the menu! The new blinds, while darker than their predecessors, didn't filter out all the early morning glow which was a surprise given that this sunrise had an eerie haze over it.

From Katikati we continued north, our next stop was another familiar site although it's been a few years since our last visit to Rays Rest on the Seabird Coast near Miranda. Miranda is on the lower western side of the Firth of Thames, it's a very important place for migratory wading birds and in particular the Bar Tailed Godwit & Red Knot. They are attracted to the food found on the 8500 hectares of tidal mudflats. 

Being not too far from Auckland, Rays Rest is a very popular site with many people using it as a stop-over on their way out of or into Auckland. Others also come here for a short break away (2 night maximum stay), fishing and bird watching are popular pastimes.

I recall our first visit to Rays Rest was not long after we purchased the rig (nearly 6 years ago) and had made the decision to hit the road full-time. I remember thinking how surreal it was to be sitting watching TV right next door to this view out the door. It doesn't quite feel so surreal now, more the norm but no less amazing to think we have a different view out our front door every week and often every night.

And it's not only the different views that we get to enjoy; it's also the varied sights and slices of New Zealand life you come across too. It's not often that a herd of cattle munch their way past your kitchen window as you're preparing lunch.

The next day dawned cold and overcast and I couldn't blame the sunrise glow for waking me this morning. The sun rose on the other side of the Coromandel and didn't look like it was going to make its way over to us at all so once we were up and about we made the decision to continue onwards and upwards...

...to the NZMCA Park at Ardmore Airport which is on the outskirts of the big smoke, Auckland City. The sun was shining and the park was busier than we thought it would be, given that there has been a recent ban on dogs being allowed here which has stopped many from visiting. 

The last time we stayed here was again, way back at the beginning of our journey and in fact if I recall rightly the Park had only just opened. We were the only ones in for a couple of nights and we parked horizontal along the front fenceline overlooking the runway, now a big no-no because the Parks are so busy! We had a little smile to ourselves as we recalled our newbie exuberance.

And here's a sunset to finish the blog; taken from Ardmore on Friday night. The sun still has that weird haze cover two days later, although I suspect it might be a bit of big city smog.

Mt Maunganui Roundup

Catch-up

Well, so much for catching up, I've had all the time in the world but somehow I've managed to get further behind! Oh well, no worries, I'm back here now and I should be able to move through the last month or so quite quickly due to us having stayed put for longer periods and not exploring so much.

It was great to be back 'home' at the Mount and parked up on the harbour side of the Mount Campground. We would have preferred to be in the section just below us but as it was the end of term, the bottom section was reserved for a number of school camps. 

Our Tauranga family towed their caravan across the bridge and joined us for the first weekend which was fabulous; we didn't have to fight the traffic back and forward to catch up with them (we had enough of that later in the stay- the traffic problem has grown ten-fold since we left the Bay over 5 years ago and we even noticed a big difference in just the few months since our last visit). 

It was lovely to see Maddie & Joel again, they've growing up so fast. Here they are watching the smoker do it's business; our tenting neighbours caught a kahawai of the Pilot Bay wharf, they were going out for dinner so passed it on to us which was very kind of them. We smoked it and shared it around at happy-hour.

The weather wasn't the best for the first couple of weeks; cloudy, cold and very windy but it often cleared each evening just as the sun went down; a golden strip of sunshine lighting up the ships berthed across the harbour.

There were  a couple of days when the prevailing westerly wind turned gale force and created a bit of havoc in Pilot Bay, blowing the hire catamarans out onto the road and crushing a couple of signs in the process. A hire boat company's trailer was also blown across the carpark and into the side of a parked car and a dinghy washed ashore from one of the moored yachts. 

There was a mad scramble in the school camp below us to get their 20 odd tents down before they were blown to smithereens. They managed about a half of them before the storm and heavy rain hit with full force. Sadly the camp was cut short and they had to call up the buses from Rotorua to come and pick them up.

Once the school camps had finished and school holidays started we were able to shift down to our preferred site on the lower level and that is where we stayed for the duration...

...watching all manner of RVs and boats coming and going around us. And as much as we love being out the back of beyond there's nothing quite like being right in the middle of the hustle and bustle of a busy Mount (for a short time anyway).

