An exciting morning, waking up and knowing we were going to explore the Coromandel Peninsula. It  is the one place Pete and I really wanted to see this time in New Zealand. After another wonderful plunge in the hot pool we set off. Our first stop was Thames. Such a quaint little town with a lot of gold rush history.  Above is the Anglican church.

One of the many stunning old buildings...

Isn't this a cracker? One of the local second hand shops on the main street...

The drive up along the coast of the peninsula was so pretty , we were always right on the water...called the Firth of Thames.

Still driving up along the coast....

Looking back at Manaia Harbour...the  sun shone for quite a few hours today, the water looked so blue. It is still lovely when it is overcast but gosh the sunshine does make a difference.

We are still up high, it is quite a mountainous peninsular....the views were breathtaking. 

Our lunch stop was a Coromandel Town and we parked near the water. Pete enjoyed looking at all the old boats tied up amounts the mangroves.

One of the lovely beaches that we had been told about by our fellow walkers last week...it is called Otama Beach....had the whitest sand we had seen so far.

And the next bay, Opito Bay was also pretty and we were very excited to see this bird...a northern NZ   dotterel which is slowly disappearing and they are trying a few protection programs to improve their numbers. ( I never thought I would be so interested in birds!)

Our resting place for the night...Hahei...and this is the view from our van.

And this is what the beach looked like at five o'clock this afternoon....photos cannot capture how beautiful this place is. We can't wait until tomorrow...more adventures in this lovely part of the world.

Although the sun was shining when we woke, the forecast was for rain, everywhere, so Pete and I decided to spend the day driving. We wanted to go to the Coromandel Peninsula. We were planning on driving it over two days but decided to do it in one, since there was going to be rain. I have taken so many coastal shots and none of the lush green pastures that we drive through everyday. I have been taking some photos from the car window, some have worked out ok. They are just to get an idea of how pretty the countryside is here.

Not all their trees have leaves yet.

You often see this in NZ, low lying cloud.

Cows, cows and more cows...the North Island seems to have more cows (mainly dairy) than sheep. Pete and I remember seeing thousands of sheep in the South Island.

Coffee stop....just out of a town called Whangarei..

Lunch stop....just out of Auckland...Maraetai

Finally arrived in Miranda, hardly a town, but a small place with a Holiday Park that has a hot spring pool. 

Our first stop today...Te Ngaere

Whangaroa....marlin fishing is a big attraction to this area...

Mangonui....a pretty little harbour town with many historic buildings, like the above....they had a wonderful heritage trail to walk.

Coopers Beach .. we are now in Doubtless Bay

Matai Bay... a rather remote area just past Doubtless Bay....there was camping here but no power...very few people around...the water was crystal clear.

We stayed at a little camper park in Tokerau Beach, the photo above shows our little path to the sand.

These two photos I hope will show what the NZ weather can be like...both were taken within seconds of each other, of Tokerau ...there was a storm coming, and it did arrive a few minutes later.  But then as usual, the sun came out shortly afterwards.

Paihia on a gorgeous morning....we were on our way to catch the ferry to Russell, on the other side of the bay.

On the ferry...

Russell...pretty little town with lots of historic buildings....

Stunning view of the bay from Flagstaff Hill in Russell...

Back in Paihia, coffee and biscuits on the foreshore....

Trip out to Waitangi Treaty Grounds...fabulous place....spend a while soaking up the history.

Haruru Falls...

Pete and I were thrilled when we arrived at our planned overnight stop. We knew nothing about Matauri Bay except Trip Advisor had given it an excellent rap. It is beautiful and we scored a beachside location for the van.

This hill was at one end of the beach and we climbed to the top...

...to see the memorial sculpture to the Rainbow Warrior...isn't it magnificent?!...

View from on top of the hill...our van on the right under the pine trees...

View of our van from the beach, I just loved the reflections in the sand.

Our van has a BBQ! We have never had that before. How nice to cook fresh salmon on the barbie with that view!

It was windy and rainy again in Auckland this morning when we left to pick up our camper van. We decided that since the weather wasn't that flash we would do a big drive north. After several hours of really heavy rain and winds, the clouds lifted and there was blue sky...just as we arrived at Paihia in the Bay of Islands. Unbelievable change...but we were very happy as it is such a pretty part of the world, especially when the sun is out.  

Another photo of the foreshore at Paihia...the tide is out.

This was the view from our camper van at the holiday park in Paihia.

Not too far away there was a walking track...with some beautiful views...

Our van...parked right next to the water...

Dusk ...our view as we ate our dinner....

Well, despite it being an absolutely awful day, rainy and windy, Pete and I thought we should go out and at least see a little of Auckland. The dominating feature of Auckland's landscape is the Sky Tower. 

From the Sky Tower we walked to Ponsonby Road, trendy street full of delightful shops, bars and cafes. I just loved all the houses in this inner city suburban area.

This isn't the first church we have seen that has been made of wood...they reminded us of those we'd seen in New Hampshire.

The Auckland War Memorial Museum ...

Auckland Domain...the oldest park in Auckland,  the park contains all the explosion crater and most of the surrounding tuff ring of the Pukekawa volcano. 

A couple more pretty wooden buildings...on Parnell Road...