NZ16-7: Mar 4th~to Dawson Falls & Mar 5th~to Waitomo

March 4th: Wellington to Dawson Falls on Taranaki by Mana Bus & Thumb

The tide's out at 0644, & the sun is rising

I was up & out with no food or drink, & less to carry than normal within 10 minutes of waking. 
The sun was coming up, & the tide was out, so there was no sound of the breakers on Lyall Bay.

An amazingly colourful sunrise over Wellington from the bus stop on Lyall Parade

There was a lady at the bus stop & she told me to get on her bus & get off at Bowen St.
In the end I got off earlier on Lambton Quay & walked via a Countdown at the station to where the bus was parked outside the MacDonald's on Bunny St.
I was pretty ravenous having had no tea the night before & needed food, so got a load of fruit: 2 pears, 3 bananas & 3 nectarines. 
It was still before 0730, so I went into the MacDonald's & got a coffee & a tea. I threw loadsa milk in the coffee & drank it straightaway, before going back out to checking out which of the 2 buses waiting was mine. They were both Mana Buses masquerading as Naked Buses, & my driver was Ron.

A view of Bunny St. & the Beehive from the top deck

I went up to the front seat of the top deck to take advantage of the better views, & ended up being sat next to a Pole as far as Levin.
He said he'd come via Beijing on a £400 return flight giving him a 15 hour stopover there. He was in NZ for a fortnight.
He got off to change buses at Levin & carry on to Rotorua, & I slept after that until Bulls where nearly everyone got off for a comfort break, & I changed to a bus for Hawera.

My Mana Bus driver, Ron

There was only a 5 minute wait at Bulls, so the comfort break had to be a quickie!

My next Mana Bus was bound for Auckland via New Plymouth, but I was only going as far as Hawera, about two & a half hours ride up the SH3.

Mana Bus 2

On the way north I sat on the front seat chatting to the driver, who ~ on hearing my plans to hitch to Dawson Falls, kindly offered to take me as far as Manaia for no extra charge.
Kiwi bus drivers are great, aren't they :-)
Manaia is a bit further up the SH45 than Hawera, closer to Taranaki, & virtually due south of Dawson Falls where I was booked in that night. I declined, though, as I wanted to go online at the i-Site in Hawera on the off-chance I could hire transport up there to save me hitching.

The Whanganui River~290k long with a
source on a volcano

I took a couple of pics as we crossed the Whanganui River, & tho. we'd been travelling for barely an hour, 

Another one of the river from the bus

we stopped near the riverside, & most peeps got off. 

This time, we had a comfort break for longer than 5 minutes, & there was a nice cafe (with cakes ;-q) near the bus stop, & a riverside walkway, so I did the photos first.

Here's an interesting tale about the Whanganui River from Wiki: 
The Whanganui River is a major river in the North Island of New Zealand. It is the country's third-longest river, and has special status owing to its importance to the region's Māori people.  In March 2017 it became the world's second (after Te Urewera) natural resource to be given its own legal identity, with the rights, duties and liabilities of a legal person. The Whanganui Treaty settlement brought the longest-running litigation in New Zealand history to an end.  On 30 August 2012 agreement was reached that entitled the Whanganui River to a legal identity, a first in the world, and on 15 March 2017 the relevant settlement was passed into law by the New Zealand Parliament. Chris Finlayson, the Minister for Treaty of Waitangi Negotiations, said the river would have an identity "with all the corresponding rights, duties and liabilities of a legal person".  He said some people would consider it strange, but it is "no stranger than family trusts, or companies, or incorporated societies."  The bill finalised 140-year-old negotiations between Māori and the government. The river will be represented by two officials, one from Māori and the other from the government.
The river rises on the northern slopes of Mount Tongariro, one of the three active volcanoes of the central plateau. The other volcanoes being Ngauruhoe & Ruapehu. Whanganui flows north-westerly before turning south-west at Taumarunui. I hadn't realised when I'd passed through Taumarunui on previous trips that I had been so close to this famous river.
By the time it got here, it was pretty wide.

I don't know the significance of this statue of a
kereru & orb of some sort, but I like it anyway

On the riverside there was a traditional wooden boardwalk, & a lovely bronze statue of a Kereru & a ball/seed/orb. 

Unfortunately, Google failed to tell me anything about it. 

