After the glow worms, we camped at another DOC beach campsite, Uretiti. Next morning, not very early actually, I watched the Pacific sunrise from there.
...recounts the retirement travels of Mark and Vicki Sherouse since 2008...in Asia and the Pacific, New Zealand, Europe, South America, and Africa, as well as the US and Canada. Our website, with much practical information, is: https://sites.google.com/site/theroadgoeseveron/.Contact us at mark.sherouse@gmail.com or vsherouse@gmail.com.
Sunday, March 30, 2014
Waipu Cave
Next stop on a busy day was inland at Waipu Cave, another chance for a spelio-experience, and...glow worms!
Cave entrance (lower right); this is a DOC site, no admission fee, no guide, little signage, hardly even a warning about the hazards of caves, etc; this is New Zealand! |
Interior; yes, there's a creek flowing through |
First you sit down by the big stalactite and wait seven minutes for your eyes to adjust |
Alas, the flash went off! |
Anyhow, here are the glow worms |
They are impressive, especially in constellations |
Thus |
And thus |
Finally, it was time to head back... |
To the Light... |
Whangarei Heads
Next morning we drove out to the Whangarei Heads, way north on the Pacific side, and walked around the assorted coves, Bream, Urquhart, ending with Smugglers' Cove.
The usual weird trees and their many parasites; every old tree is a veritable garden of other plants |
More weird birds and bird calls |
An usual site: an oil refinery in NZ |
And a big ship |
And an extremely rare WWII gun emplacement |
Stan the Steer directs us to the gun emplacement information |
The rest of the scenery was the usual spectacular NZ... |
Thus |
And thus |
And thus |
And thus |
A distant lone sea stack |
Whangarei Falls
The falls scenic reserve is right in Whangarei, a port city of some size, and the reserve includes a nice trail along a creek leading to a small Kauri park.
Whangarei Falls |
Ditto, from below |
Basaltic columns on which the thing rests...Fingal's Cave... |
Pretty creek |
More bush |
More medium-sized Kauris, and a short canopy walk |
Thus |
Whangaruru To Whangarei
It was a day of leisurely scenic driving, coastal views and beaches, cliffs, weird trees, terraced hills, the Tutukaka scenic loop, the Whangarei Falls scenic reserve (next post), finally ending up in a cabin in Whangarei.
Russell South To Whangaruru
From Russell we drove south to a beautiful DOC campground, right on the beach, at Whangaruru. The seascapes all along were marvelous.
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)