Tag Archives: Small Towns

Close to home, Hot pools

On Track

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Helensville is a neat little town and after spending a nice afternoon in the Hot Pools at Parakai, we took Rafe in for a nosey around.
We’ve been to the Railway Station before we had Rafe and it has a fantastic cafe which is where the original NZ Railways cafe was.

The Railway Station in 1910
The Railway Station in 1910

There is also a antique shop run by a nice lady who once lived in Auckland but escaped to Helensville a long time ago!
The Railway Station is owned by the Helensville Railway Trust and they’ve recently just done up the building including the loos. There is plenty of parking so it’s an easy place to park your Motorhome.

Just a friendly reminder, click on the images for hi res or a slideshow.

It was time for lunch so to the cafe. Still being ultra nice to my front tooth, I had to skip some of the real bready lunches and had a “Train smash” I think it was called which was basically a full breakfast.. Very nice. Fiona had an Angus beef burger.

My "Trainsmash"
My “Trainsmash”
Fiona's Angus Burger
Fiona’s Angus Burger

On the wall is a great photo of the staff at that particular time. Looking at the gear, they’re wearing, I’d say it’s late 1800’s or early 1900’s.

NZR café staff in the early 1900's . The lady in the middle was the manager who recently had her 90th birthday at the Café.
NZR café staff in the early 1900’s . The lady in the middle was the manager who recently had her 90th birthday at the Café.

The woman in the middle was in charge at the time and she recently celebrated her 90th birthday at the Cafe. A great story.
There are some really interesting pictures on the wall, one which looks like it might have been in France where a train jumped out of a wall on a second story. Oops!

Oops. Seen on the wall.
Helensville Railway Station with the Museum behind
In the Antique Shop
Antiques
Fiona at the counter in the cafe
The cafe
The outside Cafearea
Post office
The BNZ building
Rafe in the main street

After having a look around, we stopped for a look at the shops in the Main Street.

Main Street
Main Street

Some interesting buildings, everywhere you look  you see history.

Auckland Parks, Close to home, Hot pools

Recovery trip

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Its not quite what it sounds like. I’ve just had an implant in one of my front teeth  and it’s amazing how groggy and dozy you can feel for days afterwards from all the rocket fuel that’s loaded into your veins. All for a good cause of course 🙂

To keep things simple and because it was wet and rainy, we thought we’d try the Parakai Hot Springs park near Helensville. As it was reasonably close and we thought a nice blob out spot with the pools.

Remember to click on the images for hi red or a slideshow.

A bit wet but nice park environment
A bit wet but nice park environment

The lady at the counter was great fun and after telling me that Fiona was a senior, and we had a good giggle at that, she gave us all the info we needed and we headed off to our parking spot.

Because it has been so wet, they only had 7 concreted parking spots for motor homes but there are a lot more for when it’s dry.

ParakaiIt’s well set up with a big toilet and kitchen block in the middle and some permanent caravans down at the other end. Every second parking spot has a rubbish bin and tap. The bin was emptied every morning. There is also a security man parked in the corner.

A Dethleffs XLI at the end with us next to it.
A Dethleffs XLI at the end with us next to it. Eric and Lyns Hymer second from the right.

After parking, we set off to have a swim. Two big pools, one outdoor which is cooler and a nice hot one indoors.  There were lots of people there swimming and also enjoying food from the on site cafe.

The entrance to the pools and where you pay for the campground.
People enjoying the indoor pool
The indoor pool
The slide
The cooler outdoor pool
Playground for the kids (or grandkids)
A chap on a plinth
Camping
Some of the permanent caravans
The toilet/shower and kitchen block

On getting back to Rafe, we met our neighbours Eric and Lyn from Orewa with their C class Hymer and their friends from Warkworth.  You don’t see many of these  Hymers around. Their one came from the UK originally. Nice little van.  I joined them in between rain showers on one of the barbeque tables for a cold one.
On the second night we met neighbours on the other side in their near new Dethleffs XLI. Ian and Lynne have sold their house, bought the van and are fulltiming!  Way to go! They came over to Rafe and we solved the worlds problems for an hour or two, as you do.

