East Cape...

Today I am setting off early again, I will be going around New Zealand's wild Eastland and visiting the eastern tip of the North Island. From Matawei, I follow the river and head towards the coast, about 50 km through a valley lined with steep mountainsides, similar to the Sieg River above Eitorf, but much longer and with huge ferns, palms and trees, a real jungle. Once again, I imagine how challenging the settlement must have been. At the coast, I refuel and pick up a hitchhiker at the edge of town who wants to visit his children and is obviously happy to find a ride on a Sunday morning. Over the next 40 km, we have a nice conversation about NZ, politics, and football (of all things, but he is a big fan and knows more German teams than I do), then I take a breakfast break by the sea. The entrance to East Cape again leads over about 15 km of rough gravel, slowly approaching the cape and also keeping an eye out for seals, but only seeing one dead one... At the lighthouse, a man changes a tire on his pickup truck, lucky again... I climb the 700 steps, at the top I meet a retired German couple and a Canadian tourist, together we discuss travel plans and destinations, with Canada once again receiving high praise. On the way further, now heading south again, I pass by the oldest Pohutokawa tree, which is said to be 600 years old. Slowly, the landscape changes, the rugged coast is replaced by sandy beaches and the jungle-like covered mountains are replaced by barren, grassy hills. At Wainui Beach, I take another dip in the Pacific and take a nap on the beach, then I drive the remaining 2 hours to Napier. The player is playing a live concert by Supertramp in Paris, singing along loudly as I twist through the green, already slightly shady evening landscape. I feel too good to leave here, but slowly I have to say goodbye to the island, the ferry leaves on Tuesday, I leave again on Saturday. But tomorrow I will drive back into the interior, where another gravel road is waiting for me...