Abbey Caves

Calla Lilies growing in limestone outcrop

Andrew and I had the chance to explore Abbey Caves in Whangerei, Northland. They are undeveloped caves and are part of a nice easy 2 kilometer walk through fields with giant limestone boulders. The boulders have been nicely carved over the centuries of rainfall to have some beautifully interesting shapes.

Rock formation in Organ Cave

We weren't sure entirely what to expect since each cave is different. We thought at first that these would be somewhat similar to the lava caves that we explored on Rangitoto, but we were quite wrong. There were three caves: the Organ cave, the Middle Cave, and the Ivy cave. Andrew made the joke of "A musician, a botanist, and an engineer are asked to name some caves...".

Andrew looking into the water

Striated Limestone in Middle cave

The first cave we went into was the Organ Cave. It took a little bit of climbing to get into the cave and I was quite glad for Coach Dallas's climbing lessons in Regina. I was using my arms almost as much as my legs while climbing into the cave since I couldn't reach down the boulders half the time. The Organ cave was quite high and easy to walk along once we got into it. There was a bit of a creek running through it, which would be why the local advice we got said to be very careful if we were going when there had been recent rainfall and not to go on a day when rain is forecast.The water was only about ankle deep.  The caves were quite deep as well. The Organ cave took us about 45 minutes round trip. We could have walked further, but we reached a point where we couldn't tell how deep the water was and decided to turn around. We ran into a few people who had been in the cave before us and htey actually waded and swam a lot deeper than we were willing to.

Rock formation in Middle Cave

We noticed a few glowing specks on the walls and decided to turn off our lights to see what we could see. The first thing I noticed was that it was absolutely pitch black. Even on a clear night in a rural area there is enough light to see at least something, but I couldn't even see my hand in front of my face in the cave with our lights off. Then looking up it was almost like being under a starry sky...there were glow worms! They were really neat to see.

Climbing in Ivy Cave

Limestone Outcrops

We climbed out and then walked to the next cave: the Middle cave. This cave was a lot shallower, shorter, and the water wasn't nearly as deep. There were some really neat rock formations in the Middle cave that made it really obvious that the minerals in the water were building up the rock at the same time it was eating away some of it. There was a narrow section that we had to climb around and crawl through. There was also a point near the end of the cave where we could see light and Andrew actually climbed out of the cave to the surface before scrambling back in. We also found an eel in the water.

Water drops forming rock the rock

Wading through the Ivy Cave

Limestone in the farm fields

The Ivy cave was an entirely different beast. Climbing into it was quite difficult with large slippery boulders and very steep sections. Once we were in the cave it wasn't entirely clear which path would actually go through. I finally found a path by following the water and crawling down a somewhat steep slope until the cave opened up into a standing height cave again. It took us almost 90 minutes to explore the Ivy Cave. We reached a point where the water was about waist deep and decided that we could change when we got back to the campervan and that it wouldn't matter much if we got wet. I waded into the water and it slowly got deeper and deeper. I managed to find the shallower bits, but Andrew accidentally found a deep hole while he was following me. He suddenly found himself a fair bit past his waist! There were also a few glow worms low enough on the cave walls that we could shine our flashlights and look at them. They were really thin silky worms that glowed a little bit when there was no light on them. It was really cool.

Whangarei Falls, Hatea River Walk, and Parihaka Reserve

The mountain that is the Parihaka Reserve

 I'm beginning to feel that perhaps I know what Frodo felt like in the Lord of the Rings, in one regard at least. SO MUCH WALKING!!! It's great that there are so many walking tracks and that they are all free. There is so much to see and the area is so beautiful!

View from the Drummond Track Lookout

I've noticed that a lot of people tend to walk barefoot here, which was strange to see at first, but I am slowly getting accustomed to seeing it. I've heard so many times at home that it is much healthier for your body to walk barefoot, but of course, that is limited to parks and your own backyard. The average store has the sign "No shirt, no shoes, no service". You can walk in naked from the waist down apparently, but if you want service you need a shirt and shoes. It's always seemed odd to me. Here, it is quite common to see kids running around outside at school, people walking home from school, and runners on the pathways, all completely barefoot.

War memorial at the top of the Drummond Track

Andrew and I are staying in the Whangarei area for a few weeks to take in all the sights, do some diving, and work on a local farm. The last few days we have done a few local hikes, including the Drummond and Dobbey Tracks in the Parihaka Reserve, the Hatea River Walk, and the hike to Whangarei Falls. Overall, around 30km of hiking in the last few days. That doesn't include the 6km walk to the hardware store the other day either.