Fiona enjoying they heat
Fiona enjoying they heat (Cell ph pic)

I have to say it’s definitely a nice close option for my favourite hot pool park at Miranda.

It’s not quite as flash as Miranda but its clean, tidy and perfectly functional. We didn’t see it at its best as there was rain, thunder and high winds but a very pleasant place to stay.  At $28 a night, I think its pretty good value and power is free for NZMCA members.(included in the $28)

For those interested in Internet Speeds,
The Netspeed speedtest:
Download: 30.03 Mbps
Upload: 9.65 Mbps
Ping: 49 ms
Server: Auckland
http://maps.google.com/maps?f=q&q=-36.659292,174.431957

Northland

The longest Pedestrian Bridge in the Southern Hemisphere

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While we had the car at Otamuri Bay, we thought it would be rude to not use it for a look around the area. 

The Whananaki Bridge
Fiona walking on the Whananaki Bridge

We headed back over the hill to Whananake North so we could answer texts and emails and the set off on foot to check out the Whananaki foot bridge which connects the southern shore of the estuary to the northern shore. 

Click on the images to see them in Hi res or a slideshow

The Whananaki Bridge with the school on the other side.
Fiona on the Whananaki Bridge with the school on the other side.

I had to stoop to hold the hand rail where I felt the need and it takes about 20 odd minutes to cross it. It would be fun for the school kids in a blow to get to Whananake North School! 

The Whananaki Bridge
Moureeses Bay
Moureseeses Bay

An interesting crossing so after that we headed back to Otamuri bay and beyond. The seal stopped on the road just past the Doc camp and a rather twisty, windy road takes you straight up and straight down again to a bunch of surf beaches.

Surfing at Moureeses Bay
Surfing at Moureeses Bay

We stopped at Moureeses Bay where some surfies were having fun. Another stunning Northland Beach which you would never know was there.

Northland

See you in a few days

With nothing happening in my diary for a few days, Fiona suggested I head north and catch up with our old Boating, and now Motorhome friends, Chris and Gary Parkes.

Fiona will join us with the car at the end of the week.
They’ve cashed up and are now full timing in their Mitzi Fuso, Ci Munro truck for the next wee while and seem to be really enjoying it.

The remains of the weather that hit Sydney’s beaches was, due to hit Northland so I thought I’d try a campground away from the gale north easterlies hitting our coast.

I arrived in Paparoa, on the road to Dargaville mid afternoon and checked in to the Paparoa Holiday Park.

Remember to click on the images for hi res or slideshow

The view of the camp from the entrance.
The view of the camp from the entrance.

This park was built from a paddock by the current owners and is all gravel with lots of small trees and cabins which offer good protection from the wind and rain. On my own, it cost $15 which is extremely good value with power.

Kitchen
Rafe in the corner
Small cabins
General Store
The river with the shops in the background
Part of the redeveloped Landing
The area redeveloped and now called the Landing. The National Bank building in the middle.

I got the bike of the back and went for a toodle into the Paparoa village for a look around. The Pub is just around the corner and the village is loaded with history. There is a river which comes up from the Kaipara which was used to get supplies up for the locals and dragged up a bank by wires from the boats. The old National Bank building is built into the shape of the corner which is interesting too.

One of the neat historic houses there
One of the neat historic houses there

A neat little town and a nice wee campground.

Bay of Plenty, Hot pools

The 20000th Peppermint

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I was having a bit of browse through the NZMCA app and found Athenree Holiday Park. We cruised into the entrance and popped into the reception. Well, what a welcome.. “You’re our 20000th customer, have a peppermint! ”
Fantastic. That doesn’t happen too often!

Fiona having a cup of tea in the sun
Fiona having a cup of tea in the sun

We’re parked right on the waterfront facing towards Katikati just up from Bowentown.

