Colourful

I’ve been pondering what it means to be colourful, which is a description of me I  frequently hear and which I love because I adore colour and think of it as closely associated with joy.  My love of colour was strengthened during the years I lived in Asia where the colour palette is richly saturated in both the scenery and the clothes that both men and women wear.  Our book about Myanmar, Observing another Culture: our lives in Myanmar, shows how intense the colours of this beautiful country are and how much the people love colour in their clothes, their homes and their celebrations.  While we lived there I adopted traditional dress as workwear.  Here’s a selection of wonderfully colourful clothes I wore to work at the Myanmar Parliament, where both men and women MPs also dressed with great style in exuberant colours.

From 2007-2016 we travelled extensively and were drawn to countries where both the scenery and the people are colourful.  The strong colours of the gentle agrarian way of life in South East Asia, can also be found in southern Europe – in Italy, Spain and France which we have visited many times.  Our book recording those travels is called a World of Colour shares the best of those experiences.

Although I had never been someone who based their wardrobe on corporate black, I was even less likely to wear black after I returned to New Zealand in 2016.  I also love expressing my creativity and love of colour in knitting projects which I think of as painting with yarn.  I love collecting a variety of yarns in a colour family, and planning how to use them together and seeing the fabric come off my needles. Here’s a few of my most colourful knitting projects, mostly from 2018.

Hello 2019; Goodbye 2018

At this time of year I’m reflecting on the year that has just closed and setting goals for the year ahead.  We find ourselves at a cross-roads again, waiting to see what will come next for us. Although we’ve been here before, and we know that it does work out eventually it is challenging to sit with the uncertainty now.  A friend reminded me in a New Year tweet that every year has its good things happen and bad things happen, even when our social media bubble leads us to believe that everyone else lives in a world where only good things happen.

We continue to live purposefully, focused on family and friends, love and laughter, good health and fitness and meaningful work.  We’ve made sure we spend time with those we love, including a family holiday with Moira’s children and their partners in Rarotonga to celebrate a significant birthday. Not to mention – moving to Christchurch to be closer to Ross’ family.  

We’ve also made excellent progress on our health goals, as we both feel fitter and more toner than ever before in our lives.  We spend a lot of time in NZ’s beautiful outdoors which is good for our mental health as well as our physical health.  We love to explore places, both familiar and unfamiliar,.  Since a third of New Zealand is in National Park, tramping boots or an off-road bicycle are great assets when it comes to exploring.

It’s the third of our priorities -interesting and worthwhile work which has delivered challenges in 2018. Various people with better knowledge of recruitment than me tell me that it is quite common for the job search to take a year.  I really hope not.  In the meantime, I’m learning a lot through the process and using the time to reflect and refine my CV and career goals and to think about preparing for the next stage of my worklife.

I’ve had two important coping mechanisms.  One is exploring New Zealand purposefully – as one friend put it – behaving like a tourist in our own land.  We do find ourselves approaching the task of exploring seriously – planning a schedule, doing a major walk or cycle ride every day unless the weather is truly awful, digesting what we have seen and recording our impressions in photographs and words.  In 2018 we’ve explored the Coromandel by bicycle, toured Northland, and then spent 6 weeks mostly on cycle trails as we made our way south from Auckland en-route to Christchurch.  In the South Island we’ve chased the sunshine all the way to Southland to walk the Humpridge Track and then all the way to the northernmost point of the South Island at Farewell Spit to learn about the wildlife there.  Google Maps captured where we’ve been and it shows how much of New Zealand we visited during 2018.

My other coping mechanism is to spend time on creative pursuits.  This year it has mostly been knitting, although I hope to get back to blogging about our travels and creating photo books to help us digest all that we have seen and learnt about our natural environment and history.

We expect 2019 to continue our journey of focusing on love and laughter.  Hopefully with the addition of an interesting job for Moira early in 2019.  And just as much exploring and creativity as possible.

