The Oxford Workingmans club was handy to the Anzac day service the next day so we thought we’d check it out. It was also handy to the cemetery where we went to check in on my Grandparents and see how things looked there.
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Workingmans club
At the cemetary, the headstone was in a bit of a state and you could barely read it so we thought we’d get some potent cleanup stuff and take to it with a stiff brush. It came up really well and looks fantastic.
Fiona cleaning the HeadstoneThe end result!
After that, we went and checked out the local Workingmans club which has free accomodation for Motorhomes in a well separated paddock out the back.
Our neighbour in the paddock
We decided to join the Oxford Workingmans Club and after enjoying a couple of wines, we bought some Fish and Chips and headed back to Rafe. They’re fantastic people there and very helpful. A place to remember.
I had just been for a walk around the grounds of the pub and was returning to Rafe when in comes Rex and Jenny with their beautiful homebuilt Teardrop Caravan and WOW!!
Stunning
Its roomy too, much bigger than your average teardrop. They have a Queen size bed in it along with a wall of wardrobe and shelves.
The back lifts up for the Galley area and there is a great little hideaway for their slide out Barbeque.
Arriving at the Park.. what a sight
Having taken 2 years to build from scratch, they’re returning to their home town of Tauranga after a 3 month trip around the South Island. They finished building it 3 years ago and are now are getting to enjoy it.
Click on the Gallery below to see a great Slideshow!
Rex and Jenny
The Galley
The BBQ pulls out of one of the rwar guards
Nice !!
The 1957 Chev . (same year as me !)
Stunning
Matched with the 1957 Chevrolet, it is the full package and sounds it too.
The NZMCA has just started a new program called Campersave which allows us Motorhomers to take advantage of the off season when Motorcamps are not busy and also has the benefit for Motorcamps to get some off season cashflow.
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Neat spot
Its a win win for all!
A customer at the door.. old fashioned camping !
So I was keen to support one and the one closest to us was part of the Springfield Domain. It is called the Kowhai Pass Campground as this was the original name for Springfield.
Camp Caretaker Joy in her office
We rocked in and met one of the delightful caretakers, Joy who showed us where to park and where things were. The cost is $20 per van with power. There are toilets and showers as well. The showers cost a $1 which is pretty cheap. I’m sure I spotted a laundry too.
Looking along the main street of Springfield
A great spot for the night and great value with some nice people.
Fiona with the Donut
The next morning we went further west and had a look through Springfield town where there is a tribute to Rewi Alley and of course the famous Donut. A neat spot.
The Netspeed Speedtest
Dowload : 39.25 mbps
Upload : 6.94 mbps
Ping : 154 ms
After a great night in Springfield, we headed back to Oxford as an old stamping ground for my family and to be there for the Anzac service.
Oxford was settled by large parts of my family, the Vincents and the Millers. The local cemetary tells the story and they’re also well represented in the Museum and on the local War Memorial Obelisk.
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In the Town Hall during the service
The next morning was the Anzac service so we walked around to the Town Hall where it was standing room only. It was an amazing turn out for such a little town.
In the Main Street
After the service, the returned Soldiers and other services like St John and current Soldiers, formed up for the march to be led down the road a bit to the Cenotaph.
The Cenotaph
Following a lone piper, the parade occupied most of the main street before it turned in to the Cenotaph. .. Very impressive..!
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In the Town Hall during the service
The Parade being led down the main street
The Piper leading the way
Arriving at the Cenotaph
Wreath laying
Ashley Vincent
Relaxing after the service
Our Security
Two of my great uncles Ashley and Ray Vincent were killed in action about 20 years old and were both on the Cenotaph and had seperate crosses.
The Obelisk
A really impressive setup and the parade went like clockwork. It was also nice to see several armed police turn up just to ensure everyones safety.. thanks Guys.
What a find.. Owned and run by the Boyd family on what was once the family farm, this is a superb setup and has to be one the better Park over properties sites I’ve come across.
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It is set in the grounds of Donegal House Irish Pub about 7 k’s from Kaikoura. Its only downside is it is not walking distance to kaikoura but more than makes up for it with the facilities.
What you see on postcards
We’d only been in the South Island a day and the weather was the pits with it raining non stop so we thought we’d wait it out in front of the open fire at Donegal House 🙂
Inside the Pub
We spent two nights there waiting for the weather to improve before heading further south.
Great Fire
Powered sites are $20 per van per night and non powered is free in a separate area. There are heaps of powered sites all nicely setup up in little fenced areas with Irish names on each!
This is a place with huge family history and they’re very proud of it. Their family tree is up on a board with lots of photos in side of how it was with their relatives.
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Great outlook
Well organised powered sites
The Free parking
Statues of old timers in the Garden
The family tree
Family piccies
The Pub
The Gardens are amazing too and well cared for. A stunning spot.
The Netspeed Speedtest… Awful! .. I suspect there was an issue with the local tower as it did improve before we left.
Download: 1.48 mbps
Upload: 0.24 mbps
Ping: 76ms
Arriving in Wellington, we headed to our favourite spot at Plimmerton at the NZMCA park.
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Plimmerton NZMCA park
The weather forecast for the next few days was awful with torrential rain forecast so we were in for an early start in the morning to drive into Wellington for the 8am Bluebridge sailing.
