December 18th and we headed north to explore. Well, we had an ulterior motive – we wanted to visit the place where they are making the doors and windows for our house build. We also want to visit an area neither of us have visited before. As the NZ summer holidays start Christmas week and continue to early February we thought this would mean good weather and minimal crowds traveling for the summer break! To avoid the Auckland city traffic we took the Western Route and continued up the West Coast on quiet roads, appreciating the changing scenery of this area. This was actually one of the earlier areas settled by the British in the early 1800s mainly along the coastal fringe. The earliest settlers were usually retired sea captains who had traded these areas.
One of the areas we really wanted We decided to stay at a holiday cabin in Kerikeri (not to be confused with Katikati which we visited a couple of weeks ago!). The site had 4 cabins arranged in an orange orchard. The place was owned by a gentleman named Klaas who was originally from Sweden by way of Florida. The cabin was surprisingly nice, comfortable and well appointed with a few chickens wandering around keeping an eye on everything.
After a visit to our window manufacturer we decided to explore the Bay of Islands. We headed to Waitangi (more on that later) and down to Paihia on the coast. The Bay of Islands is one of the most picturesque places in New Zealand; stunning blue ocean, countless islands, lovely coastal towns and villages. It is also the site of New Zealand’s first capital – Russell – the site of the earliest trading centre in the country and one of the most important in the south Pacific in the 1830s.
Russell
We decided to drive from Paihia to Russell – big mistake! The route took us over 25km (15 miles) of some seriously windy and narrow gravel roads. Don’t do this…take the car ferry from Opua…a10 minute crossing for about NZ$16. There is also a passenger ferry from Paihia to Russell that lands right at the pier for only NZ$14 return.
Russell is a beautiful, small, fun coastal town and has the Duke of Marlborough, the oldest hotel in New Zealand on the waterfront…literally. It wasn’t always peaceful though. In the 1820s it was notorious as one of the most lawless places in the Pacific, populate4d mainly by itinerant whalers, sealers and convicts that had escaped from Australia and jumped ship here. Must have been fun! Now its boutiques and bars…
Waitangi
NERD NOTES: This is the most important historical site in New Zealand. The Waitangi Treat Grounds are the location of the signing of the Declaration of Independence of New Zealand (1835) and later (1840) the Treaty of Waitangi between Great Britain and the Maori Chiefs of New Zealand.
The site has an excellent museum with informative films but the best option by far is the guided tour and cultural display. The guide was great, relaxed and informative, he was also able to add a lot of background information that made it all great fun. The guide was actually a descendant of James Busby, the British Resident in NZ at the time of the treaty signing and who had helped draft the treaty document.
The tour included the great war canoes (waka) the largest of which can carry 175 warriors. These go out on the water for the annual Treaty anniversary ceremony on 6th Feb every year. These are really impressive. They are effectively dug-out canoes carved from the enormous kauri trees that are native here, some of which reach 50 metres (160 foot) tall and 5 metres (16 feet) in diameter. The largest of the waka was made from 3 separate kauri trunks.
Following the guided tour we went to the Maori cultural display at the Marae (meeting house) on the treaty grounds. Entering a Marae has a number of traditions that need to be followed to show respect to the Maori hosts. Visitors are greeted by a traditional challenge which is meant to determine whether the visitors come in peace or for battle. As there was a large group of people in the tour group a ‘chief’ was selected to represent them in the greeting ceremony…unfortunately they chose me! I just hoped I didn’t cause an international incident – or start a war!
The display was great, the performers really engaged the audience and the experience was ‘up close and personal’. It took place inside the marae which is filled with beautiful carvings and woven wall hangings. During the performance photographs are allowed but videos are not. The display includes explanations and display of traditional weapons, singing and dancing.
The display was great, the performers really engaged the audience and the experience was ‘up close and personal’. It took place inside the marae which is filled with beautiful carvings and woven wall hangings. During the performance photographs are allowed but videos are not. The display includes explanations and display of traditional weapons, singing and dancing.
Love love love the quaint coastal town! The sky is so blue and the water looks so refreshing!
Hi Holly,
Yes it is. It’s even better in person. The water is a bit cold for me but I do plan to get in more than I have.