After leaving behind the busy boat club, we took the coastal route rather than the motorway.
The scenery was very nice and we passed many beaches where people were collecting cockes at low tide. Our first stop of the day was at a small village Sunday market. There was all sorts of items ranging from fancy food to crochet jewellery!
We passed through Aukland, which seemed like a huge sprawling city, full of people. In fact we read that a third of New Zealand's population live there! We were glad we were travelling North as the roads back into Auckland were really busy following the bank holiday.
Gladly leaving the big city behind, we stopped for a lunch break at a picnic area. As soon as we arrived, we were greeted by 2 friendly ... chickens!
Continuing our journey we passed New Zealand's only oil refinery and got a little lost looking for a freedom camping area by the beach. In fact we couldn't find it because apparently 3 weeks ago, the council had to close the area to campers because they were breaking all of their own rules, by allowing camper vans and tents to use the area. Oops ... naughty council! 5 minutes down the road was a DOC campsite on the beach too, which was great!
The scenery was very nice and we passed many beaches where people were collecting cockes at low tide. Our first stop of the day was at a small village Sunday market. There was all sorts of items ranging from fancy food to crochet jewellery!
We passed through Aukland, which seemed like a huge sprawling city, full of people. In fact we read that a third of New Zealand's population live there! We were glad we were travelling North as the roads back into Auckland were really busy following the bank holiday.
Gladly leaving the big city behind, we stopped for a lunch break at a picnic area. As soon as we arrived, we were greeted by 2 friendly ... chickens!
Continuing our journey we passed New Zealand's only oil refinery and got a little lost looking for a freedom camping area by the beach. In fact we couldn't find it because apparently 3 weeks ago, the council had to close the area to campers because they were breaking all of their own rules, by allowing camper vans and tents to use the area. Oops ... naughty council! 5 minutes down the road was a DOC campsite on the beach too, which was great!
