A little ride out in the southern hemisphere

[Ian Porter]

Day 19 Coramandel Peninsular to Waitakere Ranges

another very busy ride today so not many stops again



View from our hotel





Auckland at night

 

[Ian Porter]

Day 20 Waitakere Ranges to Hokianga Harbour

we started the day visiting the Kauri museum to learn about these massive trees that once covered the North Island



followed by a visit to the largest surviving Kauri - Tane Mahuta, the ride there was magical and I'll share some video of it sometime







then on to our hotel at Hokianga Harbour - right on the beach







Our room

 

[Ian Porter]

Day 21 Hokianga Harbour to Paihia (via Cape Reinga)

the day started with a ferry crossing across the harbour (all of about 10 minutes)





Mike the tour guide - 'I wasn't picking it, honest'



then on to Cape Reinga - the most northerly point in New Zealand













This is where the Tazman sea meets the Pacific Ocean and the water swirls around as the currents mix



from there it was on to Paihia through a bit of rain so no stops

 

[Ian Porter]

Day 22 Paihia

another rest day and we just had a wander around the town followed by a ferry across the Bay of Islands to Russell for dinner

Russell

 

[Ian Porter]

Day 23 Paihia to Ackland

Sad day today as it was the last day of the tour

we stopped at some funky toilets









then braved the traffic of Auckland before handing the bikes back



and heading into the city to our hotels

 

[Ian Porter]

Homeward bound

of we went in a taxi, with heavy hearts, towards Auckland airport

damn, the plane hasn't been cancelled



our ride home



next time you're taking us with you!!!



god, I miss that place, one day I will have to go back and explore further at a more leisurely pace

 

[Ian Porter]

now on to sorting through the video

 

[Lutin]

now on to sorting through the video

If the photos have been good, what's the video going to be like?


So, what's an Airbus 380 like then? Other than just a very big aircraft?

 

[Ian Porter]

So, what's an Airbus 380 like then? Other than just a very big aircraft?

was OK on the lower deck in cattle class, roomy and excellent service from Singapore Airlines cabin crew and definitely better than the 777 we flew in from Singapore to Christchurch

BUT if you want even better and still at the same price, book early and get in the economy cabin on the upper deck

you get rows of two seats in cabin at the rear of the plane (about 30 people max) it's really quiet and service is much quicker due to haw few passengers are in there. we managed to get seats up stairs the whole way home and it made for a much more comfortable journey

 

[Rubberchicken]

Re: Homeward bound

god, I miss that place, one day I will have to go back and explore further at a more leisurely pace

Amen...

Kinda surprised you did ok in cattle class. You're a fairly tall one too and they're fairly short on that end of the world. I physically didn't fit into cattle class on the Cathay HKG-AKL leg...

 

[Ian Porter]

Re: Homeward bound

Kinda surprised you did ok in cattle class. You're a fairly tall one too and they're fairly short on that end of the world. I physically didn't fit into cattle class on the Cathay HKG-AKL leg...

I made sure I booked early and got exit row seats for the extra legroom

the only flight I couldn't get that on was Singapore to Christchurch on the 777 and it was a little cramped but I've been on much worse

 

[Ian Porter]

So, I've made a start on the video

this is going to be a slow process

 

[Lutin]

How do you spell jealous?

Great video, Ian. Keep 'em coming.

 

[Ian Porter]