Photos; Clockwise- 1)What a beast! A brand new American job, 2) The ocean-side camp was full most nights, a definite trend with more RVs (both private & hire) on the road year round now, 3) A ute & trailer combination camper for a family of four, 4) Another beast, it's not often you see a tractor and trailer unit with a large boat travelling down Pilot Bay, it's mostly tinnies and jet skies. 5) A school group prepare to cross the harbour (just before another storm blows in) & 6) The car-carrier Courageous Ace came and went several times during our stay.

This Sealegs needed it's own photo story; it was parked on a small traffic island near the boat ramp, the occupants had climbed out and wandered off down the road. I saw them later at one of the cafes on the Main Beach. I like to think they motored over from Tauranga (beating the traffic), pulled up on the kerb and met friends for lunch!  

The Mount Hot Pools were busy morning, noon and night helped along by cool weather, school holidays, regular aqua aerobics and 'Soak'n Sunday Sounds when patrons could enjoy a relaxing soak while listening to a live music from a local artist. I took this from up the top of the camp when I went to check the moon rise (clouds in the way).

We were due to leave the Mount the week before ANZAC day but had an appointment change which meant we'd have to stay a little longer, something I was secretly pleased about. I'd always wanted to attend an ANZAC Dawn Service at the Mount but had never managed to do it when we lived in Tauranga. With the campground just around the corner from the Cenotaph it made perfect sense to finally attend. 

My girlfriend who lives just across the road from the camp said she'd come with us and invited us back for breakfast afterwards and I made ANZAC biscuits to have with our coffee later. Whenever we stay at the Mount, I text her and say 'Howdy neighbour' and she knows I'm back in town and there's a wine waiting.

It was a very mild morning (even though most came wrapped up warmly) with thousands of people quietly making the pilgrimage through the dark streets towards the glowing red Cenotaph which sits on the sand dunes opposite Mt Drury, overlooking the most perfect beach and coastline.

The parade was led by a lone piper, Angela Dixon and Mt Maunganui College's Ella Cox sang the New Zealand national anthem and later a beautiful rendition of Chris Skinner's 'Sons of Gallipoli'

"We sang - God of Nations at thy feet.

As we stood on that sacred shore

With a heartfelt pride

Somewhere deep inside

For the sons of Gallipoli...."

The 6am service was shorter than we'd expected and there were a few chuckles from the crowd for such a sombre occasion- it started 5 minutes earlier than stated and one of the singers hadn't managed to push her way through the crowd to the stage. Then a sound speaker died and crackled in and out of speeches. And later when it did spark back into life, a stage whisper was caught from the 'top table' which set us all off giggling. 

Shades of blue and black gave way to a deep orange sunrise as dawn broke over the horizon and the service finished as a lone Harvard bomber with its throaty roar, flew in from the ocean straight over the top of us. 

Later in the afternoon, with many people out enjoying the sunshine,  I wandered back along the Main Beach...

...back to the Cenotaph to check out the floral tributes that had been left.

There'd also been a 9:30am Memorial Service and more planes had flown over while we were having breakfast.

Later in the week, and feeling sorry for myself because I was missing Central Otago's wonderful autumn colours this year, I thought I'd head up to McLaren Falls to see if there was some colour up there. 

Fifteen minutes from Tauranga and just off the Kaimai highway, McLaren Falls Park is 190 hectares of beautiful parkland popular for camping, fishing, kayaking, picnics and bush walks. It is also home to one of the best botanical collections of trees in New Zealand.

There are two branches to McLaren Falls, one is fed over a dam wall from Lake McLaren which is inside the park (above) and the other from the nearby Namuwahine River (below). Three days after I took these photos there wasn't a rock to be seen as a raging torrent of brown water roared over the falls as another rain storm hit the Bay of Plenty- a video of it was posted on a Facebook page I belong to.

And just to get perspective did you see the children playing on the rocks in the first photo (there are four- look for the boy under the girl in blue) and the two boys on their bikes in the photo above. Click on the photos to enlarge.

There was some subtle colour inside the park.....or perhaps I have just got used to the amazing golden yellows, bright oranges and fiery reds of a Central Otago autumn.

Even the Swamp Cyprus' didn't seem as rusty orange as I remember them.

Coromandel here we come...