Thursday 25th February

Today’s drive took us through more varied scenery. Most of it was on very twisty roads through the Kauri tree forests – which were dense and lush. We stopped here to view the oldest Kauri tree in New Zealand; as an added bonus there was a bus tour party with a Maori guide singing a sacred song – in fairness he had a good voice!! We again found some fabulous deserted white sandy beaches which stretched for miles. We crossed the Hokianga harbour on the car ferry and had lunch in a cafe and sat out on the veranda which had decking out over the water. We have stopped for the night in Dargaville and are going to sample the food in the ‘Returning Services Association’ Club.

P.S. Ate at the RSA Club – they had finished cooking when we arrived but managed to rustle us up some excellent fish (snapper) and chips!