View towards the Tasman along the Whanganui River

It was a lovely morning, so I walked to the end of a small jetty & took a pic of the river headed seawards, then went for morning coffee & cake, & a Rule 10.
After Whanganui, I had another hour & a quarter or so on the bus before it was time to get off in Hawera.
The bus stop was right beside the Hawera i-Site, so I went in & asked about car/cycle/motorbike hire.
The nice ladies inside offered to call various peeps for me, & while they rang round, I went into a nearby (huge) Pak'n'Save for a piece of card & a marker pen to make my sign for Dawson Falls. As usual, the staff were very kind & helpful, & gave me a bit of box-lid & a marker pen from behind a till :-)
I did the 'artwork' in the Ladies, & also changed into shorts & took off the hoodie. It was turning warm, & I'd been dressed against the early morning Wellington wind ;-p
Back at the i-Site, they had had no luck re my transport, but suggested that writing Manaia on my sign may make it easier to get a lift initially, so I wrote it on the back of the card with my biro (which took a while!), & set off walking.
After about 15 minutes, I got a ride from John in a Jeep who dropped me off opposite Tauhuri St.
Crossing over the main road, I'd barely walked a 100 yards before CA stopped. I had a memory (but no notes) that her car was full of dog, so while writing this I E'd her. CA confirmed the dogs were her blue heeler, Opal, & her friend's wee dog.
CA treated me like an honoured guest & took me home for a brew, before showing me round her garden, which had a creek/pool in it.
My notes say CA called it her river, but I couldn't see any water on Gmaps when I looked where I thought we went to! My notes also say something that looks like "Opohanga?", but I couldn't find that on Gmaps either, so when I E'd CA I asked about that, as well!
CA put me right & said, her town was Kaponga on the Kaupokonui.
Darn hieroglyphics again! & another thanks to the lovely NZ peeps for being so helpful as always :-)
Post brew, CA took me to the junction for Dawson Falls, & after hugs I set off walking north towards the mountain.
Fortuitously, as CA drove off, Bill drove up, & took me all the way up the road - nearly 9K, & uphill all the way.

I think I took this because Taranaki is in
the cloud above the red roof?

The view from my balcony, south towards the coast

Bill's car was very posh, & he said he was off up to Dawsons Falls to take a walk.
He parked by the visitor centre, & I went to check in, meeting Sera who showed me to my cute single. 








I quickly unpacked the small ruckie I'd packed for my weekend of adventure, took some pics of my room, & put a bikini on.

The plan was to go up to Wilkies Pools. 
I'd had a visit on Dec 19th 2014, but it had been too cold to swim then, even for me! Nevertheless, it had become 'a plan' should I ever return.

My hitching signs. Note the nice alpine carving of the wardrobe door & bed-head                         

A Tui & Taranaki. 
A stained glass feature of my room

I had a couple of coffees while I wrote up my notes, then took a few quick pics of the interior of the lodge, before heading out to Wilkies Pools up the track I'd first walked in Dec'14.

The wood-burner in the lounge with alpenhorn behind

The drive.   Taranaki is behind the clouds on the right 

The dining room & I think that's the kitchen in view behind?
Not sure. 
Can't remember ~ it's been >2 years since I was there!
While I was clicking Sera came to ask what I wanted for dinner.
I ordered dim sum & a rare steak.

This is another view of the lounge.


Although I was booked in for a night now & another after my Waitomo weekend, I didn't actually go & sit in the comfortable-looking chairs!
Maybe next time?
Out on the Wilkies Pools track, it was just as atmospheric as I remembered, & there were lots of  interesting tree shapes.

I saw Bill walking down while I was on my way up, but no-one else until I got to the lava-formed Pools.

Taranaki is hidden in cloud

A kid & a dad below me

Sadly, the Pools were nearly dry, so I scrambled up the rocks & walked up the virtually dry Kapuni Stream for about 20 minutes.

Shortly after I started up, I noticed a couple of families walking behind me, but they didn't climb far, & went back down where the dads & the kids started to make a dam at the bottom. 






It seemed they wanted to get wet as well, but there wasn't much water to get wet in :-/
 

You can see how smooth the eons of water had
made the rock.  Lava is usually very sharp!

 

The dry river bed looking up & north

 

There was quite a bit of run-off though, & my walk up was punctuated with the sound of dripping water.

