Fish and Honey

PB and I started the day by heading to the National Aquarium just as it opened.  What a great place that is!   We saw piranhas, sharks, penguins, eels, seahorses, a turtle, kiwi (?!) , an alligator, Dory and Nemo,  a newt, tuatara, and more.  PB was well entertained for over 2 hours.   There was a chap in the tank who did a bit of a show for the kids and he was very fun,  too.   He blew up a balloon and pretended to be lifted up and away by it,  pretended to go to sleep on the sea floor and other fun stuff.
After that excitement,  we headed to the Honey place.   It was good as well.   Free entry,  and they had lots of displays for the kids as well as actual live bees coming into gives you could view!   We bought some Manuka Honey fudge.   Well,  Manuka honey is supposed to be good for you,  right?
To end the day,  we took the bike down to this cool bike park on the waterfront.   PB loved it and played happily racing over ask the tracks for ages.  Supposed to be a bit of a wild night,  so we are settling in!

Next Stop, Napier

After a VERY blowy night at Akitio (you could hear the wind roaring towards us, then it would hit the caravan shaking us about)  we headed out towards Dannevirke.
The cyclist who was camping beside us had said that our was too rough for him and he had ended sleeping in the kitchen.
On the way out of Akitio, we were astounded by the amount of driftwood washed up on the beach, the boat ramp (massive tree trunks) and the lagoon / mouth of the river.  The mouth of the river looked like soup with all the wood floating in it. 
We took the skinny, winding road back to Waione and on to Dannevirk and much to DH's disgust,  seemed to hit every patch of mud and cow poo and every grubby slip that we possibly could.  By the time we got to Dannevirk, he was trying to figure out how to get all the mid off everything.  We managed to get a little bit off at the dump station, but behold!   At the supermarket, like a miracle,  a netball team was running a car wash for $5 a pop!  Woo!   We lined up the car and caravan and while I did a little grocery shop,  the kids attacked the dirt and when I came out,  it was all done and DH was a lot happier.
I grabbed a couple of packets of lollies for the girls to say an extra thank you and PB handed  them over,  much to the girls surprise and delight. 
We checked out the playground then zoomed on to the Napier association campground for the night.
A quick run (with PB and DH riding along in support) followed by a couple of cheeky chardonnays rounded off a lovely Saturday.

Almost All Alone in Akitio

PB started the day by having a play date with a little blonde girl from a nearby camper.   She gave him a Hawaii key ring that he could keep forever,  and he gave her a tiny toy of Skye from Paw Patrol.  You can imagine our surprise that when our was time to leave,  he simply said goodbye and there were no tears.
We drove about an hour to Masterton and did some chores while DH and PB had a play on the neat playground at Queen Elizabeth Park.  (Yes, it meets standards.) Then we embarked on an epic road trip back to the same coast that we'd left,  to a tiny beach spot,  Akitio.
The road got skinnier and skinnier until there wasn't even a middle line! On the way, we stopped on a big hill and left me behind with a bike and a camera,  so we could try to get a marvellous photo of the caravan further down the valley.  It was great fun riding down the hill to catch up!
We had our lunch at a tiny settlement which was basically a hall and a fire station.  PB and DH made their way into a retired rugby field for a quick kick of the rugby ball amongst the bewildered sheep.
We made it to Akitio, once again,  camping right by the beach.   This time,  it's SO cheap!  $12 each.  It seemed like there was only one cyclist and one family there with us, it was quite quiet.
Played rugby with PB and checked out the beach before making dinner and a cake and heading off to bed. 

To the Coast, Castlepoint

Fog greeted us as we hit the road this morning.   As it lifted, we made our way through the lovely little towns of Greytown, Carterton and Masterton.
Greytown was very sweet with lovely old fashioned houses and shops everywhere.  
We stopped in Masterton and PB and I went for a ride from Queen Elizabeth Park along the side of a river to Lake Henley.  We rode right around the lake  and back.   It was a 6km ride and lovely and flat.   The day was a stunner,  too,  warm,  sunny and still. Off we went to Castlepoint where we got an amazing camping spot right on the beach, with a cool view over to the lighthouse.  PB and I spent the whole afternoon making a sandcastle, then attempting to protect it from the sea with our sand walls and moats.  PB was hilarious,  having stripped off, heading naked to the beach.  Managed to eventually coax him into a wetsuit as the sun started going down!
Next day, PB and I went for a run (well, I ran, he rode his bike) right around to the lighthouse and back.  After such exertion,  it seemed only fitting that we have pikelets for morning tea. 
After morning tea,  we had some cricket and frisbee fun on the beach in front of the caravan before the whole family rode our bikes back around to the lighthouse end to look at the big boats and watch the waves crash over the rock that protect the lagoon.
Once there,  a second walk up to the light house was warranted.
PB found some kids to splash around with in the waves and played for ages in the sea.  Great kiwi beach fun! 