The Drummond track to the lookout was quite challenging, but also quite rewarding. There were enough stairs that my fitbit measured 61 flights and only 2000 steps! A lot of people were running up this stretch though, so I guess it is frequently used by locals for their daily exercise. There was a nice war memorial at the top that is visible throughout the area at night - the red light is quite noticeable!

Top of Whangarei Falls

Sub-Tropical forest walkway 

The Hatea river walk is an easy hike on rolling hills beside the river. That is, unless you read the map incorrectly, get lost, and randomly end up walking up a large hill and through the city before pulling out the phone and navigating to the Falls. There was one extra bridge that wasn't on our map that led us off course. We walked back on the second part of the Hatea river walk and it was rather pleasant! There were a number of people walking their dogs, so I got to pet lots of puppies. There were also large fields of Bird-Of-Paradise and Cala Lilies.

Mist of the Falls

The falls themselves were beautiful. Due to our mis-navigation we started out at the top of the falls, but it was an easy pathway down to the bottom. There were quite a few people around, some swimming, some scrambling barefoot over the rocks, and some just sunbathing. The water was a bit cool, but the sun was warm. It certainly felt good on the barefeet after a long walk. We spent some time relaxing, scrambling around, and enjoying the cool mist from the falls, then started the long walk back to our accommodations. There's still lots to explore in the area and we are excited for our first farmstay tomorrow!

My mountain goat husband

Whangarei Falls

Us at the falls

One of the lilies in the field

One of the large Kauri trees on our walk

Great websites for travellers

Travel Discount Sites

1. Travelzoo
Travelzoo is a discount website that searches most of the other sites to present users with the best deals. You can select your home location and the website will notify you each week of the top 20 deals in your area. These can include anything from 75% off local shows (i.e. Cirque du Soleil tickets for $15) to discounted flights and vacations (i.e. 7 nights accommodation in Ireland including flights for $800).

Andrew and I have used this website extensively to find travel deals everywhere we are traveling and it has saved us a tonne of money (that we of course later use for other travels!).

2. WWOOF
WWOOF (Willing Workers On Organic Farms) allows travelers of any age to trade work on farms for their meals and accommodations. This is considered to be volunteer work in most countries and (usually) does not require a work visa to participate in (please check the requirements of each country before you go!).

WWOOFing allows people to learn organic principles, live with a local host, and truly experience daily life in the country they have chosen to travel around. Stays are generally 1-2 weeks in duration, but if the host and you get along and there is enough work, stays of 2+ months aren't unheard of!

There is no maximum or minimum age to WWOOF: some hosts allow families with children to visit. For upper age 'limit', as long as you are still mobile and able to contribute, most hosts would welcome you!

3.  VacationsToGo
VacationsToGo is generally more useful for those who wish to do cruises or group travel. They offer several great discounts on cruises to an assortment of locations worldwide.

Entertainment on the Go

1. Humble Bundle
Humble Bundle offers weekly bundles, book bundles, mobile bundles, weekly bundles, and monthly bundles. As the name suggests, they 'bundle' groups of games or books together. Each bundle is valid for a certain period of time (i.e. the weekly bundle is new each week) and then they release a new bundle.

You pay what you want for the basic set of items in each bundle, pay more than the average donated amount for a select set of items, and sometimes pay more than a dollar amount for a special set of items. For example, the book bundle might have 7 ebooks available for any price. If you pay more than the average of $9 (or whatever it is for that particular bundle), you unlock an additional 5 books.

My husband and I have used these bundles to get sets of 15 mobile games or ebooks for $10, which is a great deal! Every penny counts when you're travelling! They sometimes also have audiobook bundles, which are great for road trips.

2. BookBub
Book bub browses through Kobo, Amazon, and other ebook sites, looking for books that have been marked down for a special promotion. Sometimes there are some very popular books marked down to help promote the next book in the series, or the first book in a new set to entice readers in. There are also a number of great books to be had for $1-3.

If you are a reader (and if you travel, I hope you don't mind ebooks or your suitcase is going to be VERY heavy), then this is an excellent website to save a bundle and have hours of free entertainment on the road!

3. Audible
Audible is an excellent source for audiobooks. They offer over 180,000 titles, a free book every month if you pay for their membership (which is fairly inexpensive), and 30% off all other books in their selection if you listen to more than one book a month. They sometimes also have incredible deals where audibooks will be $5 each, or free promotions for certain holidays.

