Guess what...we are finally in the South Island!

Oh hi guys!

Sorry for my absence in blog writing. We've been pretty busy and it's been hard to find signal recently! We are staying in a paid camp tonight to wash our stash of laundry and ourselves! Man a hot shower feels good when you haven't showered in a while/been committing to a cold outdoor shower!

Anyway, in my last blog I mentioned that we were on the road again. Well, we have been busy! The end of harvest party was fun by the way! A good ol' bbq and plenty beer. Scott and I even got a shout out for always being so happy! We did love the kumaras! 

After leaving Dargaville (and Scott's hat - we drove off with our hats on the roof, mine survived the 15 minute journey but Scott's sadly didn't), we headed over to Whangarei. We met a lovely gentleman in Dargaville and we went to stay with him and his mum. A lovely welcoming family. We then headed back to Gulf Harbour to stay with our NZ family for a couple nights. A couple nights ended up being two weeks because we ended up dog sitting! It was lovely to relax, wash all the kumara off our clothes, use the jacuzzi, go to the cinema to see new Avengers (crucial) and explore the areas around there e.g. Shakespear National Park and Devonport. We also took the ferry from Gulf Harbour over to Auckland CBD to meet up with a friend. Just before we hit the road again, I got busy in the kitchen. I made two roast veg frittatas - one with salami in for Scott. I also made lemon drizzle squares, flourless chocolate torte and cranberry, white chocolate, peanut and raisin cookies. They ended up lasting us two weeks! Brilliant! We were then ready to head off. We drove past Auckland towards Hamilton with one stop in Onewhero to see a beautiful waterfall. We spent two nights in Hamilton at a free camp -  a stadium carpark. We really liked Hamilton - there was a lovely river to walk along, a great musuem, a huge lake to walk around and the most amazing gardens - all based around various collections which provide a window into the story of civilisations, their arts, beliefs and lifestyle. It was truly amazing. I loved the Italian Renaissance and Chinese Scholars' Garden. 

We then hit the coast - Raglan - a surfing town. It has great vibes - lots of coffee shops and qwirky shops. We will surf at some point! Along the coast sat Mount Karioi - sadly we weren't able to climb it due to mrytle rust. We did wander along the impressive coast though. We headed down the coast where there is a lot to see around Marokopa - caves with fossilized oysters, a waterfall and a natural bridge (two archways carved by water over time). Not forgetting a stopover at the Oparau Roadhouse - a free camp with a bar and shop. The owner is brilliant and even offered us his leftover infamous pies at the end of the night (free pies!). There is a hot water beach nearby in Kawhia. You dig holes in the beach and can bathe in the warm water. We were the only ones brave enough to swim in the very cold water! Next came Te Kuiti, a quick stopover, before heading along the Forgotten Highway. The road is amaaazing. You are driving through amazing valleys and the views are outstanding. It was pretty wet that day and there were quite a few landslides. Stopping in Whangamomona is a must do - a self certified republic. They have this amazing pub with great food! You can even get your passport stamped to say you've been there. This highway took us over to Taranaki. Wow. What a place. New Plymouth is a great city with alot of art and culture. There are many places to freedom camp and a lot of great walks up Mount Taranaki. We stayed/walked around the East and North side. One walk we did from the east side has been one of my fabourite walks - you go through a 'goblin forest' full of old trees and moss, through natural pools, past a lot of waterfalls and over the streams with lots of views up to the Mount. Crazy thunderstorms but what an amazing place to be. You can also drive around the Mount and stop at Cape Egmont Lighthouse. We were keen to get south. We headed straight for Wanganui really, past Palmerston North and onwards to Foxton. Not a place most stop, but we just had to. They have a traditional dutch windmilll built right in the middle of town with a cafe next door - the Dutch Oven. Wow, what a treat. We went a bit overboard in the cafe - enjoying quite a few dutch delicacies before climbing up the windmill and buying a couple extra treats. Scott was in his element! Our last stop before Wellington was an amazing beach - Waikae. With views of Kapiti Island and a bar - that night was memorable! 

Then came Wellington. Many people had told us we'd love Wellington and oh my, didn't we just. So much to see and such a great vibe around the city. Our first stop was Weta Cave - this is a set and costume design workshop, most known for it's work for LOTR. We then found a free camp (a harbour carpark) and left the van there so we could walk around Welly (we were a little nervous doing this but it was fine). We stayed in Welly three nights and commited to the hour walk into town each day. One day we walked 40,000 steps! Like I said, there was so much to see - the Te Papa Museum, Mount Victoria lookout, The Parliament Buildings, Cuba Street shops, the Cable Car up to the Botanics, Art Deco Gallery, Night Market and the Lux light show was on where we were there. We also found quite a few decent eateries, cafes and bars! 'Best Ugly Bagels' was one of my favourite joints! Oh, and I have finally seen some penguins! I saw three in the harbour - yippee! Then on Sunday we made the three hour sail over to the South Island. What an incredible sailing with views through the Sounds. We even saw our first dolphins in NZ! We are in love with the South already. So far, we have been exploring the Sounds - Queen Charlotte and Pelorus. So many 'wows' and this is just the start. We are heading down the West towards Queenstown. Hopefully we survive the sandflies, cold and lack of showers. Man you appreciate a hot shower when you're not having one everyday. We have found a few outdoor cold showers to jump under after a swim in the sea/river/lake. Brrr it takes a while to warm up! It's great being on the road and it's a lot quieter around which is nice. We've been eating bigger meals at lunch to keep us going (and so we can actually see - the sun sets at 5.10PM) and just having a small snack in the evening. I've even made two lots of frittatas at the two paid camps we've stayed at! 'Frittata on the road' Queen! We're only staying at a paid camp to do laundry and cook up food for the road!  Thanks for reading and keep in touch! X gf v x