Christmas Broadcast

HI everyone. As ever, all messages and texts have been hugely appreciated- thankyou. This is our pre-Christmas blog so in case we forget, Merry Christmas and a very happy new year to you all. We will miss you. Christmas seems a bit low key for us here - we know you will be hating the bad weather in UK but it does also complement the Festive season and leaves you in no doubt that Christmas is arriving!

Mark's cracked ribs are on the mend so he was back on the bike within 10 days of the accident (and on a trampoline and swimming after dolphins within 3 weeks).

Here are some glimpses into what we have been up to:

After Auckland we hired a car (10 pounds per day!) with a bike rack and set off to the Bay of Islands which is about 3 hrs drive north of Auckland. We stayed on a campsite at Kerikeri and visited other places from there including Pahia. We did a couple of rides in the area, including to Opito Bay and the Marsden Winery which had a fab bistro, a welcome carrot at the end of a tough ride. We also went on a marine safari. We saw lots of dolphins in the wild - close enough to touch. We were also promised a chance to swim with them provided they did not have babies with them. The second pod we came across were all big adults so we were scrambled into the water; we had snorkles snapped on to our faces and flippers slapped onto our feet and we were bundled unceremoniously  into the deep cold pacific water miles from the coast with a crash course on how to differentiate a shark from a dolphin. We were then yelled at from the boat to tell us where the pod was - which even when idling moved like torpedoes. It was like a scene from a second world war movie where a warship is sunk and the survivors thrash around  chaotically. Despite all the frenzy Mark had the pleasure of having a very large animal swim under neath him, eyeing him suspiciously as if to say "blimey, thats a chubby one!"

From here we drove to the Coromandel Peninsula (east of Aukland) and had 5 nights at a campground near Coromandel town. The drive along the coast was stunning- quite similar to a drive alongside the Scottish Lochs in Summer time. We saw loads of  birds - we think the flocks included some Godwits but we could not tell if they were the bar tailed variety. These birds apparantly travel from Alaska on a none stop journey. We did a couple of demanding rides along the coast; one was to Colvile  and backand one was to Coromandel town. We were tackling hills that are steeper and longer than anything else we have tackled and were pleased not to have bags on the bike. Our experience of wildlife was not all pleasurable; the beaches are idyllic in this area except they also a haven for sandflies which savaged us on one day and we ended up with over a 100 bites between us (the ennumeration process gives a glimpse into some of our fun packed evenings!).

We headed for the Rotorua region after this which is considered the heart of Maori culture. We stayed by Blue Lake. We cycled around a couple of the Lakes and visited the large Redwood Forest in Rotorua; we also drove to Lake Taupo and cycled from there to Acacia Bay - again mainly very lumpy! We managed to visit some of the thermal springs where the areas volcanic activity is expressed through steaming water and mud pools.  Fascinating and a bit scary.

After this we had a big drive to Hawkes Bay - we are in Hastings now; wall to wall Wineries! We cycled along the coastal path yesterday and will return to it to complete the route to Napier. We keep an eye out for wildlife all the time and have seen wild parrots and turkey's and alpaca's. The variety of bird life is impressive. Although we have not seen a real Kiwi yet, we have seen a wide range of birds of prey. We fully intend to bother brother in Law  Alan about what these might have been when we get back, although we saw a massive animal by the roadside which took about 30 seconds to become airborne it was so big.

Caroline continues to be engaged by the possibility of a possum siting although we have learned that the NZers hate possums! In a hardware store we saw an ad for a possum plucker - warm or cold! We were leafing though a guide for activities in the Hawkes Bay area and spotted a picture of a possum next to some bold type that announced OPOSSUM WORLD..hopes were raised and then dashed as Caroline read out the small print in a squeaky, shaking voice....."Opossum for rugs, cushions and fashion accessories...save a New Zealand tree and buy oppossum fur"

Much love to everyone, enjoy the festive season and ambience, stay safe in the snow and the cold. Love C&M.xxxx