Andrew and I find audiobooks are great for long road trips. Staring at trees for hours on end gets boring for the driver, listening to music can get monotonous after eight hours, and conversation can sometimes get annoying if you can't think of something new to say after the seventh hour stuck in a car together. They are also great for relaxing on the plane, or if you are somewhere that it gets dark early and you don't have power for lights (i.e. living in a campervan!). Especially if you look for one that is a full-cast adaptation, it is a lot like listening to the old radio plays.

Happy Canadian Thanksgiving

Where we spent Thanksgiving

First off, Happy Thanksgiving to all of our friends and family in Canada! There are only 6 countries in the world that celebrate Thanksgiving, and New Zealand is, unfortunately, not one of them. Having grown up in the Northern Hemisphere where the symbols for international holidays like Christmas, Easter, and Halloween developed, it seems very strange that the newborn lambs and bunnies are appropriate for Halloween here and that the fall harvest festivals take place just in time for Easter.

It's hard to be away from friends, family, and familiar traditions, so Andrew and I did our own special meal to celebrate. We also thankfully had decent internet and were able to call our families, making the distance seem much smaller.

Turkey was unfortunately in rather short supply here. Our Thanksgiving dinner consisted of roast lamb, roasted vegetables, and wine from the Rockburn winery. Not nearly as elaborate as most Thanksgiving dinners at home, but still felt like a good 'festive' meal.

Here are the recipes that we used:

Roast Lamb
Season lamb chops with rosemary and sage to taste. Roast for approximately 15 minutes in convection oven at 205 degrees Celsius.

Roast Vegetables
Chop pumpkin, potatoes, onions, and garlic into bite sized pieces (approximately 2cm cubes). Roast at 205 degrees Celsius for 45 minutes.

Our Thanksgiving Dinner

Rockburn "Stolen Kiss" Wine

Ambury Regional Park

The natural portrait of Ambury

Sunset from our campsite

Ambury Regional Park is a local park run by the county of Auckland. It is a farm park that lies among the southern suburbs by Manukau Harbour. It is a significant habitat for shore birds. It is also a fully functional working farm where people are invited to wander freely among the animals; provided they close gates behind them and stay out of the bull pen, that is!

From the park, you can see nearby Māngere Mountain, which was once an active volcano approximately 18,000 years ago. The area was then used by the Maori for gardening since the ash from the volcano made the area quite fertile. It is possible to see stone mounds at Ambury that mark pre-European gardening sites. In the mid 1800s farmers from Cornwall and Scotland arrived, turning the area into a commercial dairy farm under the title of the Ambury Milk Company. They stopped commercial milk production in the 1960s but the area remains an active farm where increasingly urbanised kids can learn about farming and where their food comes from.

Little lambs

Petting the lambs

There are a number of walking trails from the farm, including the Family Farm walk (1km, about 45 minutes), the Lost Garden's walk (1km, about 30 minutes), and the Foreshore walk (2km, about 45 minutes). While we were there, Andrew and I did both the farm walk and the Foreshore walk. The farm walk was great for seeing all of the animals. With it being spring, there were so many little lambs, calves, and chicks around that were so cute to see. The farmer was working on herding the lambs into pens to give them vaccinations so we also got to see the herd dogs at work; all of the sheep were quite loud! The Foreshore walk was also quite nice. It was an easy track, although it was windy enough that I almost felt like I would fly away if I lifted my arms! We went at low tide and it was really neat seeing the basalt lava flows that have slowly been smoothed and worn down by the water over the years. There was also a collapsed lava tunnel that was fun to see. The signs on the track were informational and there were still quite a few animals to see.

The campground was quite nice and inexpensive. There were no marked camping sites, so it was just park in the field where you want. It wasn't very busy, so we got our choice of spots. We chose one with good views of the ocean, sheltered by the trees, and close to the sheep. There was a sink for washing dishes, pit toilets, and drinking water. Basic facilities, but not much more is really necessary. We discovered on the second day that there are actually showers up by the milking shed, but when we went to look I think I'd prefer to just wait until we get somewhere with better showers. There is also a carpark available for freedom camping.

A very aggressive turkey

The cow had an itchy neck

Our First Home!!

Making dinner in our living room

Andrew and I have bought our first home together! It comes complete with a bed, table, kitchen, and 4 wheels, allowing us the freedom to explore New Zealand and stay at some absolutely beautiful locations.

Our campsite at Whangareau

It has had some glitches so far; it didn't come with a fridge to start so we have had some fun fridge shopping and figuring out how to hook up a 3-way (AC, DC, and gas) fridge on our own. The lovely people who sold it to us didn't really have much use for any of the camping supplies that they had in the van so it came mostly stocked and ready for an adventure!

