Whanganui - Ōpunake

After watching the fishermen in Porirua for a bit in the morning, I made my way to Whanganui. There were large land disputes shortly after the first Europeans arrived in the 1830s. Transactions that the local Māori population viewed as a ritual exchange of gifts were considered by the New Zealand Company as a successful acquisition of Whanganui and larger tracts of land in the area. It wasn't until 2001 that the atmosphere calmed down enough for the government, city council, and the local Māori to agree to jointly manage the disputed Moutoa Gardens.

From the Durie Hill Tower, I had a fairly good view of the city and the Whanganui River before going down the somewhat steep stairs at the Durie Hill Elevator into the city. In Pukenamu Queens Park, I visited the memorial for those who died in World War I and the peace sculpture, as well as had a look into the Whanganui Regional Museum. There was, among other things, a photo exhibition about a former gold mining town near Whanganui. The photos showed village life and were quite professional. Often, the photographer himself was even in the picture - was he the discoverer of the selfie?

After that, I continued along the Surf Highway to Ōpunake, a small town where apparently a lot of crocheting and knitting is done. The whole place is decorated with crochet and knitting items, even the trash cans! At a cliff, I set up camp and met a Canadian retiree couple. They had also rented a self-contained campervan and had 6 weeks to explore the North and South Islands. The day before, they had visited Mount Egmont (also known as Mount Taranaki). This is a dormant volcano that last erupted in 1755 and dominates the entire western third of the North Island. With a bit of luck, one can photograph it and its reflection in a small pond, as the mountain is usually surrounded by clouds. Unfortunately, the couple had bad luck, as it only cleared up the morning after their hike; they couldn't repeat the hike because they had to head towards the ferry for the South Island.

This photo with Mount Egmont and its reflection was also on my agenda, and the next morning, I saw it for the first time. Hopefully, I have better luck than the Canadian couple!