Achieved - a key health goal

Our goals for a better life are more love and laughter, improved health and worthwhile challenging work.  Improved health for both of us has meant working on a less stressful lifestyle, improved fitness and for me – achieving a BMI which is considered healthy – 25 or less. It’s taken me nearly 5 years to achieve this goal and along the journey I’ve lost 20% of my body weight.

The before photo, taken on a cycling trip in Laos, prompted me to “action” and contrasts with a photo taken today to celebrate the goal achieved.  This journey has had such a positive impact on both my physical and mental health, my energy levels are higher, my balance is much better, I feel 20 years younger and I’m fitter, stronger and more toned than I recall being ever before.  I have much more confidence in my ability to complete the long walking tracks and cycle trails that are on my bucket list.

As my goal was about better health I achieved it by the formula of eat less, exercise more – this formula is so simple to write, but much harder to implement.  I always ate healthily, but even more so now, and I eat a lot less. I always exercised, but I exercise a lot more now, especially up hills which gives the benefit of high intensity exercise.  I love to exercise in the great outdoors, preferably in sunshine, but also in wind and rain.  That’s been so good for my mental health as it puts life’s problems into better perspective and reminds me of the glories of nature.

With the benefit of hindsight I wish I’d achieved this health goal much earlier in my life.   I ponder why no health practitioner ever suggested to me that it might benefit my physical and mental health to lose weight.  Most of all, I’m determined to maintain a healthy BMI to facilitate the active lifestyle I’m intend to continue living.

Lake Waikaremoana Great Walk

The walk around Lake Waikaremoana is a 3-4 day walk,  one of NZ’s Great Walks.  It is in a remote area, with astounding geology and wonderful native plants. The area was formed from 10-15 million old sediments of mudstone, siltstone and sandstone, which were originally part of the sea floor, now uplifted above sea level.  The area has been shaped by continuous erosion with major valleys carved from softer mudstones while the bluffs and cliffs are of harder sandstone.  The lake itself is young, formed only 2,200 years ago when a huge landslide created a natural dam across the Waikaretaheke River.  

The ridges and valleys are all covered in lush vegetation, with more than 650 types of native.  The changing patterns of volcanic activity, fire, storm and animal damage create a dynamic environment for the vegetation too.  The lowering of the lake by 5 metres for power generation in 1946 encouraged forest regeneration along the shore.

The stewardship of the land that the Lake Waikaremoana Walk traverses is unique amongst the Great Walks and provides a fascinating resolution of an indigenous land claim to a former National Park.  In 2014 the Te Urewera Act was passed which created Te Urewera as its own legal entity which will own itself in perpetuity with a Board (majority of members from Tuhoe who are the local iwi) to speak as its voice to provide governance and management in accordance with the principles of the Act. Section 3 declares that: “Te Urewera is ancient and enduring, a fortress of nature, alive with history; its scenery is abundant with mystery, adventure, and remote beauty. Te Urewera is a place of spiritual value, with its own mana and mauri. Te Urewera has an identity in and of itself, inspiring people to commit to its care.”  Te Urewera ceased to be a national park although it is enshrined as a place for public use and enjoyment, for recreation, learning, and spiritual reflection, and as an inspiration for all.  

The Act acknowledges the special importance of Te Urewera to  the Tuhoe people explicitly setting out the requirement to strengthen and maintain the connection between Tūhoe and Te Urewera. For the Tūhoe people, Te Urewera is their ewe whenua, their place of origin and return, their homeland. Te Urewera expresses and gives meaning to Tūhoe culture, language, customs, and identity. There, Tūhoe hold mana by ahikāroa; they are tangata whenua and kaitiaki of Te Urewera.  Other iwi and hapu also prize Te Urewera and have special associations with and customary interests in parts of Te Urewera.  New Zealanders treasure Te Urewera for its outstanding national value and intrinsic worth; for the distinctive values of its vast and rugged primeval forest, for the integrity of those values, for its indigenous ecological systems and biodiversity, its historical and cultural heritage, its scientific importance and as a place for outdoor recreation and spiritual reflection.  

