mrsjono

7-8 months later we are back in Martinborough again, where we had fond memories of grape picking days. This time we finally have our own car!!! Enough of all those helpless, stressful and frustrating times of having to "beg" others for a ride to town and super calculative drivers who had the cheek to charge each passenger $5 one way regardless of distance for petrol. At last we can go places we could never visit in the past. We decided to check out The Pinnacles as it's only 40 mins drive from Martinborough and is well known as one of the filming locations in the Return of the King. The towering rock formations remind me of China's Shilin.




We just kept going straight until we reached a dead end. Where's the lookout?? Did we miss something?


Maybe it's on the other side? I climbed up to have a look but it didn't look right so we turned around...


Aha finally found The Pinnacles lookout


Easy to miss the third sign from this direction.


It's only after walking past that we saw there was another sign pointing to the lookout (smacks forehead)


Easy but a little confusing track - spent 3 hours in total.

Napier is so much warmer. Walked quite a distance along Marine Parade to hitch a ride to Cape Kidnappers, half an hour drive from town. Rakesh who has businesses in Hastings, Tauranga and Martinborough dropped us at Clive - halfway there. Jim the sailor was coming from the opposite direction; he totally went out of his way and sent us all the way to Clifton.


Walked along the beach for hours till the first nesting site Black Reef colony.




Climbed up a steep hill to find a massive colony sitting at the main plateau. Never seen wildlife of this scale and so close up.


Plateau colony


Each baby was next to an adult except for this one


Saddle colony


It started to get crowded during lunch time as the gannet safari tours arrived.


Overheard the tour operator explaining the story behind Cape Kidnappers. It was so named by Captain James Cook when Maori attempted to kidnap a Tahitian boy from his ship.


HAPPY NEW YEAR!


It was a long and painful walk back to Clifton as my feet were starting to act up again. A group of three from China working in Hastings stopped and dropped us at Clive. A seemingly rich and humorous lady sent us back to town.


I really think I'm too old to stay in cheap hostels. Archies Bunker's guests don't clean up after themselves. Dishes not washed, tables not cleaned, clothes strewn under the bed. Didn't sleep well as a guy was snoring but glad to finally get out of this dirty hostel.

Spent the last few days of 2013 eating around Auckland. Final walk of the year was at North Head Historic Reserve, a short ferry ride from the city. Military guns and structures were built in anticipation of Russian attacks which never happened. There are good views of the coast, Rangitoto Island and Auckland skyline from the summit. A lovely way to mark the end of one of the best year of my life.









Cheers to a very memorable 2013!!!

Taupo to Hahei via Auckland took nearly 10 hours by bus. By the time we got to Hahei, it was already 12 noon. We had been up since 1 am and with half a day left, we preferred to go dig a spa pool at Hot Water Beach but had missed the low tide so we went to Cathedral Cove that day. I couldn't and didn't really enjoy the crowded beach in this below average weather with an agonising pain in my left foot.



My swollen ankle and Te Hoho rock


He went for a swim



It was cloudy and there were showers on the way back. I limped through the 1.5 hours walk, ignoring the looks from passersby along the way. A Chinese couple stopped to give us a ride downhill; they said they saw us on the track and decided to turn back when they saw I was still having difficulty walking back.


These lifted my dampened spirits


He cooked pasta for dinner and massaged my feet. Left foot was swollen and right foot sore from limping. Will we make it to Hot Water Beach tomorrow?


It rained quite heavily during the night. I slept for around 13 hours waking up twice in between by nature's call. Rain eased at around 10, grabbed a spade and took the 10.30 am shuttle to Hot Water Beach.


It was super crowded and it looks like all the nice spots had already been uncovered and fully occupied.


Didn't feel like squeezing with half naked bodies and it started to drizzle again so we didn't stay for long


Sun popped out after we returned to Tatahi Lodge. More comfortable staying here than Rainbow Lodge. Lied down by the window, watched some tv and went out to cycle for a short while. On the last night we shared the room with two other Indians; one of them had thunder snores! RS couldn't stand it and went to shake the man's bed lol.

Huka means foam in Maori


It was another 1.5 hours walk to Aratiatia Rapids, the filming scene of the barrel escape in The Hobbit movie. The scorching sun and increasing pain on my left foot made me very uncomfortable along the way.


Taupo bypass bridge


Huka Prawn Park


Had lunch while waiting for the gates to open at 12pm. Limped to the carpark to see if we could get a ride as my feet were killing me and I wasn't able to walk another 2.5 hours back. Two Germans on working holiday saw my sign and dropped us off at Taupo. Huge relief for my painful feet. Did some shopping in town and finally bought a $60 rain jacket from Kathmandu.


Medium half strength latte from Taupo's Streetwise Coffee was 👍 👍


We were in a messy 9 bed dorm with guests far younger than us and there wasn't enough power points as people were charging multiple devices in the room. Cooking in the kitchen was a battle. Lost our food bag in the afternoon but there was nothing else we could do. Went to bed early as we had to wake up at 1am to catch the next bus to Coromandel.