So far it's been great. A little chilly in the evenings sometimes, but then, it is just barely spring here! We've camped in some incredible locations, including Takapuna Beach holiday park, Ambury Regional Park, and Whangareau Holiday park. Ambury is a full working farm in the middle of Auckland; it was fun waking up to the sound of sheep and seeing the little lambs playing.

Sitting on the couch

We are really looking forward to exploring more of this beautiful country!

Our first supper

St. Mathew-in-the-City Bell Ringing

Saint Mathews Bell Tower

As part of the Auckland Heritage Festival, my husband and I had the unique experience of visiting the bell tower, seeing and hearing the bells being rung, and learning about how everything worked. I hate to admit it, but when I hear the bells and think bell-tower my first thought is Notre-Dame Cathedral and Quasimodo. It isn't something I really associated with modern times and I thought that most bell towers would have been converted to a mechanical bell ringing system.


When we first got to the church we weren't entirely sure of where to go, but everyone in New Zealand has been very welcoming and friendly. We were directed inside where we were taught about the history of the tower, the history of the bells, and how bell-ringing works. 


The bells in this tower were cast in London, England in 1862 for the International Exhibition. They were shipped aboard the good ship Nimroud to Auckland in 1863. The bells were then hung in first in Bishopscourt, Parnell, and then moved to the tower of St. Matthew in 1906. The bells were sent back to London in 1970 for overhaul since a few of them were cracked. The lightest bell (the treble) weighs 300kg, whereas the heaviest (the tenor) weighs 875kg! 

Model of the bells

The bells are generally left in the 'up' position, resting against a horizontal beam of wood under the bell called the stay. When the rope is pulled, the bell swings down, and then back into the up position, although the bell won't quite balance at this point since the stay is slightly off-centre. The rope is then pulled a second time to return the bell to the up position where it can again rest against the stay. (See the video at the end of the blog). So each time the bell is rung, it is generally rung twice. 

The large tenor bell in the up position

There was only room for about 15 people in the bell-ringing chamber, so we took the chance to wander around the church and admire the architecture. One of the attendants told us that Saint Matthews is one of the best examples of Victorian Gothic architecture in the southern hemisphere. The stained glass windows were absolutely beautiful!

The bell-pulling ropes leading up to the bells

The staircase leading up to the bell-ringing chamber was 54 stairs; very steep, tightly winding stairs! I banged my knees a couple of times while climbing up. The bell-ringing chamber was surprisingly comfortable! Comfy chairs around the outside and a set of ropes hanging down from the ceiling. The bell-ringers gave a brief safety talk (keep your feet on the floor, nothing dangling around your neck, stay to the edge of the room to minimize the risk of getting caught in the ropes while they are ringing, etc.) and then they started ringing chords. It was really neat to see!

I then had a chance to go up into the bell chamber itself to see the bells. They rang the tenor bell a few times so that we could see how it all works; LOUD!!!! I love the sound of bells though so I really didn't mind. Back down in the bell ringing chamber and they gave me a chance to try chiming on of the small bells that they had lowered to the down position. They didn't want to risk us tourists breaking the stay by ringing the bells from the up position. It was a lot of fun to try and I started to get the feel for how the bell was swinging and how hard to pull on the rope to make it chime regularly. Of course, because of my height I got the extra safety briefing of "don't fall off of the box that we are letting you stand on so you can reach the rope." I really enjoyed seeing the bells and would certainly be interested in learning more about bell ringing. Hopefully I will have the chance at some point to try this again, but either way, I am grateful to the volunteers for sharing this very unique experience!

Auckland Art Gallery

Today we went to the Auckland Art gallery. I hadn't been to an art gallery since grade 8, when I went on a school trip.

The art gallery was rather large, well laid out, and reasonably interesting, even for someone who is not overly interested in fine art. It is also free and out of the rain!

My favourite exhibit was one of miniature paintings from India telling the story of Rama. The introduction to each section told the story and then the paintings acted as an illustration to the story.

There was also one exhibit that I found kinda creepy. Perhaps it was just that I'm a writer so can more easily imagine how to turn an everyday scene into a story, but it was creepy!

Let me try to describe it: Walking through the doorway into the long hall of this exhibit, the first thing I noticed was the intermittent sound of seagulls. In an art gallery, it was somewhat random and out of place. The long hall stretches two stories, hemmed in by a second floor mezzanine, giving it a somewhat cavernous feeling. Hanging from the ceiling are three long, white, lace gowns, fluttering slightly in an unfelt breeze. Then, as I started looking at the paintings on the wall, one of them moved. I didn't imagine it. A life-sized, full body portrait of a young women in a grey dress is moving ever so slightly. I look closer and see that it is a video screen, but amongst the other canvases it is quite startling. There is water dripping from her fingers, her dress, and down the screen. 

