Roadtrip part 2 - the final chapter

After our river-crossing hot springs adventure, Rosie and I bid farewell to the gang and hit the road. The plan was to explore the East Cape, which is accessible by one main road that snakes around the whole thing along the coast, with state forest backing onto it. The scenery was pretty spectacular the whole way.



On the first night, we were determined to get some good fish and chips and find a spot to camp near the beach. When I say 'we', I mean I. Rosie agreed, though. This was a no camping area, but look at the horse! Lots of horses around here. People ride them to the shops.



Jackpot! We found this place as we rolled into Tolaga Bay.



They did not disappoint. Wrapped in newspaper and everything. We took them to the beach.



It was worth the wait.



Doesn't get much better than this. Can't think of any suitable puns, but it is a pretty suggestive scene.



Double rainbow! We had spotted one of these on our way in and knew it was a sign that this was the place for us.



We set up camp nearby, between two flowering pohutukawa trees.



Our campsite also was next to a graveyard. Spooky? Not really. I was cool with it. Note the horses in the background. They're everywhere.



We borrowed Sam and Jessica's blow-up mattress to sleep on in the back of the car. It was a bit squishy and ridiculous in there, and to make matters worse, we had lost the mosquito repellent and the little buggers were everywhere! No ghosts to speak of, though.



After a morning swim, we had a bit of a look around the township. It's a nice place! Wish we could have stayed on for a while (in a better bed).



It even had a skatepark! A multi-spined affair.



We drove on, to another amazing bay that starts with T. This one was even better! We swam. The water was cold but lovely.



We had a hot tip that they did big ice creams at the dairy. It proved to be correct. I sampled an NZ delicacy - goodie goodie gum drops ice-cream. Delectable! I also enjoyed jelly tips.



This beach doesn't look that flash, but the water was lovely and warm.



Interesting van



We made it all the way around the Cape in two days. It was a ridiculously beautiful, endlessly winding road. We managed to get a bach (beach house - what's the deal with bach - is that like beach without the e?) for the night in a touristy town at the end of it. It was a cool little place!



Lots of driftwood washes up on the beach here. People make crazy structures out of them that wouldn't look out of place in a Melbourne artist-run gallery. This one got the seal of approval from a passing JRT.



Gen told us to check out the geothermal thingees outside of Rotorua. I'm glad she did, because they are freaking incredible!



It was like being on another planet. A stinky planet.



The shock factor was starting to wear off when we came across this bright lime green lake. Absolutely amazing.





Nearby was a bubbling mud pool, like the swamps of sadness.



We stopped at an exciting waterfall/rapids.



We also stopped in Foxton, the home of Foxton Fizz softdrinks and once the home of Caroline Anderson. It was like the whole town had been art directed by Caroline, in fact.



The enigmatic Mona Rosie



Stopped for chips again at a chip shop Rosie went to when she was ten years old. This impressive tire swing was near the beach. I wanted a go, but there were some teenagers sitting in the tree and I didn't want disturb their summery chats.



Our last beach for the holiday



And that was it! It was a great holiday. Stay tuned for more adventures.

Roadtrip part 1

Ah, New Zealand. It's all over now. Sayonara, Aotearoa. We're back, safely ensconced in Melbourne life. My feet are on Tess as I type this. But we had some times over there! Postcard times. Let me walk you through some of them.



On new year's eve, we all went to see Sam's band the Phoenix Foundation play. It was the first time I'd seen them live and they were really impressive. I would say that, wouldn't I? But seriously, they were great. Sam told me he spotted me taking photos while they were playing.



Ned, Dins and Rosie



Max squared, enjoying the show.



Jan and Emily were letting their (short) hair down with their mates.



"I love you man"



Backstage VIP area. Sorry Jessica!



Meanwhile, back in the forest near Tom and Averil's, the taggers had been busy.



We packed up the car in preparation for our big road trip. Lulu thought she was coming, but she was sadly mistaken.



We dropped in at Helen's place, where many Scwalkerlongs were still in attendance and up to no good, including Harry.



We connected over an idea to make a huge origami frog, then he and Archie both grabbed my legs when we were leaving. Touching stuff. I nearly fell over while taking this photo. Not afraid to put myself on the line for art.



We drove to Sally and Bruce's farm in the countryside. They greeted us with open arms, fresh lamb and lots of red wine.



Sally is Rosie's auntie. Bruce became a sort of god to us. He kissed me on the head.



Cousin Stu shot this stag. It was the biggest one shot in 2010 apparently.



We slept in the handsomely kitted-out shearers quarters. I couldn't believe I wasn't hungover the next morning! Everyone wore denim shirts because we were city people in the country and that's the done thing.



On our way up to stay in Sally and Bruce's other farmhouse, we stopped for a walk in an old forest, which Bruce described to us as "some good sticks".



Max is a fun guy.



Moody album cover shot



The other farmhouse was kind of creepy



Even the water tank was scary



I busied myself drinking multiple cups of tea and reading Bruce's back issues of Hunting magazine.



The plan was to drive to some hot springs, but this river crossing was pretty much in the dangerous red zone. We were going to punk it, but Jake threw a big boulder in as a test of the strength of the river and it was swept away like a scale model of our car. When we rang Bruce, he surprised us by advising us to leave it until the next day.



So we went back to the house and watched Wedding Crashers.



This hedgehog sauntered past. Very cute. Apparently, if they're getting around by themselves during the day, that means they're a bit sick. poor little bugger.



Went for a walk and saw what looked like a body under a tree. Spooky!



The next day, we went back to the river and drove right over it, moments after this photo was taken. Turns out the car wasn't quite in gear, and we stopped two thirds of the way across, but we made it in the end. However, as we gingerly drove along the crazy mountain road, each car we encountered was smaller and less well-equipped than the last, leaving us in no doubt to what we were - a bunch of cowardly city kids. Not even Bruce could save us from that harsh reality.



After all that, there were a bunch of people in the hot springs. We almost turned back.



But they politely left as soon as we arrived. We bathed to our hearts' content. It was pretty sweet.



Afterwards, we went down to the nearby river and dunked ourselves in the freezing water.



I was feeling pretty darned relaxed, though I had to stay alert because of the heroic driving and such.



Then Rosie and I went on our road trip, but I will save that for next time.