23-29 July The harsh realities of Southern Hemisphere winter

Auckland and Bay of Islands, New Zealand

Central Business District, Auckland - it is cold here!

We spent our first day in Auckland finding our bearings and also spending lots of time at iSite, the official New Zealand tourist information. We have decided to do a circular tour of the North Island, visiting the Bay of Islands, the Coromandel Peninsula, Bay of Plenty which is the wine growing region, Wellington, and the mountainous central part of the island as well as Rotorua. We have also hired a car at less than £10/ day.


Although it is mid-winter in New Zealand it is mild in Auckland and also quite dry. From what we can see on the news it is better to be in New Zealand in winter than in rain drenched Britain in the middle of summer.


While we were in Auckland we visited Auckland museum and saw a fantastic performance of the haka. We can understand why the early European settlers were terrified of the Maori when they performed the haka. We have also bought a computer! It means that we are able to upload photos to the blog and hopefully also be able to update it more regularly.


On our way north to the Bay of Islands we stopped to visit the Tiri Tiri Matanga bird reserve. It is a small island north west of Auckland where all natural predators have been removed allowing rare birds like the kiwi to survive. We saw lots of exotic birds including the colourful, flightless Takahae which is a bit like a bird version of a cow. It spends all its time eating grass.

Grazing takahae

On our way up to the Bay of Islands we got the full taste of New Zealand's narrow, winding and hilly roads where dual carriageways are the exception rather than the norm. Our heap of junk on wheels is not helping the situation. We try to stay close to the speed limit which is usually 100/kph, but even with the gas pedal in the floor the car struggles to reach 60/kph. You get what you pay for and when you pay less than £10 per day it will not be a car that moves fast.

Interior of Maori meeting house, Waitanga Treaty Grounds

We are staying in Russell, a small tourist town that is very quiet because it is middle of winter. In the early 1800s it was known as the hell hole of the pacific and Charles Darwin on his visit here described its residents as "the refuse of society". These days Russell is a gentrified tourist town with enormous mansions lining the ridge above the town. Only a couple of miles from here is Waitanga where the treaty between England and New Zealand was signed in 1840.

Russell, Bay of Islands