Remember to click on the images for Hi Res or slideshow

Bowentown in the distance
Our little park in paradise

They have two hot pools. One is directly fed by a bore that goes down 220 metres and the water comes up about 35c. They have another smaller adults pool which has the water tweaked up by a heat exchanger from waste water. It’s fantastic.. Nice and hot.

The Pools .. hot adults pool on the left
The Pools .. hot adults pool on the left

Nice big flat parks and with the pools, great.

anthenreeAcross the road is a kids playground and the other side of the peninsula. More water!

Right by the water
Right by the water

Home for a few days after this.

Auckland Parks, Close to home

The Farmers Markets

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One of the nice things about travelling in a Motorhome is visiting all the out of town village like shopping areas and the Farmers Markets.

Fun in the Sun
Fun in the Sun

While we were staying in Ardmore recently, we visited the Clevedon Farmers Market which is just out of the village but well signposted.

Click on the images to see Hi Res or a slideshow

Coastguard Donations
Busy carpark
Smoothie time
The vege department
Kids enjoying themselves
Always somewhere to rest
Even a motorhomer
You know you’re in a rural spot when you see this.

We found out very quickly how popular this is when we first looked for a park. Its amazing, people everywhere.

marketThere is everything from Veges, Cheeses, Spices and Jams all with some live music and a hay bale to sit on. Its a great atmosphere.
The weather wasn’t really behaving itself when we went with showers but it didn’t seem to worry anyone with lots of shelter there.

Sunday mornings from 9am – 1pm.. well worth a visit. If you want to park there with your motorhome, get there early 🙂

Waikato

Persimmon at Pirongia

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We were on our way home from Taupo after catching up with friends and we’d had a warning that the whole of the country was in for the bash from the weather.

The Café with the Motorhomes at the back
The Café with the Motorhomes at the back

Thunderstorms and strong winds meant hunkering down on some gravel with some power. Years ago when we had wee Rafe, the caravan, we stopped at a café in Pirongia which had some Motorhome parking on gravel out the back.

This sounded like a good destination and we would easily be there before the weather nailed us around 6pm.

Click on the images for Hi-res or a slideshow

The RV Park
The RV Park

We arrived with plenty of time, plugged in and decided to go for a walk into town for a look around before the rain hit. We’d just arrived in a café in town when the heavens opened up. Fortunately it was just a shower so we still had time to check the Alexandra Constabulary Redoubt which was a fort on a small hill overlooking the town. It has dug trenches around almost like a moat and is well worth a look. It also happens to be right over the road from the Persimmon Café RV park where we were staying the night.

On our way to town
The redoubt with the town behind. You can see the RV park with the grey building.
The redoubt, Pirongia behind
Mt Pirongia behind
The ablutions
The parking

A nicely set up RV park but it is really a carpark with powerpoints and a toilet block. The cost for us was $25 for the night. $10 for us and $15 for the power. If we wanted to use the onsite dump station, that would be another $15 and the showers another $5 each.
It was explained that the dump station had to be emptied on a regular basis and trucked into Te Awamutu hence the charge.
My thinking was that although it wasn’t waterfront or top ten standard, it was perfect for sheltering for the night or passing through. It is also very central with the town only a few minutes walk away.

We decided to use the free dump station at Drury as we were heading that way but there is also a free one at Te Awamutu and we used our own shower.

Not big
Not a big park but perfect for passing through.

It was nice being on the gravel and plugged in as the weather really laid it on. Lightening and thunder and lots of rain. It was an interesting night with some good puffs of wind and plenty of action from the sky but we felt nicely tucked in and sheltered.

Pirongia is a nice wee town and there is heaps of history there. Its well worth checking out the redoubt.  The town is spoilt for choice for motorhome parking  with the Clydesdale Café and if you’re an NZMCA member, at the Golf Course just on the outskirts of town.

Waikato

Quirky Cottages

I’ve wanted to check in on Mangakino for a while but being on a slightly off the beaten track road, it wasn’t until we needed to get through to Te Awamutu on the way to Pirongia, that we found a reason to go this way.

kuratau
Love the flower pots

kuratauIts a neat little town. The buildings are all amazing little workers cottages, built for the dam workers by the Ministry of works. Nowadays, its a big bach area with many of the cottages taking on a new look as people customise them for their own needs.