Strangely, there wasn't much bird-song up there, & it was peaceful in a drippy sort of way ;-)
But then, the sound of running water is one of my favourites :-D

The sun came out & shone off the ancient lava

Not a clue what these are .  .  .

Maybe some sort of sedum?

 

As I approached the Pools from above, the dam building was in full swing, & I fancied a dip in their mini Wilkie Pool.
I didn't ask, though, & having noticed a little waterfall with a decent flow on the way up, I found a nice flat bit of rock to leave my things & disrobed.

My chosen get wet spot!

I stood underneath for a few minutes~my notes say 5, but I think I may have over estimated how long I stood under freezing cold running water? 
It was glacial run-off after all, & while I don't mind cold water, the day wasn't that warm.
Nevertheless, in the absence of a Pool to get wet in, waterfall it was! ;-)

A chunk of old lava with a nice lichen pattern

I'd put a small towel round my middle, so, suitably soaked, I used it to dry off & hooked my shorts over my bum-bag for the walk back. It was just after 5pm & the sky was clear to the south.

I walked back the same way I'd come up, & passed the 2 families walking back down.
I was barefoot & remember one of the kids commenting about it as I overtook them.

Because I stopped a couple of times for interesting trees & lichen, they overtook me, so we leapfrogged over each other a couple of times until they went back to the car park & I went to the lodge.

For some weird reason, this lichen pic is rotated left.
Tilt your head left or your screen right to see it properly

 It's only a short walk back from Wilkies Pools to the lodge, so with the clouds gradually clearing off the mountain at about half past five, I was hoping that by the time I'd cleaned up for dinner, I'd be able to see more of it, but I took a quick pic with the mob before my shower. 

The westering sun on the clouds over the peak

Yup. This one's from the mob: Lumix battery out of juice again :-/

Taken at about 5 past 7

  

Scrubbed & hair washed, the notes up to date, & the camera with a bit of charge, I took it outside just after 7pm to grab a couple of pics before going in to dinner.

As was this

While I was out there taking the 1st 2, there was definitely more mountain in view, & 15 minutes later ~ after I gone back in for my dim sum, the shape of the gorgeous volcano began to emerge from the cloud.

I couldn't let the opportunity slip, so I left my seat, took the camera & went back out.
I had a rare steak due, so over the next half an hour or so I divided my time between eating it, drinking the pinot noir I'd ordered to go with it, & leaving it briefly while I ran out to photograph my favourite mountain, & the pink clouds in the sunset.
Just look at the pictures, & tell me it's not an awesome mountain!

While writing this, I found this interesting fact on the net:
Mount Taranaki, the sacred mountain in North Island of New Zealand now has a “legal personality” status, making it eligible to enjoy same legal rights as a person. As per an agreement between the government and the local tribes, any abuses or harms against the 120,000 years old dormant volcano will be considered legally as harming the tribe. As per the understanding, the government will also make a symbolic apology to local Māori for historical breaches of the Treaty of Waitangi against the mountain. The guardianship of the mountain will be shared between eight local Māori tribes and the government. 

 

I knew it was special.

I shall keep an eye out for this PN next
time I'm in NZ.  It was yummy :-q

A nice thick piece of meat :-q

Quaffing the PN

In between dashing out in the hope of getting a great volcano photo, I got creative with my table decoration, the bottle of PN & the nice Dawson Falls glass.

From the look of my face in this one,
I'd defo had too much PN.

Having seen me photographing my food & drink, Sera offered to take a photo of me.




I must've had too much PN, because I agreed to pose ;-)

The steak was delicious, 

You can see from the pics above, I was 1/2 down the bottle before the steak came.




















When it arrived - - -

as was the wine in its Dawson Falls glass

It was darker in the shadow now .  .  .

Even though the steak was awesome, while eating I still went out for a photo.

They probably thought I was bonkers!

They wouldn't be far wrong ;-)

My very clean plate. Evidence of delicious food :-q
On the other hand, there is no evidence at all

.  .  .  but the mountain was high enough to remain in sunlight

The lodge car park & picnic area under sunset clouds

Great clouds off Panitahi/Fanthams Peak .  .  .

.  .  .  which make it look like it's erupting

 

I really like this pic :-D

and this

But I think this is my favourite pic of Panitahi / Fanthams

My notes don't say was was for pudding, but my memory tells me chocolate was involved?





