Gisborne & Lake Waikaremoana

Fourth of July Weekend Road trip - Out East...

After driving over to Napier (A) Friday night and spending the 4th of July at the Masonic Hotel, I had a great breakfast at Mr D's, and then set out for Gisborne (B), a 3.5hr drive north up SH 2.

Napier

Approaching Gisborne, overlooking Poverty Bay

Gisborne

Arriving in Gisborne, I immediately went to the site where Captain Cook first stepped onto New Zealand soil.

nearby Kaiti Beach

Captain Cook

Then it was time for lunch and some wine tasting at Bushmere Estates, one of the many excellent vineyards in the Gisborne area.

I checked in to my room at the Portside, before taking a scenic drive north along the Pacific coast.

Surfers at Makorori Beach

Sunset at the historic wharf in Tolaga Bay

The Tolaga Bay Wharf measures 660m, the longest in NZ!

Sunday morning required another early start with a run along the beach, enjoying Gisborne's famous sunrise.

Then is was time to set out again for another +3hr drive via Wairoa (C) to Lake Waikaremoana (D), one of New Zealand's Great Walks.

Wairoa Overlook

The Historic Portland Island Lighthouse in Wairoa

It was a nice drive.  Lake Waikaremoana is incredibly remote, but equally beautiful.  I did some hiking and enjoyed many amazing views, but the actual 46km track around the lake takes 3 to 5 days to complete.

The Waikaremoana Holiday Park

I had to press on.  The local advice given at the DOC Visitor Center was to take Highway 38 across the Huiarau Range.  It was the most tortuous & twisting fifty miles of "goat-track" that I've driven here in NZ.

It ultimately joins SH 5 between Rotorua and Taupo.  So I headed South again, stopping at Taupo's 'Crafty Trout' for delicious fish & chips before finally taking SH 4 back to Wanganui.

I drove past National Park Village at Night.  It was still busy with skiers on a Sunday night.  The night sky was clear, full of Southern stars and Mt Ruapehu's snow was shining in the moonlight, chair lifts lighted up the ski fields on the side of the mountain.  Sadly it was too dark to get a good picture.