Katikati and beyond

Katikati and Beyond


On our third day we were happy to leave the city behind. South of Auckland were lush green hills, with sheep and cattle grazing. Vegetation changed to tree ferns and pine trees as we headed through the Karangahaken gorge. We stopped for lunch at charming town called Katikati and viewed the famous murals created by the townspeople in the 1980s to attract tourists and prop up the flagging economy when kiwi prices dropped. My favorite was the one with the minister chasing the tempermental ostrichs on his farm, brandishing the bible. Griz liked the lifelike 1920's auto repair shop. Griz stopped to have a chat with one of the residents on a park bench. I joined him- but the conversation was rather limited. The fellow who took our photo said that the headline photo in the paper that day (Hilary's funeral) was of Sir Edmund sitting on that very bench.Apparently Sir Ed (as they called him) had a summer home near Katikati.

The highlight of the day was a visit to see our friends Ruth and Frank, who were staying at a cottage in Omakaura. We had a lovely beach walk,got up close with the beautiful norfolk island pines and saw kiwis growing (this is a big kiwi growing area). The fruits grow on what look like vines, held up on wooden structures and wires ( a bit like grapes). They are sheltered by huge cedar hedges to protect them from the wind and sometimes also have high fences around them. We feasted on fish and chips and got caught up on travel adventures.

The next day Ruth and Frank headed back to see their son John and Jessie in Palmerston North, and we headed to the Coramandel.

We stopped at a bird santuary along the way,and Griz got to play his Conrad Lorenz part by feeding the baby birds and having them follow him. Some of the birds were quite entertaining,especially the furry rooster who was hoarse from too much crowing.

Our drive to the Coramandel was quite exciting- narrow winding road lined with pines and tree ferns and spectacular views of the sea. We finally reached our cottage at Hahei beach and settled in to our new home. The beach is spectacular- pink sand, with the beach fronted by islands- a true tropical paradise. We watched the full moon rise over the water and turned in- a new adventure awaits tomorrow.