Post pudding I went out for the final sunset photos.







It was so peaceful out there I could've stayed out till moonrise, but it'd been quite a long & eventful day, so after a few more of 'pink clouds over Taranaki', I went back in for an early night,

Err, this is pretty cool, too, methinks :-)

I think this cloud looks like a horse reairng
while standing on Panitahi/Fanthams

The one above was my last pic of the day at just before 8pm. I was the only guest that evening, & it was lovely & quiet up there on the volcano. 

Sera had mentioned being able to see Ruapehu & Ngnauruhoe at dawn, so I was hoping my usual habit of walking 2 or 3 times during the night would prove as lucky as it had been when sleeping on Taranaki in September 2011 when I took this:~

The big silhouette is Ruapehu, & the small one (about mid-way
between the sun & Ruapehu) is Ngnauruhoe.
I'd been so lucky that morning to wake just in time :-D

I took it just before 6am from the car park near the DOC lodge on the NE side of the mountain. The Maketawa Track passes just above the lodge, but I was the only person staying overnight that evening as well.

Years later, on the other side of the mountain, I went to sleep with fingers metaphorically crossed!

                An amazing shot of Taranaki at sunrise.  Pic from The Guardian

March 5th: Dawson Falls to Waitomo by thumb & Naked Bus

Although I did wake several times, none were at the right time for a dawn pic, & when it was light, it was too misty/cloudy :-( , so I guess I may just have to try again next time!

I eventually got up before 0730 (another long day/journey ahead), & packed ready for my hitch down the hill.

Breakfast at 0745 was muesli, toast with blackcurrant jam, galia melon, kiwi fruit, coffee & tea. Like I said, I would be walking till I got a lift, so I wanted plenty of carbs!

Bagging another kiwi for the hitch to Stratford - the 1st leg, I set off downhill at 0825.

The 1st pic of the day at about 0850

It was beautifully peaceful at that hour, and no-one passed me for about 1/2 an hour, in either direction.
The first 2 vehicles were headed up the hill, so no lifts there :-/
The 1st was a bloke in a DOC 4x4 who waved, & the 2nd was a camper van full of peeps.
I guessed they were off up to tramp for the day?

A Tui in a tree taken about ten minutes later.
Um. That's a sentence full of Ts!

Rimu
Bas from DOC told me this tree has now
been removed as it was dangerous to traffic

The next 3 pics were taken just after 0900.

The trees were at a split in the road (there are a couple of similar 'dual-carriageways' on the road up the hill).

With typical Kiwi respect for nature they had made the road go round the Rata in the middle.
I'd seen that care for nature a few times during my travels on NZ country roads.

Fiona (also from DOC) & Bas confirmed
this is a Northern Rata .  .  .

It's a great shame the Rimu is no more. They are beautiful trees.

Rata make great shapes!

Four minutes later, I came across this!

The possum.  Text with apologies to Python ;-p

This possum is deceased.

E's passed on! 
This possum is no more! 
He has ceased to be! 

E's expired and gone to meet 'is maker!

E's a stiff! 

Bereft of life, 'e rests in peace!

E's kicked the bucket.

E's shuffled off 'is mortal coil, run down the curtain and joined the bleedin' choir invisible!!

THIS IS AN EX-POSSUM
Here's a link to the original. I hope it works!

The Parrot Sketch - Monty Python's Flying Circus - Video Dailymotion

▶ 5:27

www.dailymotion.com/video/x2hwqnp

23 Feb 2015 - Uploaded by monty_python

If not, google it:  It's worth it :-)))

A couple of metres away from the body I found a bit of possum fur. Above is a pic of it with the tiki-like bit of rock I'd found on the river bed the day before (tilt head R to get what I mean!), & a tiny piece from my Epic trip underground the following day. Between them, they kinda sum up my weekend ;-)

Here's a pic of a Tiki for those who've no idea what I'm talking about.

Pic by PicClick

Not very long after I'd put the fluff in my bum bag & set off downhill again, the campervan I'd seen going up came back down & stopped.

In it were Christine & son Ashley who just taken a load of teenagers up to try for an overnight summit trip.

It was about 0920, & it had already been quite a morning of adventure!

Christine took me all the way to Stratford, & dropped me off on Broadway at about 20 to 10. I took a(nother) pic of the famous clock tower or Glockenspiel ~ see 2011 & 2014 blogs, before heading loo-wards behind it.

