Orewa Beach to Paihia

Another sunny start as we head north and then to the west coast. We stop at the Kauri museum for a couple of hours. The museum tells the story of the Kauri tree and its almost total devastation by logging companies. The tree grows very slowly but is tall and of huge diameter, making it very useful in Victorian times.  The sap which was 'bled' from trees or collected from dead trees is an amber resin and was highly prized for jewellery among other uses. Because the trees were so large, all kinds of means were used to transport them to sawmills, including building dams to release water to float the logs down valleys, and oxen pulling sleds.

We stop in a small town for a sandwich and some cheese as recommended by Tourist Radio. And very good they were too.

By now the weather had started to deteriorate but we eventually came to two sites where we could walk to see Kauri trees in the forest. One, the second biggest in New Zealand, was enormous.  Unfortunately I was unable to take photos with my phone due to a technical malfunction (my battery was flat).

We drove on through mist and murk without being able to appreciate the coastal views. We drove East to the other coast and found a lovely little site not 100m from a supermarket and 200m from the beach, yet it was quiet and peaceful.

A huge plank of wood 

A Kauri log showing its age