You can read more about the legal status here: 

Onepoto to Panekiri Bluff (9 km, 6 hours): 12th August

Our walk around Lake Waikaremoana began when the pre-arranged shuttle picked us up at 8.00am from the Big Bush campground and took us to Onepoto where there were a number of fascinating information boards about the history of Te Urewera.  The walk began at lake level and headed immediately up the hill.  The stunning views across the lake showed the amazing geology of the bluffs and indicated how much climbing was ahead of us.

The track required concentration as most of the path is steeply uphill through tree roots.  Every now and then it burst out to a clearing above the bluffs which offered panoramas of the lake and views of the enormous bluffs.  This is the most popular part of the Walk, so that we met more people on the first day than all the other days put together – all of them international visitors to New Zealand.  Several people told us not to miss the short spur trail ahead, which leads to a particularly impressive set of rocks and a view of snow-capped Mt Ruapehu and Mt Ngauruhoe.  

We were pleased to arrive at Panekiri Hut by about 4.30 pm with enough light to chop some of the wood from the wood shed into appropriate lengths for the fire.  The wetness of the wood meant that the fire never burned hot enough to warm Panekiri Hut significantly so we spent a rather cold night, in an echo of the previous time I stayed at Panekiri Hut back in 1988.   Just as dusk deepened into night, we finished eating dinner and a young Korean Choe Seung Wai came up the track, very pleased to have reached the hut.  Another 30 minutes later, the head torches of a German father and son signaled their arrival. Without much conversation we all settled to sleep, mostly on mattresses on the floor close to the fire in an attempt to make the most of what warmth there was. 

Panekiri Bluff to Waiopaoa: 13th August 

+ side trip to Korukoru Falls (8 km, 4 hours + 9 km, 3.5 hours) 

Ross managed to get out of his warm sleeping bag to check out the sunrise on a cold, crisp, clear morning.  He got some wonderful shots of golden light through the forest, as well as this magical misty scene that Te Urewera is famous for.   The group of trampers were much more social in the morning, buoyed by the beauty before us, there was more conversation and sharing of plans for the day, while we all got ready to get on with the descent from the Panekiri Bluff. 

The track was better quality than the previous day with more steps to assist, so the level of concentration on the track was lower. The views were not quite so stunning, but the quality of the bush was stunning, and we kept stopping to admire the light through the forest. 

 The huts for this day are placed an awkward distance from each other, so that it is either a long day or a short day.  We had planned to stop at Waiopaoa which we reached by lunchtime. The hut was in a peaceful sunlit glade in the forest, right by the lakeside.  We ate lunch on the terrace, glad to soak up some sunshine in a sheltered spot. The Waiopaoa Hut was a lovely modern hut, light, clean and airy – a considerable improvement on the Panekiri Bluff Hut which was old and dingy. 

 The Korukoru Waterfall was billed as one of the must do’s of the Waikaremoana Walk, so we decided to visit it in the afternoon.  It meant about 3 km of backtracking, but fitted better into our short second day rather than the 18 km we planned to walk on day 3.  

The first 3.6 km was alongside the Lake and disappointingly muddy.  The track improved once it turned inland to follow the very attractive Korukoru Stream. The track was tricky in places, not exactly challenging, but requiring concentration to negotiate obstructions or slippery places.  Then came the excitement of crossing the Korukoru Stream, using a steel rope to assist with the large steps between the big rocks which served as stepping stones.  The final 5 minutes was steeply uphill until the Korukoru Waterfall was revealed. It is a perfect curtain of water, dropping straight into a fern surrounded basin in a perfect image of a fairy glade. 

The slight breeze created a mist adding to the spiritual atmosphere.  Well worth the 90 minute detour from the main track. Fortunately it was faster returning to the main track downhill, so that we got back to the Waiopaoa Hut, albeit with some frustration about the muddy track, in time to eat dinner before dark descended upon us.  Even after a long discussion about route options we were in bed by 7.00 pm. 