The Bus cafe
Bus cafe
Parking
Overnighting area
Fiona surfing the web on the Lake front (Van wifi)
Rafe at Lake Muraetai Bus café behind

We popped in for a cup of tea and went to check out the free parking area by the lake. You can also get power for $5.  The weather was building up for nationwide thunderstorms when we arrived so it was pretty cloudy but if you were going that way, it looks like a good place to stop. There is a Café run from an old bus with loos as well.

The lake
The lake

The town centre looks pretty trendy being all in one newish building further up the road so it’s all there. A nice spot to visit if you’re in the area.

Rallies, Waikato

Down by the Riverside

While we were at Kuratau, we went for a trot through the park at the back of where the rally was and followed the river down to the Taupo lakefront. There are well set tracks and it is an interesting walk through bush and parks.

Amazing Cliffs
Amazing Cliffs

Enjoy the images, remember to click on them for hi res

Gary, Fiona and Dianne walking through the park
Fiona, Dianne and Gary on our way back to the Kuratau Rally
Interesting clouds on the lakefront

A real contrast of landscape. Huge cliffs up from the water and really colourful trees and river reeds. There are some houses lucky enough to have a jetty at the bottom of the lawn against the river too.

Kids playing on the lakefront
Kids playing on the lakefront

At the lake front, there is an interesting walk down to a memorial on the lakefront. Some children were happily playing in the water, the sun was shining with no wind. Another nice part of the world. 

NZMCA Rallies

Kuratau Rally

We haven’t been to a rally for a while and with it being at Kuratau at the bottom of Lake Taupo, our friends from Taupo, Dianne and Gary were keen to go  so we were off. We left early on Thursday night and headed for the NZMCA Ardmore park so we could avoid the traffic on Friday morning which worked well as we were in Cambridge having a cuppa at 10:30.

Kuratau
Kuratau

By lunchtime we were cruising up the hill to Gary and Diannes place about to join them for a quick lunch and then were going to head down to Kuratau in convoy.  Gary lead the way as he knew the road and we headed from Taupo around the western side of the lake down to Kuratau.

Click on the images to see these in Hi res or for a slide show

Rafe and the Xli
Rafe and the Xli

An easy 1hrs drive and we were registering and settling Rafe and the XLI down and getting ready for Happy Hour.

From up above
From up above on the top plateau
Registration and raffle time. On the right, Fiona, Gary and Dianne
Registration and raffle time. On the right, Fiona, Gary and Dianne

The area was on a beautiful 6 acre property owned by Aucklanders Peter and Sandy, beside the river. They had a bach with a big open stone fireplace and their were two plateaus. We were parked on the bottom level next to the river. As the day went on, the area progressively filled up as more and more vans arrived. kuratauHappy hour is always fun and we met some new people and joined in for a couple of the raffles. I don’t remember seeing any of us (the 4 of us) win anything but its all a bit of fun and supporting the Taupo NZMCA.

Tea with the leaves
Chairman Geoff with his swiss cow bell
The wheel
Gary, Dianne, Fiona talking to Cyril and Gail.
Happy Hour
HQ for happy hour
Gary (right) coming out of Dethleffs corner

I met a chap who I knew but had never met from my old days as a newspaper photographer. He worked in Palmerston North on the paper there when I was in Auckland on both the Herald and the Auckland Star.   It was really nice to finally meet him as we had lots of common friends. Small world stuff.

Gary about to open the wine.
Gary about to open the wine… Hopefully!

The weather behaved itself, Geoff and Joyce and the committee did a wonderful job of organising it all and it was nice to see everyone having fun.

Rafe
Rafe

Kuratau is not somewhere we had been before and its lovely. We’ll be back there for sure. Thanks again to the Taupo committee for a well organised rally and to Peter and Sandy for letting us park on your front lawn. 🙂  It was great to catch up with our friends Gary and Dianne again.  A nice weekend having fun!