I'd seen it in previous visits, but had never been around when it did its show.
Consequently, when I took the photo at quarter to ten that morning, I was completely unaware of what happened 4 times daily, & what was about to happen at 10 o'clock.
I took the next 2 pics straight after the one of the Tudor-style tower because I was amused by the Kiwi sense of fun, even tho the 1st was serious message to potential villains.

The sign near the public loos behind the clock.

No River Avon in this Stratford.  They have the Patea River which is east of the town.
However, they do have a volcano!

I walked out of the Ladies, heard a bit of the 10 o'clock performance going on above me, & wondered what it was.
When I realised, I dashed across the road & managed a couple of quick pics before it came to an end ~ see below.
As usual, Google came up with some info for this blog:

Stratford's revered  glockenspiel stands proud in the main street, Broadway, and is unique to New Zealand. Shakespeare’s most famous star-crossed lovers, Romeo and Juliet, emerge for the balcony scene, reaffirming their vows of love, four times a day. The life-size figures were created by Nigel Ogel, owner/curator of Tawhiti Museum, near Hawera. The glockenspiel performs for approximately 5 minutes, after the hour chimes at 10am, 1pm, 3pm and 7pm.

There is a big Shakespeare influence in Stratford - well that's not surprising, eh?
As well as a hotel called Regan House (King Lear), Windsor Park (Merry Wives of), & an Avon School, nearly every street in the town centre is named after a character from various plays. 
For example, there are streets called:
Rosalind (As You Like It);
Seyton (Macbeth);
Arial (The Tempest);
Cordelia (King Lear);
Ulysses (Troillus & Cressida).

Note open door 1/2 way up on left with figure inside 

Of course, there is a Romeo St. & a Juliet St., & the 4 daily shows at the glockenspiel feature large figures of them, plus excerpts from their speeches.







 

Hurried/blurred pic of R&J during their speeches

Performance over, I then walked up & down Broadway looking for a bakery for nice fresh bread.
I didn't find one, but got some savory thingies from a cafe where I had a brew, & some fruit a bit further along Broadway.
Then I went looking for the i-Site where my ticket said the bus would depart from.
It was a lovely day, so once I'd checked exactly where the bus would stop, I sat in the sun in a little square outside Sgt Peppers & close to the i-Site.
My drunken spider hieroglyphics indicated it was called Prospero, but I could find nothing on Gmaps about Prospero & Stratford NZ, despite him being a major character from The Tempest.  Never one to give up easily, I went on Gmaps street view, & while searching on Miranda St. (The Tempest), I saw a little sign saying Prospero  > pointing past the i-Site, so my 2 year old scrawl was correct :-)
While on the Prospero bench I got chatting to a local bloke for quite a while. Then his wife arrived & teased him about him "chatting up the ladies" before they left.
It seemed to be quite the place for a chat, & after I'd been into Sgt Pepper for another brew & a bacon butty, I spoke to a couple, Arthur & Olive, from Western Aus. They were newly arrived, so I told them about some of the great things to do in NZ - so much to do & so little time, even if you have a month!
I also told them about the SCD strathspey called The Swan & The Tay, named after the 2 Perth rivers, one in Perth, WA & one in Perth, Scotland.
The bus was due at 1305, so I had a while to sit in the sun doing sudoku before it arrived. The next R&J performance on Broadway was at 1 o'clock, so - not wanting to risk missing the bus, I went to the bus stop by the War Memorial & stood on the highest place I could find (a little wall round some plants!).  Standing on the wall on opposite the i-Site on Miranda St. I could see the top of the tower. Go on Gmaps street view & you could too ;-) 
The bus came late, so I would have had time to see the 1300 performance, but I couldn't see the top figures properly when it started at 1pm: the wall was too low & am too short :-/
This means I must go back & spend more time in Stratford, doesn't it?
Shame. 
Not :-)
The bus eventually came & I sat next to a lady who was going to New Plymouth for a SOLΞMIO concert. They are an NZ operatic trio of Samoan descent who have done backing for Andrea Bocelli & George Benson as well as their own tours, & she was really looking forward to seeing them. They'd been in Blenheim on the 29th when I went to the pictures after my Pelorus River adventure. If I'd've known, I'd've got a ticket instead of going to see The Revenant. Mind you, that bear was bloody convincing when it savaged Leonardo! (see blog NZ16-5).
At NP the bus changed drivers & there was a 40 minute wait. 
To pass the time I got a lolly & had a quick walk on the prom., before getting some more bug spray & anti-histamines from the chemist I'd used in 2014 when I'd been bitten to blazes in the Bay of Islands ~ see blog NZ14: Days 5 & 6. 
I also squirted some tester perfume all over: it was bloody hot & I was 'glowing' a bit ;-p. I also used their tester hand cream. Freebies always gratefully received, eh? ;-)
The restart was at 1435, & we went up the SH3 for a while until turning off the coast at Awakino. On the way up we passed Okau Rd. This was where I'd arrived back on the main road after my trip to Whangamomona & driving through a lot of 'hinterland' on Dec 17th 2014 ~ see blog NZ14: Day 28.
The scenery along the SH3 north of NP is great, & another somewhere I would like to see in more detail sometime. I didn't know that day about views like the Three Sisters & The Elephant Rock, so was totally unprepared with the Lumix when they came in sight at Tongaporutu.
I made a note to be more ready on the way back on Monday!