Day 3: 14th August

Waiopaoa Hut to Waharuru Hut (18 km)

Day 3: 14^th August Waiopaoa Hut to Waihururu Hut 

Our plan for the day was to walk 18 km  through to Waihururu Hut in the hope of hearing kiwis at night.  So we woke early and got on the way making good progress to Korukoru Campsite despite the muddy track conditions.  There was a little rain, so we were grateful to stop at the shelter there, remove some clothing layers and eat a museli bar. 

The next stretch, through to Maranui Campsite was supposed to take 2 ½ hours, but it took us more like 3 ½ hours.  At times it seemed more as if we were walking up a mountain, rather than around a lake as the track wound up and down, over and around headlands.  The rain made the colours of the bush intense which had me reaching for the camera frequently, particularly when shafts of sunlight spotlit graceful patterns and shapes amongst the bush.  A glimpse of the Maranui shelter energized us and helped pick up our pace, as lunch time beckoned. 

 We had a decision to make about whether we had sufficient energy to push on past Maranui Hut to Waihururu Hut which was several more kms and another couple of hours.  Cheered by the fact that we were matching DOC times again, we decided to press on past Maranui, without even checking out the hut. It took us 2 hours 15 minutes to reach Waihururu Hut which we were pleased with as it was the end of an 18 km day, walking in the rain and the mud.  The track for last section of the day was not so challenging, although there was a lot of slush and rather too much picking our way through the mud rather than being able to walk confidently. 

 When we came upon the Waihururu Campsite a cheer went up, and the Hut was 5 minutes further on.  The Hut was the best we encountered on the Walk, beautiful, large, new and entirely empty.  We decided to sleep and eat in the same room.  Imagine our delight when we heard the repetitive call of the kiwi on dusk. What a great reward for pressing onto Waihururu.

Day 4: 15th August  

Waihururu Hut to Whanganui Hut pick-up point (7 km, 3 hours)

Despite the early hour we had gone to bed, we slept through to 7am.  Our morning routine was focused upon arranging our day to meet our rendez-vous with the water taxi at 2pm at Whanganui Hut.  We reshuffled our packs so that I had more of the heavier gear to carry this last day, hoping that would even up our pace. This was more steadily up than the previous day.

The day’s walk began up and over the headland of the peninsula where the Kiwi sanctuary has been established.   This work supports recovery of the kiwi population and seeks to reverse the effects of predators such as stoats, ferrets, weasels, dogs, cats, pigs and possums who have decimated the national populations of kiwis to a tiny proportion of the original 12 million.  The Lake Waikaremoana Hapu Restoration Trust (a local Maori hapu trust) formed a partnership to halt the decline of kiwi at Waikaremoana with DOC and assistance from the Bank of New Zealand Kiwi Recovery Programme.  

Their focus is on predator control on the Puketukutuku Peninsula, by laying traps to kill stoats, who are the main threat to kiwi chicks, complemented by possum and rat trapping. Kiwi numbers and movement are monitored and show that kiwi numbers are increasing in the area.

The route was much more steadily uphill than the previous day, with a better quality track and gorgeous bush to lift our spirits.  It had rained hard overnight so the bush was sparkling, vividly coloured and sometimes lit by dappled sunshine.  The air was so clear and heavily oxygenated, it was a blessing to be in such a beautiful corner of the world.  

We dropped down off the headland and immediately arrived at Tapuaenui Campsite, where we stopped for a morning snack and to remove a layer or two of clothing as the day warmed up.  The path for the next hour or so to Whanganui Hut was beside the lake and back to being rather wet and muddy.  There were some enchanting streams with clear clear water bubbling happily and beautiful forest.

Just when our packs were beginning to be a burden we came upon the water taxi pick-up sign.  It was just on noon, so we had plenty of time to spare before our 2pm rendez-vous. Within 30 minutes our young Korean acquaintance from a couple of nights ago, Choe Yeung San, had joined us and arranged to be collected from the same spot.  We hoped we might bring the pick-up to an earlier time, but it was a cold wait until just after 2pm when we heard the boat motor.  The ride back across the Lake was entertained with some local lore and tall stories about life in remote places as well as great views of a rather grey Lake Waikaremoana.