Day One Hundred!

Today marks our 100th day on the road.   Wow!   What a journey we have been on,  and we still have a way to go.  We celebrated by having an action packed day.
We headed out to Cape Palliser.  It was foggy to start,  then it lifted to reveal beautiful views down to the sea.  
At Cape Palliser,  we found the lighthouse and the 200 plus steps up to it.   After the exertion of climbing up to it,  we rewarded ourselves with morning tea on the beach. 
On the way back,  we stopped at Ngaiwi to check out the crazy bulldozers on the beach.  The locals use them to launch and retrieve their boats from Cook Straight.  A lot of them had faces painted on them which was really cute. 
We also stopped to check out the seal colony and watched loads of seals playing in the bay. 
Home for a quick lunch, then we headed into Putangirua Pinnacles.  This was a 1.5 hour walk up an old riverbed to see these amazing pinnacles.   The landscape was amazing,  with these tall pillars and rocky sheer walls.   Very cool.  PB did really well, as it took us a couple of hours to do and he took it all in his stride. 
We ended the day by going back to Lake Onoke for a muck around and then back home for tea.  Great busy day and everyone is well worn out.

Over the Rimutakas

Over the Rimutaka Range today and through Featherston (Book Town) and stopping in Martinborough (Wine Village) (This is my kind of region!) for morning tea and to check in on the playground for the Playground Inspector.  Then on to the campsite on the way to Lake Ferry.
Set up camp and then headed to Lake Onoke itself.   So cool!   It has quite a wild entrance where surf rolls in.   And almost like a steep sand / stone bar across the bottom of the lake,  separating it from Cook Straight.  When we went,  there were heaps of blessings shining down from the sky.   We walked out on the river stones to look at the waves and entrance. 

Wellington Zoo and Weta Workshop

Friday was spent at Wellington Zoo.  We sat in on the farm yard feed,  the Kea talk and the Tiger talk and managed to see most of the animals.

DH and  PB managed to touch an emu, a kangaroo and a kunekune pig!  

The Kea talk was great,  there were five Kea,  really inquisitive and cheeky and they came right down in amongst us.   So cool.  

They are only found in the South Island and the population is mostly male now because the females are on the nests in burrows when they are attacked by predators, so they have no place to go.  

The zoo did quite a lot of promotion around recycling,  conservation and about how to help the plight of animals in the wild through choosing products with a particular 'safe' mark on them.
PB and I finished the day with a game of frisbee in the park next door to the association campsite.  

Saturday was spent going to a tour at Weta Workshop in the morning.  Well worth it!  The young guide was very knowledgeable,  the stories were so interesting and  the people who work there are incredibly passionate and talented.
We were waiting for our tour to start when in walked our dear friends from Waiuku!  Such a small world!  We were so pleased to see them that we arranged a catch up on the afternoon and had a lovely time chatting in a Belgian beer bar.
We extended our time in Wellington by another night and will be heading off to Lake Ferry tomorrow instead.

Cable Car and Te Papa, take two

A beautiful day dawned, so into the CBD we drove,  and made our way up to the botanic gardens via the cable car.
We wandered through the botanic gardens at the top and PB had a lovely long play at the playground. (Doing high fives with the other kids as they raced down the slides. )
Back down into town,  where DH took the car for another oil change,  while PB and I went back to Te Papa to go through the Gallipoli - The Scale of Our War exhibition.
Wow, it was so powerful.   Really made it far easier to comprehend.   They had a display that showed the terrain and the progress made by each side across the periods of the major battles.  They also had a mocked up trench and these amazing models of real people who had been there.  The models were 2.4 x human size.  They had been made by Weta Workshop and were incredible.  So lifelike,  even down to the fine hair on the characters hands.   Very moving.  Bought our poppies in town ready for ANZAC day.
Home again to the campsite and looking forward to the zoo tomorrow.

Wild Wellington

Headed to Owhiro Bay this morning, to walk the track along the south coast to Red Rocks and a seal colony.  It was so windy and wild out there that we only made it as far as the red rocks and gave up on going further to find seals.
Went to Te Papa to spend the rest of a cold windy and occasionally wet afternoon.   Lots of kids everywhere for the the school holidays.
Finished up the day by visiting some some Playcentre friends who have moved to Wellington for a play and lovely dinner.  
Looking forward to more of what Wellers has to offer tomorrow!