We got away from Papamoa Beach at around 10AM and it was a glorious day. The sun was shinning and there was very little wind. It was still cool in the shade as it is still spring, but summer is just around the corner.
We only got as far as Te Puke when we came upon Kiwi 360. It is a Kiwi Farm, Gift Shop, Cafe and they also do tours of the farm. We just went in for a look around with no intention of taking the tour. We learned that Kiwi's grow on vines similar to grapes. The vines are quite a bit larger and have to be supported but they are still vines.
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| Kiwi Vines |
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| Kiwi Vines |
We also saw how they protect the vines from wind and sand. They grow and trim these large hedges that look like cedar trees.
While we were there we went in for a coffee and met a nice couple from Australia and we spent quite a time talking to them. Kathy had a latte and turned into Chatty Kathy. We finally did get away but I think it set the tone for the day. Nice and easy. I do believe hiking yesterday morning and then climbing Mt Maunganui in the afternoon has left us with little energy today.
We finally left the Kiwi Farm and headed south on Hwy 2. We decided to drive around the East Cape over the next two or three days. There was no agenda, just drive and enjoy the scenery until we got tired.
We followed Hwy 2 along the coast until we reached Matata where we turned inland. This took us past Mt. Edgecumbe which is a dacite volcanic cone in the Bay of Plenty region. It is the easternmost vent of the Okataina volcanic centre and had its last eruption around 300 BC. The mountain is 820 meters above sea level.
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| Mt. Edgecumbe |
Just prior to us leaving Hwy 2 and heading around the cape on Hwy 35 we came upon the head waters for the Waiotahi River. Here we found a bunch of people digging for and wading in shallow water for Pipi and Cockells.
We also spotted a couple of birds we had not seen before. One was the Pied Stilt and the other is called a Little Shag.
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| Pied Stilt |
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| Little Shag |
It was shortly after this stop that we came to the Opotiki and this is where left Hwy 2 and turned north on Hwy 35. However we did not stay on it long before we came to an area on the beach that we could stop at. We wanted to have lunch before it got too late and good scenery always helps the digestive system. I don't know the name of the beach but I took a couple of pictures anyways.
We continued on after lunch and just past Hawai we came to a high point that gave us our best view of White Island. White Island is an active volcanic island and we will be taking a boat tour to hike the island on Saturday. The picture is not very good as the island is more than 30 miles away. You can see the steam from the volcano through the binoculars.
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| White Island |
The rest of the afternoon was spent driving along Hwy 35, stopping and taking pictures when we could. There was not always room to stop or even pull over. However we did get a few pictures and enjoyed the drive until we came to Te Kaha where we found a Campervan Camp and called it a day. We were both quite tired and it should be an early night.
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| Whitianga Bay |
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| One lane bridge shared with train. |
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