Rooby Rides Again

We had planned on savage-camping in Omahuta forest but could find no place level enough off the road. And so we drove on in the direction of Kohukohu, a hamlet whose description in Lonesome World was characteristically inviting and misleading. This brought us, 3k later, to the vast Hokianga Harbor/estuary. The road south does not go ever on from here. But, ever since Russell we had been thinking we'd like to do another ferry, if only to hear again our SatNav's instructions. We are using our original 2009 Tom Tom ("Tom")--the 2014 NZ maps are still useable and why update anything from NZ?--but with the voice of Darth Vader. We were finally getting tired of "turn left, to the Dark Side" and "bear right, it is the Way of the Sith" and "don't make me destroy you"...until we boarded the ferry at Russell. There, we heard something new and different that we had to hear again. And so we did, at Kohukohu, Lord Vader telling us: "board the ferry; bring me all the passengers; I want them alive." Totally worth the price of the crossing to Rawene.

We spent the night across from the ferry car-park; the ferry runs only from 7AM to
8PM

Thus, the last to board

Farewell, Kohukohu

Helpful map, showing our crossing; about the same distance as the Hellespont

Somewhat bigger picture

Hello, Rawene

Cleared for landing

LILO

Back on terra firma, we thought we'd stop by the Hokianga harbor Kouto Boulders,
which we'd seen in 2014; sort of like the Moeraki Boulders on South Island

Excellent signage

Unfortunately, it was high tide

Alas, I never took Seamanship 101

But the signage was really good

On to Opononi