Last Few Days

After talking to GG about getting rid of the mattress and wood before selling the van to him, I knew I'd have a fun night and/or morning ahead of me. I woke up early the next day, got some clothes on, and then I headed out to the street to Willy to begin disassembling...

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The Face of Travel

With not much to do in the days awaiting the sale of my van and leaving Auckland, the burning desires to finally shave my face got the best of me. As I began shaving, I was actually surprised to see how bushy my beard had become, definitely exceeding my expectations....

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Getting Out of Auckland

Fortunately after the near disaster the night before, my last day driving through the Coromandel Peninsula was rather uneventful, which is exactly what I needed. I followed the empty road up to the top of the peninsula where it cut across to the Western shore,...

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Willy's Demise???

As I left Cathedral Cove, Hot Water Beach and Whitianga, I headed up into the forested hills, hoping for a nice gravel pullout or eventually a beach-side spot for my last night in the great outdoors before heading back to Auckland for my last few days and hoping...

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Cathedral Cove and Hot Water Beach

My last major destination of New Zealand was the Coromandel Peninsula, just a few hours North of Rotorua and East of Auckland. On the way up the Northern coast, after passing the numerous roadside stands selling kiwi fruit and feijoas (a sort of sour, small green...

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Rotorua - Geothermal-tastic

Out of Tongariro, I was soon passing through the logging forests of the area before finding the road on a bluff overlooking the valley and large lake of the Taupo region. The road along Lake Taupo is a beautiful stretch that hugs the massive, peaceful lake before...

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New Plymouth? Nope. Tongariro Again.

From Wellington, I hugged the Western coast of the island, heading North in the direction of New Plymouth and the Mt. Taranaki, the Mt. Fuji look-alike that I missed during my first sojourn on the North Island. The trouble is that this coast is often shrouded...

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See Wellington Again for the First Time

As a veteran of the North Island, I made my way through town like I owned the place, driving right off the ferry along the waterway back to the same hostel where I was during my trip on the way South, sitting up on the foothills of the ridge overlooking the city....

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Marlborough Sounds and the End of the South Island

I spent another uneventful day in Motueka with mundane tasks like grocery shopping and doing laundry, but the larger grocery store once again gave me the opportunity to stock up on some rare items in these parts, including some more taco shells and a weak attempt...

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Abel Tasman National Park - hike, kayak, etc

Along the NW coast of the South Island lies the amazingly beautiful Abel Tasman National Park, so the park turned out to be my next destination, after a brief stop in Nelson and driving through the Green Shell Mussel Capital of the World in Havelock. (I also...

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