Kaipara Trip Part 3: Lower North Island

[ABFoz]

EDIT: Lower Northland not Lower North Island.



This trip was done in March 2019 with my brother and his partner who had not done any sort of tours such as this. This covers the lower half of Northland and we started in the east at Waipu Cove then headed to Dargaville to see if we can somehow see somebody specialising in windscreen chips as on our way to the west, a truck was speeding in a 30kph chip sealing work zone and one of its tires threw a stone right at the middle. I got truly dismayed and thought of cancelling the trip but carried on because I just said to myself, “Oh well.” The chip is repaired now using Rain-X windscreen repair.

This is at Waipu Cove, east of Northland, and the waves are very mild here.

There is nothing much here but the restaurant on the left cooked really good food.

On the way to the west, the corrugations were rather harsh. That part of Northland is properly corrugated but the G015s handled them at 28psi like a king. I wasn’t able to take photos of this part of the journey because we were rushing to find a place before sunset. I was looking for the Te Maire Beach Road track but missed a crossing so I turned left at Glinks Road heading south. This is part of the longest driveable beach road in New Zealand. The speed limit is only 100 kph.

The access road that’s of interest is in front of the car in this photo.

... and behind the car here.

It had some axle twisters in it heading to what looked like an abandoned house but with abandoned vehicles as well. We decided to nope out of that area as it felt like a serial killer’s residence.

The sand hills made my brother and his girlfriend really nervous as they weren’t sure how the Forester would perform in such soft sand. They said they’d be surprised if the Forester performs well here as they could barely walk straight on it. I jokingly said that I would be surprised, as well, even though I had dunes many times already and they both said, “What!!!!”

We camped just near the entrance to the access point as it was already starting to get dark and we wanted to cook dinner with enough sunlight.

It was pitch black and it seemed as though the whole beach was reserved for us. It was pitch black that the light coming off the alarm LED had to be covered so we could sleep well.

I forgot my kettle so the morning tea had to be brewed using this metal bowl.

We were supposed to camp on this higher spot but the tent got blown away when we were having dinner. I also forgot the sand pegs which may have helped. I usually pack rather quickly as I don’t want to carry excesses and travel light as much as possible.

We packed up and headed south.

 

[ABFoz]

We stopped to take photos of these New Zealand Fairy Terns. They are somewhat hard to come by, especially because they are considered rare. We were about 15m away and they didn’t really care. They just stood still there and looked at one direction.

These New Zealand Dotterels looked like they were on a post-dating chase.

Then I wanted to get up the Pouto Point lighthouse but they cut the toe to make it steeper.

The SG5 was crawling to the top at a really slow pace and I noticed there was a No Vehicles Allowed sign up top so we headed back down just in time before the local guide was able to spot us attempting to do so. He could have reported us and we could have gotten an instant NZD 400 fine. Vehicles were allowed there before.

We just walked to get the photos of the oldest wooden lighthouse in NZ.

The tide was fast-approaching so we headed toward the Pouto township before 4PM.

Here is the end of the driveable beach and behind is the start of 30km of hardcore corrugation.

It was just an overnight trip but I appreciated the serenity that the sound of the waves of the Tasman Sea. It is a must trip if one visits the North Island.

In Dargaville, most of the vehicles, even the X-trails and the Outlanders all have all terrains and the people have enough courtesy when driving on corrugations. The pickup trucks are not lifted but they all have smaller wheels to accommodate bigger tyres with taller sidewalls. It was a refreshing scene of functionality unlike in Auckland where the trucks look modified with front and rear bars, lifts and 19 to 21 inch wheels.

I will be back on the trails soon. I just have a lot of work to do now. I will head south of Auckland on the next trip the to the desert in Central North Island before the end of the 3rd quarter of 2019.

 

[Kevin]

Love the "teapot"! Thanks for the report and the pics - looks great!

 

[Red XS]

Always great seeing these awesome places around the world!


I find the further from the city's, the more practical the cars mods and the friendlier the people.

 

[ABFoz]

Thanks. That bowl had a cricket visit the night before. I was drinking tea when another scoop became somewhat sweet and salty at the same time. I checked and saw Mr. Cricket.

True. The people away from the cities are usually friendlier and their smiles are genuine. Cheers.