On Christmas Day we loaded up the trailer and my daughter's car, leaving ours ready to have everyone's bags, the esky's (chilly bins) and camping fridge to go in on Boxing Day morning. We were up early Boxing Day and on the road by 6.20 am - facing a 7 hr car journey up to Matai Bay, in Northland, NZ.
We arrived at the DOC (Dept of Conservation) campground and found only one site empty, so we grabbed it quick and started setting up camp. Fortunately, another campsite, 2 away from ours was packing up, so we spoke to them and told them we'd take that one as well, as we were not going to fit our dome, 2 roomed tent and three smaller tents plus our vehicles on one site. Also, my son, his partner and grandson were arriving in another 2 days with a popup camper.
We were so fortunate to have beautiful weather. NZ summer can be quite fickle, and the further north you go, the more rain you can get, with some of the tropical storms that hit Australia, coming down and across the top of the north island.
There are toilets, cold water and cold showers provided at the campsite. We took solar showers and a shower unit that plugs into the cigarette lighter in the car and had a shower tent set up, so warm showers for us. It's really good for the kids to be aware of water conservation - having to wet oneself, turn off shower, soap up, rinse off and get out. Hair washing is done in a similar way, although the kids were encouraged to wash theirs during the day under the cold showers after having a swim.
Cooking was done on gas cookers, dishes in a tub of hot water. Meals were simple, but nutritious and tasty. The kids spent ages swimming, walking on the beach, playing "spotlight" at night with other kids at campground and generally amusing themselves during the day. My son, Adam, took Jack, grandson for 5 dives, as Jack had just got his junior dive licence. He loved it.
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| Yachts moored overnight in the shelter of the bay |
We stayed there for 9 nights, packing up in the rain on Jan 3rd, before a storm hit the North Island, causing quite a bit of damage and flooding in places. It was a long slow trip home until we hit north Auckland and then it was back to light traffic and normal speeds. We spent the next two days drying tents - hanging them up in the garage one at a time, and doing loads of washing. It was good to be home in soft beds with "real" showers, but I could easily have stayed there for several more weeks.
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| So beautiful |
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| Maori totem poles |
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| Clear clear water |
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| The grandies got my phone - aren't they delightful :) |
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| Fishing in the evening. |
Adam (son) does a great deal of diving. He dives on wrecks and for crayfish. He brought his dive gear up with him, and spare equipment, so Pete could go for a dive with him, which he did one afternoon. He also took Jack, (grandson) out for 5 dives. Jack completed his Junior dive certificate in the last week of school, so it was good for him to get more dives in and cement what he learnt on his course.
