Whangerei

The next part of our logistics now in motion, we piled into our rented car, and headed north, on a mission to see a bit of the country, to begin our search of where to settle for the year. We traveled up the eastern coast of the North Island, into the Northland province, a combination of rocky coasts, with rolling pastoral hills packed with sheep and cattle.

We stayed for two nights in Tamaterau near Whangerei (near these gorgeous waterfalls, and tree fern forests...), in a funny little 'holiday park' - a term we've learned means a privately owned collection of campsites, campervan hookups, and small cabins. New Zealand has some complicated new camping regulations in place, aimed at keeping its huge influx of tourists (3 million a year, which seems like a ton, given that NZ's resident population is just 4.5 million) from demolishing its fragile ecosystems. We were really happy to see these conservation regulations in place, but missed being able to camp more freely. The regulations have the effect of really concentrating everyone - there will be miles of beautiful protected land with no one at all in sight at all. And then suddenly, a densely packed acre or two, filled with campervans, RVs, and tents, all tucked within a few feet of one another. So tightly packed that during this last high season, we read newspaper reports of dysentery running through some of the most popular holiday parks. Luckily, the one we found near Whangerei was on the small side. But still, we pretty quickly decided we liked the Department of Conservation (more wild, less commercial) campgrounds much better....

We spent a few days in Whangerei, explored the giant kauri trees, the amazing waterfalls, and the super-green of this lush temperate rainforest before starting our way back south again.