I'm a week behind in writing about this trip now so after this massive, novel like post, I'm going to condense the next few days. I'm now back in Paihia in the Bay of Islands staying at the Salt Water Lodge, just 100 meters or so from the water. The owners here are really friendly and I'm waiting for a position to open up (likely Thursday) that will allow me to work a few hours a day for them in exchange for accommodation. I met a bunch of long-termers at this hostel, many of which are doing the same thing I'm doing here, stopping over to make some cash for a month or so before continuing on. I'll write more about it once I catch up. Internet access here is pretty expensive at $4 NZ an hour so I won't be able to check in every day.

-TUESDAY- November 14th

We woke up early Tuesday morning, packed up, and continued on making our way north. After about an hours drive, we stopped at a Kauri rain forest hike. The walk was somewhat short (about 30 minutes) and mostly along an elevated wooden path in order to protect the 'delicate shallow roots' of the trees. That sort of became a joke with these signs posted every 50 feet reminding you that the roots were delicate and shallow so that you would stay on the path. Regardless of where you walked the sight was incredible, albeit I haven't been in a rain forest before so it was extra impressive to me. The shade provided by the tall dense trees was welcome on this hot day. It also formed these rays of light that broke through the canopy creating a nice contrast of light and dark greens. It felt like an animal was going to jump out and attack us it was so quiet. Fortunately, there aren't any dangerous animals in New Zealand, nor are there any native mammals at all.
After the little hike break we hopped back in the car and drove further along the 12 highway that reminded us a lot of Hawaii. Along a 20km stretch of the highway we drove through another forest. The road was pretty fun, zipping left and right with banked turns, palms and ferns stretched out overhead, and crossing over numerous streams. We stopped at a cool cafe after exiting the stretch of forest. They specialized in organic foods and had some creative dishes. I ended up getting a slice of cranberry, cream cheese, chicken, pizza that might be my new favorite style of pizza. All along the walls they had some great inspirational photography of the New Zealand landscape.

After this we passed through Opononi, an unreal looking place where massive sand dunes sit in the middle of a bay that's otherwise very green. Sand dune surfing is really popular with the locals in this area. We found a great spot to stop over and grab some photos here. I couldn't get enough pictures and ended up ignoring multiple requests from Laura and Angie to, "Come on!", "Lets go!". Finally, some stupid car got in the middle of the picture and stopped, ruining my great shots... wait... that's our car! I looked in the window to see the two girls laughing hysterically at me as they drove off. I hopped up and started running down the hill after them.

.... POP ...

There goes my shoulder again. Dislocated; I've lost count of how many times it's happened now. After 15 minutes or so I managed to get it back in and we continued on. I laid in the back of the car and napped a bit to help ease the slight pain in my shoulder and bigger pain my ego suffered. The last thing of interest for that days driving was a little ferry crossing in Rawene. The water was kinda mucky so it wasn't really picture-esq, but it was cool to see a highway lead right onto a ferry in the water.
We ended up getting to our destination for the day around 5:00 or so. I believe it was Awanui, but really can't say for sure now. We stayed at a lodge on a cliff overlooking the bay for just $21 NZ each. It was a nice place that felt more like an apartment with 4 bedrooms and a community kitchen and living area. As we prepared dinner I met a couple German guys that I shared my room with. They've been traveling around New Zealand for the last 7 months with nothing but their backpacks and hitched rides. They camped most of the time on beaches or forests along the way, just stopping in hostels to clean their clothes or when the weather was particularly bad. I believe one of them was named Hannah and I never did get the other guys name who at the time was out fishing for that nights dinner. Angie, Laura, and I made some dinner ourselves and ate at dusk on a picnic table right at the cliffs edge where we watched boats come in and people pack up from a day on the water.

-WEDNESDAY- November 15

The sun we enjoyed at our dinner the previous night was the last bit of sun we would see for the next 3 days. It stormed all night which always makes it easier to sleep but so much harder to get up in the morning. After a typical breakfast (a banana with peanut butter smeared over it) we packed up and checked out from the hostel in anticipation of the days destination, Cape Reinga, the very northern-most tip of New Zealand.
We brought the German roommates along for the day trip up there so the car was packed tight with 5 of us in our tiny 1995 Toyota Corolla. After being denied to drive yesterday because of my shoulder, Angie and Laura so graciously allowed me to drive this day... Pouring rain, muddy unpaved roads, and an old car with nearly bald tires carrying 5 bodies that likely weighed close to the car itself. Thanks guys! Despite the horrible conditions and the herd of cows that blocked the road at one point, we made it to the tip after about an hour and a half of driving. It sounded amazing up there. I say sounded because we couldn't see anything more than 10 meters in front of us. I'm not sure if there could have been a worse day to make the trip up to the point. Regardless, we hopped out of the car, shielding ourselves from the bite of the cold rain upon our faces, and walked down the final path to the lighthouse at the end. Normally, at that point you're supposed to be in awe of the sight of the clear blue Tasman and Pacific Oceans clashing with waves up to 10 meters high at the bottom of steep cliffs lushly decorated with tropical plants... We saw this:

Of course it wasn't a complete loss. We did see the world famous lighthouse (once we were within a few meters of it), and the cool AA sign pointing out major points across the globe, and we all got a nice rush of adrenaline as we slid around the treacherous muddy banks and turns on our way up there.
Before making our way back to the lodge to drop off the Germans, we decided to make a quick detour to the sand dunes just a few minutes away from the tip of Cape Reinga. After crossing through some unfenced herds of cows, and nearly being ran off the road by a tour bus, we made it. We had seen dunes the day before but didn't get a chance to get up close. Unfortunately, between the rain that was still falling, and the stream you had to cross to get to the base of the dunes, nobody was up for climbing them. "Well, whens the next time I'll get a chance to do this?" I thought as I ran and leaped across the cool stream of water getting just a bit wet. Other than a single other guy dragging his boogie board up the dune, I had this mountain of sand to myself. I climbed a couple walls of sand on all fours and continued up towards the highest face I could see. Upon making it to the top, I was greeted by this wide open plato of sand with a 360 degree view of the rain forest behind me and the ocean out in front of me. I spent a few minutes up there taking photos that really couldn't convey the vastness of this adult sand box. I took notice of how soft the sand was as I began making my way back down the steep face. You could jump forward and fall a great distance and still just gently sink into the soft sand when landing. I hopped with both feet together the rest of the way down, jumping further and further with the speed I picked up on my way down. The last few jumps must have been close to 15 feet, I had a blast! I ran most of the way back to the car with a stupid grin on my face. Meanwhile, everyone else sat wet in the car, obviously eager to head back; so we did.
After dropping off the Germans back at the lodge, we continued on and drove the rest of the way to the Bay of Islands, the destination we were most excited about on this trip. We drove through the famous Keri Keri, sight of both the oldest stone building and wood buildings in New Zealand, before reaching the town of Pahia. We got to Pahia later that afternoon, enjoyed some cheeseburgers at this groovy surf cafe next door to the Salt Water Lodge, and later got a couple drinks at the Pipi Patch before calling it a night.

to be continued...