Along the Coast

A nearby park had another large Kauri, so we dropped by to stand in its shadow.





With the seemingly ceaseless rain and clouds, we did our best to get out of the van whenever possible.  A stop at a garden in an abandoned quarry was next up.










We drove towards the coast in the Bay of Islands area, and found a nearly empty coastal campground for the night.  With all the shielded areas taken, we slept with the wind rocking the van, and torrential downpours throughout the night.

The next morning we went to fill up our water tank.  After a small trickle the water stopped!  In fact all the taps and faucets were dry.  Apparently the power was out, and would remain that way for some time…

On the way inland to the main highway, we encountered some flooding.  Rapidly receding, it would likely be gone by sunset.


Only a few half submerged cars…


With the speed of the water, I figured I should walk this section to make sure no submerged obstacles waited  in the murky depths.



Thankfully it was only knee deep, although it was waist deep an hour earlier.


Our next stop was a Ruapekapeka Pa.  Pa are fortified villages built by Maori tribes in strategic locations.  With centuries of inter-tribal warfare, they were pretty good at it by the time the Europeans arrived.



This pa was the site of a battle between British colonial soldiers and the Maori resistance.  The government abused its power to take land and concessions from the Maori.  Various tribes took positions with or against the Crown depending on their previous alliances.  The poorly equipped British traveled long distances across roadless forests to this Pa in order to defeat and capture the chief who was seen as a dissident leader.  Despite eventually overwhelming the Pa defenders during their morning prayers, most escaped into the forest to fight another day.  This is pretty amazing considering they were far outnumbered and outgunned.


The secret to their success was a excellent defense with tunnels to protect from bombardment, extensive earthworks (dug by hand over 6 months).  In addition palisades several layers thick and trenches prevented frontal attack.





The recent rain turned the centuries old trenches and tunnels into ponds.