Here, there, and anywhere…
When I first was researching where to go in New Zealand, I chose the southern end of Lake Taupo for its proximity to national parks that sounded like they had good hikes through terrain we don't have at home (volcanoes and such). I also had seen from Omori LakeHouse's website that they were near the…
Okauia escarpment Wednesday morning after our big country breakfast, we drove the few km from the cottage to the Wairere Falls track (the waterfall we could see from our window). The weather was absolutely gorgeous, already t-shirt temperatures by 9:00. When I had first researched this area online, I’d been struck by the unusual topography…
McKinney Kauri The weather website didn’t look too promising Monday morning, rain called for all day long. But heavier later, so we decided to do what we could early in the day. Part of our plan involved lunch at a local winery, though, so we did wait a little while before walking through the drizzle…
After a delicious breakfast of a sausage pie sort of thing, we packed up and headed out. It had been recommended to us by our hostess’ friend that it would be worthwhile to take a detour and see Dorrigo rainforest, up in the mountains not far south of Sawtell, so we decided to do that.…
I've got all the reservations confirmed at this point, so at least we know generally where we're going and that we have a place to lay our heads each night. As usual when we travel, though, we'll get recommendations from our hosts in each location, of cool things to do and good places to eat.…
Grandview Preserve On Saturday morning, we drove out to Grandview Nature Preserve, near the mouth of Chesapeake Bay. It’s a 500+ acre fairly wild area, apparently well known for its plethora of birds. There’s a single trail that leads to the beach, which you can then walk up – you’re not supposed to walk into…
Our hostess served us a delicious breakfast of salmon quiche, savory potato cakes, and balsamic-glazed garden tomatoes. We tried to work her espresso machine, but missed one of the instructions, so it was too watery – maybe next time we’ll make some with her stovetop Italian coffee maker (like ours). After breakfast, we headed to…
Where have the days gone? 