Tag 48 Forgotten World Highway

After a morning swim in the sea, let's get started. Today there are two road trips planned. I've done and seen everything I wanted and even more. But I'm still interested in the northernmost point of New Zealand. And maybe the way there still has a few pleasant surprises in store, I wouldn't be surprised anymore. It would have been nice to see Mt. Taranaki without clouds again, but today it is covered in dense cloud cover, it's even raining. The sun is shining on the Surf Highway. But there is another scenic highway, the Forgotten World highway. A journey through a forgotten world, off the main travel route. That sounds good and above all somehow stress-free. The first 30 km are not very interesting yet, we could also be in the Allgäu. However, I am surprised that there are so few rented campers on the road. The landscape becomes more interesting and there are hardly any cars left. Just when I think that the sun takes away the mystical atmosphere, it clouds over and starts raining shortly afterwards. Aha! In the Republic of Whangamomona, a place consisting of a hotel and a few houses, which has declared itself a republic, I take a short break.

Afterwards, we cross a railway track several times, each time in a dramatic fashion with a stop sign, etc. As if a train would pass here more than once a week, if at all😉

The tunnel is already quite spectacular. It wouldn't even be allowed as a museum tunnel in our country.

In the gorge that the road leads through afterwards, it becomes obvious why there are so few campers here. In addition to the ability to patiently and non-frantically drive through a forgotten landscape for three hours on a narrow, winding road: a section is not paved but a real jungle road😋. Well, it's not that easy to drive with the VW bus. Neither the map nor other descriptions indicate this. Only the brochure from the i-site indicates this, but only very vaguely and to scale. Well then... But at least Google offline navigation gives clear instructions 'please follow State Highway 43 for another 18 km'. Smiling slightly, I continue driving. Where else would I go here😂.

In the end, I am grateful for the great route and was able to take some very nice photos and videos. Attached to this post are just a few pictures from my phone. After a short coffee break in the next town, the road trip towards cape Reinga to the north begins! Now it's about making kilometers. The State Highway is very slippery because there have been a few showers. The Kiwis are on their way home from the weekend trip on a Sunday afternoon and not so relaxed, they push forward! So I take the next parking lot and enjoy my coffee from McDonald's in peace. I continue driving and am overtaken by an ambulance and police. A short time later, I pass an accident site and it looks like there are injuries. I recognize one of the cars again, it was one of the not so relaxed ones...

Unfortunately, the senseless straight line driving of the Kiwis continues, although the road is still wet and really slippery. And those who know me know that I don't drive slowly, but today the motto is to arrive relaxed and safely. Luckily, some Kiwis see it the same way and the rest of the trip goes without any pushing.

I have several options for the destination point and since I don't like three out of the four options at all, I decide to stay at Ray's Rest. The drive takes until 8 pm and drags on. I still remember Ray's Rest from my first night in New Zealand. When I park backwards towards the sea, I am warmly greeted by the neighbors and their children. It's a great atmosphere here again, but the drive has exhausted me. Together with the neighbors, I take photos of the sunset, which is one of the best in New Zealand so far. Since there is 4G network here, I can update the travel blog. During the night, the tide comes in and the rear doors are open. The water is just under 2 meters away, how unbelievably beautiful! I'm glad I'm here. Ray's Rest is somehow like a single-family housing estate with campervans by the water and sounds a bit like retirement 😂. Since that's hardly the case, I'll continue tomorrow, but enjoying the morning sun is of course still possible.