Still Jan 2014!
Having bought Mrs Paki, and loaded up
with the minimum camping essentials at the Warehouse, we set off on a quest to
see a real live Kiwi….(as in the NZ
flightless Bird!!)
We chose the “Aroha island”
environmental campsite, which lies not too far north of Kerikeri. We were being
joined by our friends Chris and Steve, who were coming up from Whangerei, where
they had taken their boat, “Scott Free”.
We got there earlier than they did,
and were under orders to secure a spot for them if it looked like getting too
full! Our first challenge was to erect our very little tent, and to see if in
fact it was big enough for us to fit inside!
It was indeed, a very little
erection, and took all of 5 minutes! It took longer to inflate the blow up
mattresses!
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| Rod admiring the little erection! |
“Aroha Island” is a lovely spot, with
nice facilities for cooking and bathrooms, and is located on the extreme end of
one of the peninsulas jutting out into the
Kerikeri inlet. Of Kiwis…? We saw
zilch! We heard them alright, both males and females , with their distinctively
different calls, but our nocturnal bird watching walks along the trails, with
our little red torch lights, were all in vain. Some of the other campers were more
fortunate, but like all game watching, it’s so often just a case of luck….
being in the right spot at the right time!
Nevertheless, it was a lovely place,
and one which we have earmarked for a return visit, perhaps with Kate, where we
will hire a cabin, instead of inflicting her with a tent!
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| Noisy cicada |
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| Calafornian Quails |
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| Mrs Mallard Ducky with 7 littl'uns |
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| Low tide exposes oyster beds |
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| Breakfast cook |
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| Braai time......note the Obikwe wine |
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