Rafe with the Mini’s
We were first in line arriving at 0630, half an hour before check in. Not long after we checked in, we were joined by some of the 60 odd Minis doing the Kidscan Charity run from Kaitaia to Invercargill over 6 days. Most were dressed up for the occasion with long hair and bright clothing.. a lot of fun.
This is the 6th running of this event in homage to the Kiwi Classic movie, Goodbye Pork Pie.
The view from the deck through the rain
Once we were on the ferry, they were marshalled in behind us and it looked like it would have been a fun trip.
In the Truck deck as we arrived in Picton
Driving through Kaikoura, we also saw some passing us and stopped in various places along the way.
Minis on the car deck
To donate to the cause or to find out more, see kidscan.org.nz
We’ve passed through Foxton several times and every time have said, we should have stopped to check out that Windmill.. well, this time we did and what an amazing project.
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The Windmill
It is modelled on a 17th century Dutch Windmill with some modern changes to meet NZ building codes.
The Milling gear in the Windmill
De Molen was setup by two Dutch immigrants Jan Langen and Cor Slobbe and opened in 2003. It was established as a monument to all the Dutch immigrants that came to New Zealand and bring tourism and create some employment for the town.
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Rafe parked behind the library
The Dutch cafe next door
Looking across the town
The Windmill
There is easy Motorhome parking behind the Public Library right next door on grass. Admission is $2 for a self guided tour and from the top, you can right out to Foxton beach and also a great view over the town.
Looking out to Foxton Beach
Its well worth doing and Fiona and I also saw the Rembrandt paintings on at the Library right next door. A really interesting hour or so,k
After checking in at the Marton NZMCA parking area, I went for a wander around with the camera.
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Great Parking
Marton is probably the only NZMCA park with Loos and a shower which is nice and the check in room is huge and there is plenty of room to relax if there is bad weather and you want a break from your Motorhome.
Down in the corner
We last stayed here with friends Chris and Gary a couple of years ago but the improvements just keep coming.
The parks are now all nicely marked with plenty of nicely planted areas to enjoy.
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Inside the check in area
Wide open spaces
Walking the dogs in the park next door
Right next door to this park is one of Marton’s big reserves with a Monument to our fallen heroes and a rugby field next door. The gardens around are lovely with a nice grove of trees filtering the light as you enter the park.
Nice light next door
The crosses for our fallen soldiers were all in place and there were some amazing metallic Poppies around the trees and on the banks, just as a finishing touch.
Guarded by the Magpie
A great setup and with Fiona and I both coming from huge Army families, it was really nice to see the town was so well setup for Anzac Day.
After two months at the Takapuna Motorcamp during some amazing weather, and driveways and friends places inbetween, it was time for a change of scene.
We had always planned to go to the South Island while we were “homeless” and with Devonport prices flat, there’s every chance they ‘ll get flatter during winter 🙂
The plan was to shoot a Photographic job for a really good client I’ve had for more than 25 years in the middle of may, and to catch up with friends in Cromwell and Gary and Dianne in Taupo on the way down and back.
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Close up inspection of Rafe
We spent our last night at Ardmore with Alex, Sarah and the grandsons parked next to the horses and early the next day, we set off to Taupo. It was an uneventful easy trip and we seemed to miss most of the Easter traffic too.
Parked in Taupo
Arriving in Taupo, I texted friends Gary and Di who were just arriving back from a holiday overseas that day to see if they were up to a drink and catchup and got an immediate reply to say they were now screaming through Tirau and would be here soon.
We had a great night catching up with them, hearing about their travels in Thailand and early the next day, we set off towards Marton.
A seaplane taking off on Lake Taupo
We stopped for lunch right in the middle of the Desert Rd and I though out of curiosity, I’d try our Netspeed connection and I was gobsmacked to get around 50 plus Megabytes a second.. huge! .. miles from anywhere !
NgaruahoeRafe and Ruapehu
After a pleasant trip through Waiouru and Taihape, we arrived at Marton and settled in for the night.
The Netspeed Speedtest
Download: 56.03 Mbps
Upload: 29.33 Mbps
Ping: 58 ms
It has been Musical houses all around with son Alex and his wife Sarah and the boys moving to a new house. Our other son Andrew and partner Jenna have also moved house, and us moving into Rafe fulltime it has been a busy time. To add to the fun, we’ve been trying to give away some of our “extra” stuff while they move !
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Alex getting the lawnmower
Everyone is settling down now and we tried our new parking at Alex’s new place in Ardmore just this last weekend and it works a treat. Rafe is right next to a fence overlooking the families horses and they were keen to see what this Motorhoming lark was all about too, coming over for a look see 🙂
Close up inspection of Rafe
After Alex had mowed the lawns and Fiona had played Granny Tag on the new Trampoline, we all set up our bikes out and set off along the road to Ardmore airfield for a ride and then an ice cream stop. A great day out in the sun.
Liam Fiona and Ayden having “Granny Tag”
This is about our 5th week at Takapuna Holiday park and we’re about to head down to the South Island in the next week or so and catch up with friends down there..
Click on the Gallery below for a Slideshow
Alex mowing around the Granny Tag
Getting ready for the bike ride
Family choccy lab Olive in the shade
Very picturesque
The Horses feeding next door
One of the Harvards
One of the Warbirds overhead
Out of the window
Perhaps we’ll get a bit more serious about finding a house when we get back in late May when the prices hopefully will have dropped a bit more 🙂