Motu Cycle Trails

Dunes Trail: 8^th August

We began the Dunes Ride mid-afternoon as the weather all day was grey and miserable, so it was hard getting motivated to begin.   Once we got energised and kitted up to ride, it was easy as we were camped right near the 3km marker.

The Dunes Trail is a delight, never far from the energizing presence of the sea, gently undulating up and down with the dunes.  It has a great surface and is well engineered for riding at a reasonable speed, except that there are squeezes where the Trail crosses roads, to keep motorbikes off the Trail.  With the recent wild and windy weather, the sea’s roaring was a constant reminder as the markers rolled by.

The Dunes Trail encountered some construction challenges as it went a culturally important site, has shifting dunes and water courses and was prone to storm damage.  A partnership between the Department of Conservation,  Optotiki and Gisborne Councils and Te Whakatohea Maori Trust Board working together, with Ministry of Business, Innovation and Employment as the funding partner was needed to solve these challenges.  

The sandy section in the middle was even more challenging as it traversed  sensitive and sacred areas so that Kaumatua (trival elders) were involved to ensure that these were managed appropriately.  The sense of the cultural significance of the area we were riding through was strong. The po on the right represents Ngatorohaka who was a chief who lived in a pa above the nearby bluff.  There is another po named Tamaariki which is named after the taniwha in the Tirohanga Stream.  Tamaariki had been a Maori chief before he “turned” into a taniwha.

The physical challenges of the shifting dunes and water courses also provided challenges.  A “floating” boardwalk was designed to sit on top of and move with the sand.  Working with nature meant trail designers had to modify their designs along the way.  And this section of the Trail needs constant monitoring and maintenance.  As we rode by, the sea which was running high was very close to the Trail. 

We rode right to the end of the Trail, exploring possible options for where to park Bella the next day while we rode the Motu Road Trail.  The return journey was complicated by riding directly towards the setting sun, which made it hard to see which way the Trail turned sometimes.  We rode straight on past Bella to the beginning of the Trail which starts with an impressive suspension bridge. 

The Pakowhai ki Otutaopuku Bridge, opened in March 2012, connects cyclists and walkers to the Motu Trails and the Pacific Ocean across the Otara River.  Maori settled in this area in the 1400s when the Pakihikura canoe landed here; it was named O-Potiki-Mai-Tawhaiti (Of the Children from Afar), now shortened to Opotiki in the 1800s. 

We had a little grocery shopping to undertake in Opotiki and took the opportunity to admire the graceful buildings in town. Then we rocketed back to Bella through the gloaming for another cosy night listening to the roar of the sea. 

The Motu Road Trail: 9^th August

Gwen from the Motu Trails company was there in good time for our 9.00 am pick up at the Freedom Camping site and we were off on the 1 hour drive to Matawai and further on to the Motu Falls where we had requested a drop off.  The Falls proved to be right by the road, with a swing bridge for easy viewing.  They  were spectacular after the recent heavy rain, thundering over the drop and foaming. 

Our route lay back along the road to the tiny village of Motu, which featured a school and a café which was closed.  There were some interesting interpretation boards telling of the history of Motu and the opening up of the road through from Opotiki to Gisborne.  The farmland around us was very attractive as we began our ascent of the first hill. 

The Taumarakaretu Hill provided an invigorating start to the day with good solid climb up a gravel road, with a very variable surface.  Ross was well ahead, powered by his e-bike, but I was able to ride the whole way at a speed of about 7-8 km, no matter how rough the surface was.   We had to concentrate hard on the riding as the surface was often soft and soggy because of the recent rain.  Or large pieces of stone which made our bikes slide in an unexpected fashion.   Not to mention a ford, which was quite deep after the rain.  Ross managed to ride right through it, but I stalled in the deep bit and got wet feet! 