The contemporary video art gallery was also somewhat interesting. There was one that was a story told on 7 screens using 7 different cameras to capture the scene. Definitely an interesting medium.

There were definitely parts of the gallery that I enjoyed, but I found a fair bit of it rather pointless. Reading the descriptions beside the paintings I found that it seemed like they were written by English students who were told to find a meaning in the painting and make it sound poetic. Perhaps as an engineer I am just a little too practical to enjoy art for the sake of abstract art. I couldn't help looking at some of the pieces and thinking that my youngest nephew could paint something about as good.

Overall it was an interesting experience and worth checking out if you are in Auckland, particularly on a rainy day. Hopefully I haven't offended any art enthusiasts, as I did enjoy a lot of the gallery, but there were parts that just weren't for me.

Rangitoto Island

 Rangitoto Island is a young volcano just off the coast of Auckland. It last erupted approximately 600 years ago and has been dormant since. It can be reached by kayak, private boat, or by the Fullers Ferry from the Britomart ferry terminal.

Rangitoto Volcano

My husband and I thought the idea of hiking a volcano was so completely foreign that it was something we just had to experience when we were in New Zealand. We had been told that Rangitoto was the place to go, so we went! The ferry was easy to use and was a quite pleasant ride. It only took about 15 minutes and we were stepping off the boat onto the island.

There are dozens of different paths possible, including guided tours, but we opted for the simple route of walking ourselves and doing the summit trek. The paths are all quite well signed and it is difficult to get lost. The path is rocky and at times quite loose; I was glad I wore my sturdy hiking shoes instead of the barefoot shoes today!

Kidney Ferns

There are no shops or facilities on the island (with the exception of washrooms) so it is important to bring what you need with you. A small day pack is more than sufficient. We brought:

• Packed lunch
• Water (about 2 L per person
• Sunscreen
• Hat
• Camera
• Torch/headlamps (necessary for the lava caves)
• Umbrella (just in case...it is Auckland!)

Boardwalk over the volcanic rocks

We followed the path up to the summit and saw a wide assortment of different trees, ferns, and flowers. Most notable is the kidney fern, which we were told is actually very rare. I was quite surprised with how rocky the terrain was to see any vegetation growing at all, but the plants don't seem to mind!

The path was well worn and gravel, or boardwalk where it was necessary. There were quite a few informational signs as well, talking about how the vegetation grew, how the volcano formed, and the history of the area. Rangitoto Island was used as a military base in WWII; it is still possible to see some of the deactivated mines in the water while scuba diving. There are also remnants of some of the buildings that were built in that time.

The path climbed to an elevation of about 260m and it was a lot more humid than we are accustomed to so we definitely felt the effort. There were families hiking with fairly little kids though, so it is definitely a do-able family outing. The view from the top was absolutely spectacular!

View from the scenic lookout at the summit

Summit of Rangitoto

 We hiked the crater rim and I was surprised by the amount of vegetation growing in the crater. It was almost difficult to tell that we were even standing on a volcano. There were quite a few points where the trees opened up to allow incredible views of the surrounding island, the Auckland city skyline, and Rangitoto itself.

There were a large number of people having their picnic lunches at the top, but we found it to be quite windy and rather cool today. We opted to hike back down to the split in the path that leads towards the lava caves. There were several fallen logs that we used as seats and tables. There were a few other groups around also using the place for a rest or picnic so apparently it was rather popular.

Cave Entrance

I've never been caving and going through caves created by lava seemed like something that just had to be done. We followed the trail to the lava caves, which was a little bit more difficult of a trail than the hike to the summit. There were a lot of loose rocks and slightly more difficult terrain. There were a few points along the trail that there were gaps in the rock that looked like they went a long ways down. We discovered that one that we had been admiring was actually the exit to one of the caves!

There were a couple of different entrances to the caves. One set had really low ceilings and 2 of the paths led to dead ends. The middle path was quite low and downhill to start, but then opened up to about 6 foot ceilings. A headlamp is definitely required though as it is long enough that no light penetrates the middle. Inside the cave was extremely damp, but it was fun walking through it. The climb out the far side was a little bit difficult for those of us who are a bit short, but still manageable. The second set of caves had an open ceiling in the middle and was walking height nearly the entire way from start to finish.

Inside the cave

Open roof gap in the taller cave

We then walked the rest of the way down the summit track and then caught a ferry back to Auckland City. Make sure you pay attention to the last ferry departure so you don't get stranded! I think Rangitoto was definitely a neat experience and a nice hike, especially in nicer weather.