Today's route |
One waterfall towards Port Waikato was nothing spectacular - blink and you could have missed it. We stopped at the outskirts of Port Waikato and wandered around a public garden (Cobourne Garden Reserve). The area had landscaped garden terraces which led from the road down to the waters edge. It is a lovely place to relax and have a picnic.
Hunua Falls |
The next waterfall (Hunua Falls) was situated in the Hunua Ranges Regional Park and had a big natural pool below. The water looked tempting and being a hot day we took the opportunity to have a dip - no questions asked! The water was not too cold. Some young people were climbing the rocks near the waterfall and jumping in. It was nice.
In the water - cool but very refreshing. |
Getting back to the motel was a bit of an issue. No taxi drivers were prepared to take us to the motel and advised us to catch the bus - but there was very little information about busses. We decided to walk back to the motel even though it was quite a distance but just as we were heading out of the airport we flagged down a taxi. The chap stopped and we explained our situation. He admitted that he was not allowed to stop to pick up passengers - he could only do so from the designated zone; but on hearing our story - kindly broke the rules and gave us a lift. Apparently the other drivers were reluctant to take us to our motel because the distance was considered short (but a half hour walk for us) and they wouldn't get much money if they did so. When we were dropped off at the motel Paul gave the driver a tip - over and above the minimal fare shown on the meter. We were grateful that he had given us a ride despite his working rules.
Unfortunately I don't know what has happened to the pictures from the Cobourne Garden Reserve or Waitangi Falls so this blog is lacking the usual pictures that I try to upload.
Tomorrow we fly to the Netherlands if all goes well.
No comments:
Post a Comment