Tag 49 Kauri Forest

The day starts beautifully. I sit in the back opening and eat my fruit salad made from fresh blueberries, strawberries, and kiwis. Luckily, there is a light breeze, otherwise the 26 degrees would be unbearable. Around 12 o'clock, I drive to Auckland to a Pak'n'save and then continue to the Kauri Coast. It takes much longer than planned, so I only arrive at the campsite at 4 o'clock. There, I immediately book a guided walk through the Kauri Forest at night, and sometimes you can also see a specimen of the very shy and rare national bird 'Kiwi'.

I have already done some research beforehand and that's why I'm here. The entire trip is more focused on eco-tourism rather than fun activities like jet boating or bungee jumping. We meet at 9 o'clock. Unfortunately, there are also some loud-mouthed Germans with us, but luckily they have to shut up for at least 1 hour later.

The guide takes us on a short drive through the Kauri Forest, explains a lot, and uses the red light lamp to illuminate all the important points in the forest, as we have to be absolutely quiet there. The Kiwi is a bird that lives underground and has a very good sense of hearing and smelling, but not so good vision. Hence the red light and quiet movement. As a group, we walk for an hour through the forest, which is really fun, and I have already checked off one item from tomorrow's itinerary. That means I can sleep for an hour longer 😁. The night walk through the forest is really beautiful. Behind me, there are occasional stumbling or heavy breathing sounds, it's the fellow countrymen who would have been better off staying at home in front of the TV and complaining about something from the haunted house after ten minutes. Sneaking comfortably and quietly through the forest for 1 hour, some individuals neither have the stamina nor the patience for that.

Towards the end of the tour, we have not seen any Kiwis yet and we return to the meadow near the parking lot. And behold, there is a large female Kiwi standing right in the middle of the meadow, looking for food. We approach very quietly until we are only a few meters away. What an animal! It's about the size of a chicken with a long beak and great legs, perfect for moving in the forest. The way it moves is a bit comical, but overall it's a great bird! Of course, there is no photo of it. This is one of the exclusive adventures in New Zealand that cannot be photographed. Only 3% of New Zealanders have ever seen a Kiwi. At the sight of this funny bird, I stand on the meadow with my mouth open, pleasantly surprised. It's unbelievably cool to be able to experience this. Our guide asks if we are all satisfied and okay. The path is not easy in the dark, you can even fall down a meter if things go wrong. Then we take an extra lap. Even without seeing a Kiwi, this night walk would have been great because of the glowworms, the trees, etc. But seeing a Kiwi live was really amazing!