..von Russel weiter Richtung Süden

Russel, the first European settlement in New Zealand, turns out to be an old but well-maintained wooden house settlement. First, I drive up to the flagpole - the Maori knocked it down 4 times as a sign of protest against the English, the last time it was already a military operation with diversionary attack and ambush. I drive past beautiful bays and beaches in a loop back to SH1 to continue towards Auckland. I switch to the west coast again, at Muriwai Beach there is the wild Tasman Sea on a black, flat sandy beach. The surf roars wildly, a lone kite surfer makes his rounds, at the southern end of the beach gannets are nesting...I enjoy all these impressions until a shower drives me back into the car.

Auckland annoys again with traffic jams during rush hour, finally I leave the bottleneck behind me and head for the Coromandel Peninsula. Shortly before sunset, I find a spot right by the fjord, the mountains in the background belong to Auckland.