Although we were on a public road, it felt very isolated.  At Motu we saw some kids on bicycles, and two farmers on quad bikes.   Through the rest of the day we encountered a digger driver and two truck drivers working on an exceptionally bad patch of the road and a local who was startled to see us. 

The bush around us was spectacular, with some tall trees amidst the verdant growth.  The scenery before us was a spread of steep hills all around us, with no visible signs of human intervention, apart from the road we were cycling on.   There were several climbs and then a long downhill which offered this wonderful vista of the valley below, with the river snaking along it. 

After the long downhill, there was an on-road section through more farmland.  The final piece of the ride back to Bella was a reprisal of the previous day, riding along the Dunes Trail as the sun set.  A satisfying conclusion to a long day’s riding in beautiful remote forest. 

White Island – NZ’s most active volcano

Growing up in NZ’s volatile geography,  we are both fascinated by volcanos so White Island has been on our bucket list for a while. White Island or Whakaari, is NZ’s most active cone volcano and is an active andesite stratovolcano, 48 km offshore from Whakatane.  It has been in a nearly continuous state of releasing volcanic gas since written records began with the visit of James Cook in 1769.  White Island is roughly circular, with most of it below the water, only 321m sticks out above the ocean, forming a roughly circular island which is about 2 km wide.

The eruptions produce both lava flows and explosive eruptions of ash.  Activity is continuously monitored by volcanologists from GNS (Geologic and Nuclear Sciences) via monitoring equipment including seismographs, magnetometers, surveillance cameras and quarterly visits.

The alert level for White Island is usually 1 or 2 (which is the high alert end of the 1-5 scale). Mostly activity is steaming fumeroles and boiling mud, although occasionally ash belches and the eruption of 1981-83 created a crater lake.  

The crater lake is extremely acidic, with a PH of -0.7 which is an indication of what a challenging environment it must have been for the men working at the sulphur mine.  In an indication of how dynamic the environment is, a new geyser appeared in the crater lake as the lake level rose, just a day or two prior to our visit.  This resulted in satisfying clouds of steam from the crater lake.

Sulphur mining was attempted there, as sulphur is used in many manufacturing processes, but after a number of people died on the island, including the most disastrous event when a lahar swept away most of the factory and all 12 of the workers in 1914, mining was largely abandoned.  These buildings date back to the 1920’s with the final attempt at extracting sulphur on a commercial scale.

Nowadays, White Island is the main tourism attraction from Whakatane.  Boat trips take large groups of tourists to the Island, and several helicopter companies also operate tours to the island.  Many of the visitors are international, fascinated by the thermal geology, the surreal landscapes and the open access to the floor of the crater which makes it possible for groups of tourists to inspect the fumeroles, sulphur formations and hot streams at close quarters.  The tour groups are regaled with stories of tragedy during the attempts to industrialise sulphur processing, rather than the more scientific commentary we received while visiting volcanos elsewhere.

10th August, 2018.

Riding the Hauraki Rail Trail

The Hauraki Rail Trail is described as the easiest of the 22 NZ Cycle Trails, because it is mainly across the flat as a pancake Hauraki Plains, and the trails are wide off-road, mostly gravel surfaced with excellent signage.  The only complication comes from the occasional haphazard measurement of distances.

The Trail has a hub and spoke arrangement with Paeroa at the hub, so there are many ways to cycle the Trail, with and without the assistance of shuttle services to start your day or return you to a vehicle.  We camped at Paeroa, a very campervan friendly town, which is the home-town for the world famous in NZ drink, L&P.  Two days we rode there and back, on the third longer day, we booked a shuttle to start our day and rode back to Bella.

Day 1: Paeroa to Te Aroha and back again, 3 August 2018

On the first day, misty weather made for a slow start.  It was mid-afternoon by the time we were in the saddle so we chose the shortest leg to begin with and set off fast across farmland to the delightful Te Aroha. The domain has a number of charming original Edwardian and Victorian spa buildings, the most original buildings of any spa town in NZ.  However, worried by the fading light, rather than lingering to explore the spa buildings, we rode back even faster than we came, across the flat farmland.  Our ride was enlivened by the occasional bridge or cattle stop, and delayed only by the beauty of the sunset enhanced by the silhouettes of wintry trees..

