North of Auckland – Norckland

The grass is greener on the other side (of the world)…. The day has come: Picking-up our new home for the next 5 weeks. We got an “upgrade” straight away to the premium brand. Right from the start Eva wasn’t satisfied with the “upgrade” because it wasn’t cozy. Everything in the camper seemed to be alright but nothing was well thought-through. The two employees convinced us (mainly Niels) give it a try. The camper was new, a German brand and a diesel, so we gave it a try.

The journey started. Heading north to the black sands of Piha at the west coast of “Norckland” (north of Auckland). The view of the coast as you drive down is great as well as the beaches themselves. On the way we hardly saw any cars and the beach was completely empty. Not fare from the beach we stayed on a shabby D.o.C. (Department of Conservation) “campground” with dumping toilets.

The first night came and we soon should find out why noone else wanted our premium brand camper van: it wasn’t possible to sleep in the camper (neither in the top bed nor in the bottom one). The top bed was designed like a hammock, which is nice for 2 hrs but not for more. The bottom one is even more of a disaster: you basically sleep on a metal frame. The next morning our choice was easy: the camper needs to be returned. It took us only 1 hour to drive back and after some discussions and waiting time we were happy to received the camper we booked.

It was love at first sight and everything changed. This time the journey started with a great feeling. The next 6 days we explored Norckland. Starting on the east coast with a cruising tour to the famous Bay of Island, where the dolphins played around our boat on a perfect sunny day. Then we headed further up north to Cape Reinga the place where the Tasmania Sea and the Pacific ocean meet. We walked in the sand dunes at the 90 Mile Beach, wandered around the Waipoua Kauri Forest with its gigantic trees, and were enjoying our camper. Only the windy roads were a bit of a downturn. The 1.000 km from and to Auckland with an average speed of 40 km/h took us about 25 hours, which is insane (in European measures).

Our home02_Bay of Islands01

Impressions of the black sands of Piha and the way up01_Piha05 01_Piha0401_Piha0101_Piha06

Cute welcome committee on the campground 02_Bay of Islands02

Best burger in camper/town02_Bay of Islands03

Bay of Islands tour with dolphins all around  02_Bay of Islands16 02_Bay of Islands11 02_Bay of Islands10 02_Bay of Islands09 02_Bay of Islands08 02_Bay of Islands07

Our boat actually went through that hole02_Bay of Islands06 02_Bay of Islands05 02_Bay of Islands04

Sweet little town of Russell in the Bay of Islands02_Bay of Islands17

The ninety mile beach 😉03_Cape Reinga0503_Cape Reinga1103_Cape Reinga01

Amazing sand dunes behind the Ninety Mile Beach03_Cape Reinga10 03_Cape Reinga09

On the way to Cape Reinga03_Cape Reinga07

Lighthouse at Cape Reinga03_Cape Reinga08

One of our favorit places – Spirits Bay 03_Cape Reinga03

Niels found a human eating plant 😉07_Waipoua02

Waipoua Kauri Forest: The oldest Kauri is approx. 1.200- 2.000 years old with a height of 51 m and 14 m wide 06_Waipoua 05_Norckland15

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