09/07/2018 - The next road trip is coming up

After leaving behind "Castlepoint" along with its lighthouse and having a good night's sleep in "Dannevirke", we continued north. Our next destination was "Napier". For that, we crossed "Waipawa", where we stayed for a night at a campground.

In New Zealand, it happens that sometimes the weather is more exciting than the actual day. Because when the day is filled with car rides or you just feel like being lazy, the weather has a good chance of becoming the highlight of the day - just like this time. During the 60-kilometer drive from Dannevirke to Waipawa, we counted various cloud formations in the sky, which were also located at different heights. It was impressive and creepy at the same time. But when a straight rainbow formed out of nowhere on the edge of a cloud, our curiosity was piqued. We had never seen anything like it before. We researched on the internet and found out that it was a relatively rare optical phenomenon. The "circumhorizontal arc" requires the sun to be at a certain angle in the sky to create this effect - mindblowing!

In Waipawa, we experienced a mild night for a long time. Our second blanket turned out to be unnecessary and in the morning none of the car windows were fogged up. Even when we left the vehicle, a second jacket was not necessarily required - a good feeling. :) It called for a breakfast outdoors, and so we did it.
After our morning meal, we drove to "Hastings". There, we encountered the biggest and most extensive weekly market we have visited so far in New Zealand. The farmers and vendors set up their stalls in two large halls and enticed customers with tempting aromas. We were amazed at the wide range of offerings: from homemade soaps to organic food to hand-knitted hats, customers could purchase a lot. Like many other Kiwis, we also made some purchases, including bread, mandarins, mushrooms, and red "yam roots" that we had been wanting to try for a while. With the delicious goodies in tow, we drove to Napier. There, we first visited the library to do our daily "blogging work". Then we stopped by a free campground, which was only a few minutes' drive from downtown.

Only eight campers are allowed to stay overnight here, in designated parking spaces!

Luckily, we managed to snag one of the few available spots.
As dusk settles over New Zealand relatively early at the moment (around 5:00 p.m.), we unpacked our camping stove and hoped to be able to prepare a warm dinner. The relentless wind didn't make it easy for the small gas cooker. But with physical effort and the help of an umbrella, we managed to keep the wind away from the flame as best we could - and ate the lukewarm curry in the car. Meanwhile, we observed the hustle and bustle outside the car. After all, we were on a public parking lot where anyone can come and go as they please. One of the approaching cars stopped at every car in the marked area. We quickly realized that it must be the ranger who was writing down the license plates of those who were spending the night here.

Camping at free/public sites is usually allowed for only three days per month.

The next morning, we woke up after sunrise. That's how loud or restless the night was. Besides the fact that it didn't get quiet on the parking lot until late, it was located in close proximity to the state highway. The passing trucks quickly drowned out the sound of the waves crashing on the other side of the car. Despite that, we were well-rested enough to start the day. After breakfast, which this time consisted not of powdered milk mixed with muesli but of a delicious baguette with various vegetables and dip, we went to the information center. There, we gathered information about the region we want to explore in the coming days. - What's the condition of the roads? Where can we stay overnight? What hikes can we do? - Armed with various information and a few brochures, we left the i-Site and stocked up on grocery supplies and new gas cylinders from the hardware store for the upcoming road trip. But since the weather was still quite changeable, we didn't start our journey today. Instead, we headed to "Bluff Hill" - a lookout point overlooking the port of Napier. There, we spotted the next rainbow, which there were plenty of today due to the numerous rain showers.
In the early afternoon, we settled at the next campground, which was not far from Napier. In "Bay View", we set up our camp: okay, we simply parked our car in the assigned parking spot. We noticed the brand new facilities. We took a long shower and then grabbed the cooking utensils to prepare dinner. Since we didn't skimp on purchasing a gas grill, we decided to make grilled vegetables. Despite the approaching storm front, Tobi gathered his courage and turned on the gas bottle. While the grill heated up, I prepared the vegetables. In addition to ordinary grilled vegetables like pumpkin, sweet potato, carrots, onion, and mushrooms, we also put the yam roots on the grill. Just as the first batch of vegetables began to gain some roasted flavor, a heavy rain shower started... Tobi constantly moved back and forth between the kitchen and the grill - unfortunately, the terrace area where the grill was located was not covered. Eventually, we had to give up and started frying the remaining vegetables in a pan. This delayed dinner by quite a while, but in the end, only the taste mattered. And it convinced. :) - By the way, the yam roots were not particularly spectacular; we combined them with onions and a little sweet chili sauce. ;)
After this adventurous dinner, we exhaustedly disappeared into the car. Our road trip will really start again tomorrow.