Day 2: Miranda Shorebird Centre to Paeroa: 4 August 2018

Day 2 got off to an early start with a shuttle transfer, to Miranda on the Firth of Thames where there is a wonderful Shorebird Centre.  The drive north began in mist which gave a wonderful eerie atmosphere to the still water at Miranda where the shorebirds congregate.

2700 wrybills live there, 65% of the world’s total population of wrybills.  They were a delight to watch, as they feed relentlessly, darting their wry bills into the estuary first to the left, then to the right, hopping about energetically.  The stilts and godwits seem positively dignified in contrast to the wrybills, feeding at a much more sedate pace.  

By the time we tore ourselves away from watching birds, and the wonderful book shop in the Bird Centre, it was nearly mid-day.  The ride across the bottom of the Firth of Thames was rather mundane.  Though the first few kilometres provided some excitement from navigating soggy patches caused by the big storm of 5 Jan 2018 (which had caused us csuch difficulty on our summer Coromandel cycling trip). There was a great deal of nothing much to see, although we knew the sea was only a few hundred metres away, it was mostly out of sight.  

As there seemed unlikely to be anything of great interest materializing, we ate lunch by the side of the road, with nothing much in sight and pressed onto Bugger Café, Pipiroa which had been recommended by our shuttle driver.  There were many photographs of bugger moments to entertain and the food and coffee were splendid.

The scenery improved after this, as we rode alongside the Piako River, framed by the hills of the Coromandel.  

At Kopu, where we were thankful to be finally past the half way point, there is an interesting historic bridge with a section which opens to allow ships through, the last remaining in NZ.  

When Captain James Cook arrived in 1779 he sailed right through to Paeroa, which you can’t do any longer as the river is silted since the forest has been cleared and turned into farmland.  At Kopu the track turned inland and heading back south down the Hauraki Plains for another 27 km to Paeroa.  This was similar terrain to the day before – farmland, herds of cows in churned up fields, bridges and cattle stops.

Day 3: Waihi to Paeroa and back again:6 August 2018

After an intervening rainy day where we explored Waihi and shifted Bella (our campervan) to Waihi Beach, the day dawned crisp, clear and sunny after the previous day’s consistent rain. Our plan was to drive to Waihi and ride to Paeroa and back again.  On the recommendation of a friend we had hoped to catch the historic train one way from Waikino to Waihi, but alas the train was off for a fortnight, so riding all the way was our only option.  

We had high expectations of this section of the Trail as a number of people had told us that the ride through the Karangahake Gorge was the absolute highlight of the Hauraki Rail Trail.  Our expectations were met, and then some.  Every aspect of the Trail was an improvement on previous days: the scenery was a dramatic improvement enlivened by being beside the river for most of the day; there were interesting interpretation boards informing us about the industrial history of the areas we were riding through; the trail was a better surface for riding on; the route was much more interesting riding as the terrain offered much more variety.

The first part of the day’s ride, which we began at Waihi Railway Station, was beside a reasonably placid river, with some interesting swoops up and down and tranquil sections beside the fast running river, fringed with wintry trees.  I do love the shape of trees without any leaves, as we only see them in winter.  So architectural in their shapes.  

We zoomed along, enjoying the more interesting scenery that riding beside the river offered compared to the farmland we had spent the previous couple of days amongst.

The section from Waihi to Waikino was not following the railway line, which still exists as a functioning railway.  There were segments of it that we would have sworn were former cuttings from a former railway line, lined with ferns and dripping gently.

At Waikino we headed across the bridge and under that highway to check out the Railway Station Cafe, which had a great reputation.  We judged it well deserved – the café is atmospheric with the main room in the former stationmaster’s office, adorned with historic photos of Waikino in it’s industrial heyday and railway memorabilia and cheered by a bright fire.  The food and coffee were excellent as well.