The Awakino tunnel from my seat

Having got the camera out too late at Tongaporutu, it was ready to grab a pic as we came to the Awakino tunnel. It had been a great ride up alongside the Tasman between Tongaporutu & Awakino with regular sea views on the left & lush bush on the right.
When we turned inland at Awakino, we travelled NE along the SH3 until we got to Te Kuiti where we stopped for a comfort break.

No idea what sort it is, but it's reminiscent of
the Ant Hill Mob's car ;-)  My NakedBus is behind

There was a tearoom at Te Kuiti which did cheap & large bacon butties & big brews (Yes, another bacon butty!) 

There was also a cool car.
To get to Waitomo village, we had to turn off the SH3 onto Waitomo Caves Rd. at Hangatiki, & we almost doubled back on ourselves along the SH37 for about 7K.
I'd been chatting to the driver who'd explained that he was unable to safely stop on the road outside Juno Hall BBH on the way in, but if I waited at Waitomo, he'd be able to stop by the drive on the way back 

Taken from the NakedBus as we approached Waitomo

to the SH3.

Another kind & helpful NZ bus driver :-D

Arriving at 1720, we were 20min early into the village, so there was a bit of a wait before we drove back up the SH37, & I got dropped off at the bottom of Juno Hall's drive.
I'd been swapping Es with Stephanie, the manager at Juno Hall, & it was on her recommendation that I was doing the Lost World Epic the next day.
Stephanie had written:
My favourite tour is the Lost World Epic (which is also the most expensive tour in Waitomo) but it is AMAZING and you won't regret spending money on such an amazing experience.
She turned out to be dead right!
Thanks a million Stephanie :-D
When I checked in, Stephanie wasn't at all how I'd imagined her (ie longish straight blonde hair) & had long coloured dreads. She told me where to find the Waitomo Adventures office - just down the road towards the village, & also lent me a charger.
I'd got the savouries I'd bought in Stratford for tea ~ a chicken & cranberry pastie & a chicken & avocado pastie, but had a brew with the fruit I hadn't eaten on the bus before trotting down the road for a few evening pics, & to check when check-in was the next morning.

These 2 pics are views of the Waitomo countryside taken from the road between Juno Hall & Waitomo Adventures.

I found out check-in was at 10am & that there was a BBQ afterwards. That meant tomorrow's tea was taken care of. I'd noticed a few eateries in the village, but was quite happy there'd be an al fresco BBQ instead.
Brill :-)

Not sure, but I think this is a kunekune pig?

On the way back to Juno's I saw a pig like PJ's (which - according to the Director's commentary, had appeared in The Desolation of Smaug scoffing the Kingsfoil nicked by Bofur when he went to get some to cure Kili of the poisoned orc arrow wound).
Yup. I'm one of those Middle Earth geeks ;-)
That's not hard, tho., here in beautiful NZ.

A tree in Juno Hall's garden

Following my pastie tea, I soaked my porridge for next morning, & did a bit of sudoku & note-writing in the Juno lounge before heading bed-wards at just after 8 for a bit of online catching-up & an early night.

It had felt like a long day of more NZ adventures, & an Epic journey underground was on the cards in the morning.

OAO