Day 19 Russell Road Drive

It was a beautiful spring day, sunny but still a bit of chill in the air.  The good news was that there were no threatening clouds in the sky so no chance of rain.  We decided to take a drive that was recommended to us.  We were going to take the Vehicle Ferry across the bay and hook up with Russell Road which follows the coast south towards Whangarei.

So we packed a little lunch and headed for the ferry.

Getting on the Ferry

Our first stop was the site of the original Capital of New Zealand which is Okiato.  It was the capital for about one year before it was moved to Auckland and then eventually Wellington. Okiato burned to the ground in 1841 and today all that is left is a sign and a number of houses.

Site of New Zealands Original Capital



Shortly after leaving Okiato we came across an Oyster Farm, at least I think it is an Oyster Farm.  I couldn’t find anyone around to confirm it for me, so were going with Oyster Farm.

Oyster Beds



Oyster Beds



The next three hours I cannot put into words or detail very well. There was simply so much to see in such a short time.  We mainly followed Russell Road but we did do a couple excursions into lesser roads that lead down to various bays and coves. They were all unique and all very beautiful.

The terrain on the peninsula was not just all coast line and I think that added to the beauty.  When we were inland on the road we would be travelling through very green rolling hills, picture postcard perfect.

The hills would end quite abruptly and we would be climbing in altitude and find ourselves in a fairly dense forest.  The road would be cutting through it in a twisting and turning fashion with the speed limit on the turns at 25 kph.  That would be about 15 Miles per Hour.  



Then all of a sudden you break out of the forest onto the coast and be on top of a phenomenal view like this one.  Fortunately we were able to pull over and stop.  These shots were all taken from the same viewpoint.





The view captivated us and we ended having lunch while overlooking the scenery below us. One day I will learn how to take a picture that truly represents what our eyes are seeing.  We sat and enjoyed for 30 minutes before we headed on.

The next three hours were just more of the same.  There were unbelievable views but could just not stop long enough to even get a picture.  We were able to slow down enough to thoroughly enjoy the view.  Some more shots of our day.

We finally came to Hwy 1 and turned north to return to Paihia.  It was a nice sunny day for most of it and that made the drive even more pleasurable.  We arrived home late in the afternoon, threw a little chicken on the Barbie and had a nice dinner.  Tomorrow we plan to go north for what we expect will be just as picturesque.