Next stop was the Owharoa Falls which we had visited the previous day when they were running furious, brown and angry looking.  Now that the rain had stopped, the Falls still had plenty of energy, spraying positive ions around, tumbling energetically towards the river below.

The section between Owharoa Falls and the Karangahake Tunnel was a delight.  Ross particularly enjoyed the track surface, which supported a good fast riding pace, while I enjoyed the forest most of all.  

We stopped awhile at the Karangahake Tunnel to read the information boards about the engineering feat of building the 1086m tunnelcutting which was started in 1900 and finished in November 1905. It was built to help transport mining material and gold in and out of Waihi quickly instead of the old pack horses.   The tunnel is so straight, that it’s no challenge to see the light at the end of the tunnel and torches are not necessary for the downhill ride which requires no effort beyond steering your bike.

The two elegant steel bridges on ether end of the tunnel were built and transported from Christchurch. 

From Karangahake it’s a straightforward run through to Paeroa, passing right by the house of the friendly bike mechanic who advertises his services as 24/7 and was happy to fix Ross’ broken spoke on a Sunday morning.  We ate our lunch in Paeroa, sitting beside the giant L&P bottle, entertained by the visiting groups who came for the classic “I’m in Paeroa” photograph.

On our way back we stopped at the wonderfully quirky Talisman Café which served delicious food and had the best garden with Asian influences in the plantings and in the carvings.  A spot of tranquillity that matched the beautiful natural surroundings rather than the turbulent industrial history of the area.

For variety, we chose the route beside the Ohinemuri River, through the Karangahake Gorge.  

The path is narrow, and in many places, we needed to walk our bikes.  Absolutely worth it – the Gorge is dramatic, especially with the river running fast and high.  

The area is full of interesting remains of the industrial past when the gold from Waihi was processed in this area.  Victoria Battery is an atmospheric place, with ghosts of its important industrial past when it was considered the largest and most advanced facility to crush quartz in New Zealand.  

These huge tanks contained cyanide which was used in the processing and may be the reason for these modern day signs.

It was most active during the Great Depression when men (and they were all men) were grateful for any work, no matter how hard or dangerous it was.  The working conditions looked atrocious, although the company made good returns for its owners.

The rest of the ride was an uneventful retracing of the route we had followed in the morning, back to Bella at Waihi Station.  A great day’s ride to finish up the Hauraki Rail Trail.

When life gives you rain, take photos of waterfalls

Our plans for today were disrupted by heavy rain falling all morning.  What better to do with a rain day than go in search of waterfalls.  The raging torrent at Owharoa Falls looked nothing like the pretty tranquil waterfall with a swimming hole below that the pictures show.  Instead, the water boiled and danced, full of energy as it rushed urgently downhill. 

It reminded us of other times that we went to check out waterfalls after heavy rain.  Most often in the Yorkshire Dales which are famous for their waterfalls.  Aysgarth Falls, just up the road from Leyburn, we swung by many times to check out how much energy was dancing above the falls.

We like waterfalls at any time, with or without the energy given to them by heavy rainfall.   We like dramatic ones that plunge over cliffs such as Waireinga/Bridal Veil Falls which we visited recently, raging torrents with huge volumes of water racing urgently somewhere, picturesque ones in gorgeous settings.  Here’s a selection of our favourite waterfalls in the places we’ve lived or visited.

The Waireinga or Bridal Veil Falls, near Raglan, are one of the most spectacular plunges over a cliff face, falling 55m into the pool below.  The setting in beautiful native bush adds to the pleasure of a visit here.

This is Hardraw Force in Yorkshire, with me behind the falls to let you see how high these falls are.  Their particular claim to fame is that you access them through the Green Dragon pub!

How’s that for a peaceful setting for a pretty waterfall.

The Ingleton Waterfalls Trail in Yorkshire is particularly spectacular and well worth the entrance fee charged.  

And finally, us visiting a really famous waterfall (from the Canadian side) in 2008.