Forgotten World

So things didn't really go according to plan here. I headed towards Three Sisters and Elephant Rock yesterday, and when I got there, I realized, damn, the tide is going out soon, and I can't move forward. I actually had it in my head but just didn’t think about it anymore and just drove there. Well, I called around and chilled there for the day because the next low tide would have been at night, which doesn't help me at all, so I decided to wait until tomorrow morning. There was actually a freedom camp right there. In the morning, it was supposed to start at 6 AM, after consulting with ChatGPT, but the idea of walking through that muddy stretch in pitch black where the water was just receding didn't appeal to me, so I waited until sunrise and set off then. It turned out I was still too early, and I had to wait at times until passages were passable. It’s kind of tricky with the tides, at least for me and ChatGPT :)

Well, I made it to the beach not dry, but only half as muddy as I thought. I think it’s a kind of river that recedes with the tide, so when it’s high tide, you can’t get to the beach; there’s only this way. First, I saw the Elephant Rock, which was really cool, and there was a tunnel you could walk through, and on the other end, you could see the Three Sisters; it was really beautiful. All around were rocks full of caves and passages, which was spectacular, and I was able to explore a lot there and wandered around a bit before returning to the car. I could actually clean my shoes pretty well in the wet grass; they look like new (of course not, but only half as bad). At the parking lot, I immediately saw that another camper had gotten stuck in the mud and couldn't get out. This had already happened to someone last night. We pushed him out with six people, but it took a while, putting wooden boards under the tires, etc., but he was really stuck. After he was free, I wanted to get away as quickly as possible. And thank God I had no problem; I could drive out easily. Then I headed to the Egmont National Park Visitor Centre. Just so you know I was there, even though you won’t be able to see Taranaki at all. The road was through rainforest, which was super beautiful; the road was more like a river. The sky was white; unfortunately, you couldn't see anything at all. Well, it is what it is. Next, I headed to Stratford, the last stop in the area. Now I was on the Forgotten World Highway, which I was really looking forward to, and yes, it's a dreamy road, extremely winding and steep between mountains, but completely in the rainforest, maybe three vehicles passed me by. The most important task there is of course to greet each other, you know, with a hand gesture, like only motorcyclists do with us. So I always feel like part of a gang in these remote areas, and I love it haha.

Yes, and now something went wrong again. My stop was Whangomomona Hotel. The place is a self-proclaimed republic, and you can get your passport stamped there, which I find quite funny. Yes, and now guess who exactly is closed on Wednesdays? That's right. So no stamp for me, but oh well. I continued to the Moki Tunnel, known from the Hobbit films I guess; I don’t know, sorry folks. Since there are no good sleeping spots at the next spot, I'm staying here in the middle of the rainforest in a park area where supposedly you can stay overnight, but I also don't think anyone cares, with the two cars that come by here.