Tag 47- 57 NORTHLAND

Piha is a small sleepy coastal village surrounded by rocky hills that make you feel like you're in the south of France. We spend two days here enjoying beautiful sunsets at Black Sand Beach, climbing Lion Rock, and visiting a waterfall (there are many of them here).

Then we continue to Port Albert, where we learn, in pouring rain and muddy fields under our feet, that camping is not always the most fun. The next day, we meet Terence at the local café, an 87-year-old World War veteran and poet who tells us his life philosophy and history and invites us to his home. We get to browse his books and CD collection and receive a small gift each.

After our muddy adventure, we stay in a bungalow in Pahia for two days before resuming camping on the beach. We drive all the way to the northernmost point of New Zealand: Cape Reinga, and then go sandboarding on the sand dunes.

On our way south, we make a quick detour to Whangarei, and then Christmas is just around the corner...