The Northland Part III – the West Coast

I hope you are reading these in order.  Otherwise you will never be able to follow the plot. 

We considered skipping the west coast of the Northland to make the drive south shorter but between my need to see an ancient tree and the kids’ need to dune sled we decided to go. Man, I’m so happy we made that choice. When we drove into the campsite in Rawene I was completely blown away. The sun was just setting when we arrived, completely magical. If one can be swept off one’s feet by a view, then I was.  This was God’s country.

The campsite itself was tiny and adorable with miniature A-frame houses and a dining area overlooking the harbor and hills. It was all very bohemian with statues of the Buddha and macrame hanging plants.

          

                                          

        

            

                       

                                       

In the morning I took a run into the wee town and we did some journaling. We departed around 10 to head to Opononi for a boat ride to a dune. Dune sledding is an incredible experience that Luke will detail. It essentially works the same as snow sledding except you do it in sand. As you run up the steep dune, which is great exercise, you need to move as quickly as possible over the burning sand and periodically stop and rest your sizzling trotters while sitting on your boogie board sled. After an hour or so of that, we boated back to town for ice cream and our ride to Waipoua.

                 

                                  

We drove through an ancient rainforest of ferns under a canopy of Kauri trees to get to Tane Mahuta.  Tane Mahuta (meaning Lord of the Forest) is over 2000 years old and has to be the inspiration for Avatar’s Tree of Souls. It was a glorious site, the most massive tree any of us have seen.  These pics just don’t do it justice. 

                

                 

When we left Waipoua we didn’t have a direct plan. The stop in Auckland altered the itinerary slightly and we didn’t want to go too far out of the way.  We also wanted to push far enough that our drive was short the following day. None of the campgrounds in the area seemed particularly appealing so I randomly found on the google map (when we finally got reception back) Tracy’s Boutique Farmstay. I called and she had the barn available.  She sounded very friendly and said she’d have the space ready by the time we arrived – Just follow the gravel drive over the wooden bridge and through the golden gates – Sounds perfect.

Total winner – we got there around 6 and it was another magical spot.  The barn was set against a backdrop of rolling green hills with cattle, goats and sheep. And barn wasn’t really a fair word to describe the space.  It felt more like a Tuscan villa. The house smelled like herbs and incense. There were massive crystals everywhere in the barn and around the garden, and Tracy, the lovely homeowner, is a reiki master. I think we were energetically drawn to this place. How many farmstays have crystal-loving reiki master owners?   

She built the place over time and modeled it after an American barn, at least from the outside. The interior had all these amazing touches – antique doors and fixtures, reclaimed wood on the ceiling and floors, Indian silk textiles, and overstuffed vintage sofas. The courtyard garden had Russian sage mixed with palm trees and succulents, a massive rose quartz and statues of Buddha.  Eclectic would be an understatement but a perfect spot to enjoy a morning coffee, listen to the farm animals and smell the honeysuckle.

       

                                              

                                  

            

                          

 

                

     

                                  

       

              

Onward to Auckland…