By the numbers
4.68 kms
6,220 steps
It was meant to be another nice day with a supposed shower around 11am. We had several little jobs that needed to be done before heading off to somewhere. At the time we didn’t know what we would be doing as plan do tend to change especially on the fly. I managed to get a walk in with my aunt who came along too before she headed off to the airport for the long journey back home. The walk we went on was down to Whangarei Falls and along the top before turning around and heading back home. It wasn’t too warm, but I could see the clouds in the sky that seemed to be moving in, but were not sure if the weather report was accurate.
We had to visit the district nurse in Whangarei and the heavens opened up to do something different. It wasn’t light rain at all. The plan at the time was to visit the Kiwi North Museum, but due to the rain we decided that it might not be the best idea as it could continue to rain and there were displays outside. Along the way I seen a sight I had not seen before, and that was a train rolling through Whangarei. I don’t know where it was going or where it had been, but I had not seen one running through the town before so it was unique. The plan changed to a drive. A place I had forgotten that we had visited once before. We did stop in Hikurangi for a coffee and something to eat as there is a good cafe to stop at with an antique shop next door. It did seem to be popular with the locals, and there were historical things in the antique shop including the old style phones and a switchboard.
The destination was out to Oakura that was one of mum’s stomping grounds where she went on holidays with her cousins and other family members as a kid. The road had changed since she was little as it was once metal, or in otherwords unsealed road and vehicles needed to have the power to get up the hills or else they would slip back down. These days the roads are sealed and are pretty windy all the way through. We did see wild life along the way. Oakura was actually a beachside community where people seem to mostly go on their holidays in buildings called batches. We took a drive to the Whangaruru Camp that had absolute beach frontage. I had been here once before and mum said when she was younger the road wasn’t sealed and vehicles struggled to get up that hill and it was one way road, when now it was different.
The next two stops were nearby as we headed to Helena Bay and Teal Bay. Helena Bay was really blink and you would miss it, but then you would get stuck with the ocean. I did spot something I wasn’t too sure about on the way to Teal bay. We would stop for a better look on the way back. Teal Bay was a small community that even had a community watch sign as you enter. I would say they are watching you enter and leave. There was plenty of wildlife in the area as we seen Quail, hares and birds on the beach. It was nice an relaxing out here and I guess that is the point when you watch the ocean. On our way back we checkout what that sign said and it was High Chaparral is a local property that has a walking trail through it, which is part of the Te Araroa – New Zealand trail. You could either go on a 9km walk that takes around 4 hours or a 23 km walk to Whananaki that takes around 9 hours. On the way back to town we did see some people fixing up some trees that had fallen over in the wet, and even a goat farm. We were not allowed to step foot on the farm for obvious reasons and it did look like they were being milked at the time.
On our return to Whangarei we stopped off at the Kauri cemetery as there are several family members buried there. We tend to visit this place nearly every time we come to the local area. I managed to find several people including one family member who had his old gumboots sitting beside the headstone as he was a farmer. In the older section some of the wildflowers had taken over some of the graves, although it was nice to see nature taking over some, it was sad to see the state of repair to some of the sites nearby of the older ones like concrete collapsing. Just down the road from the cemetery is the Kaurihohore Hall though I have always passed it on the road, so its just part of the scenery. Mum did come across several people she knew of from the area including an old school teacher that seemed to be well known.
The plan for the next day is to visit Dargaville for the museum since mum has not been there before and it would make a great trip for the day. The area is also known as the Kumera Capital, which is Sweet Potato for the rest of us.
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