Tolaga Bay, East Cape

We left Gisborne in heavy rain, and travelled up the East Cape of the North Island. The weather cleared for most of the way, and was a surprisingly warm 13 degrees at times.

We stopped at Tolaga Bay on the way and went walking along this wharf. It was lovely and quiet and refreshing, with hardly anyone around.

We stopped in Ruatora for lunch. Apart from a Four Square Supermarket, there wasn't actually a lot to see.

As we travelled further north up the Cape, it was lovely to see lots of green rolling hills, with beef and sheep grazing. Heading into Opotiki, we made the decision to carry onto Tauranga, staying for a couple of nights.

From Opotiki to Tauranga, we saw a few dairy farms that had cows in the shed milking. In some of the paddocks were cows that had recently calved - their wee babies standing beside their mothers. Seeing those calves bought home the reality that we are only 3 weeks away from calving - not the best thought to have while on holiday!

We have been lucky to be just ahead of the terrible snowy weather that NZ has been experiencing over the past few days. As we head back down the North Island in the next few days, we should be seeing some spectacular scenery, perfect for photo taking!