Despite my weariness from the last few nights and the late night last night I still didn’t sleep well. Tortie the cat followed us up to the bunk house last night. She came to hunt for mice and ended up being upset that I wouldn’t let her sleep on my feather sleeping bag with me. Tortie was part of the reason for my lack of sleep. I left Rowan to sleep a bit longer and I made my way down to Arnica’s house. The pet sheep was on the deck.

Arnica and Sharn had a bit of farm work to do but she said she will be done. by lunch time. I am welcome to have some breakfast and chill in her house. I take the opportunity to start planning the next few days. I really want to finish the Cape Reinga leg before heading over to Sydney for Bette’s birthday. The weather has other ideas, it is not working in our favour. My grandpa is going in for heart surgery early July and I wonder if I should stick around for that. The problem is we will be twiddling thumbs for at least a week. I call my dad and let him know we are heading his way and ask if it is okay. Our passports are at his place.

I look into going straight to Hobart to see Rowan’s aunty first. We end up putting that in the too hard pile for short notice. There is too much to organise with hire car and accommodation. Sharn & Arnica finish working and Sharn is heading into Hamilton to the baby show. Nicole and Sharn are happy to take us to the holiday park.

We say our goodbyes and thank them both for their hospitality. Not long after they leave we realise we have left our rubber mats in the back of their car. Lucky for us they will drop them off before they head back to the farm. Once settled in we find a bus to get us to Auckland. My lovely Dad says he will pick us up from the Manukau Bus Station. We have an early dinner and get into bed, I am pretty tired.

The day began with a quick coffee and we got packed up to go. There was heaps of room in the ute for all our gear. Sharn said I will call the wife when we get to Te Kuiti and you can come sleep at the farm. I really had a crap sleep, I haven’t had a good sleep since we left the airbnb in Mangakino. I also wake up to a pancake flat tyre. Mmm I must have done that on the trail yesterday.

I hop in Arnica’s van and Rowan hops in Sharns ute. We explore a little on our way out. There is another Lodge which is further off track. Black Fern Lodge is a lot more rustic and has a load of charm. When we reach Te Kuiti we get some breakfast. After breakfast we find an op shop, it feels like the weekend but of course it is Friday today.

When we reach Ōtorohanga we buy some extras for dinner. It will be just Arnica and us as Sharn and his wife Nicole are going to some local farm gathering. When we arrive at the farm I really have no bearings of where we are. But we are in a place called Parawera. When we arrive we meet Nicole and then get shown around the bunk house further into the farm. The farm is 750 hectares, a mix of dairy, beef and lamb. Nicole also runs a farmstay and horse trekking business. This is currently closed as she is heavily pregnant. We settle in and enjoy a hot shower. Arnica is kind enough to let us use her washing machine and let our clothes dry in her home. We have a lovely dinner and chat with her long into the night. I even indulge myself and have a couple of whiskeys.

Arnica shows us this funny kiwifruit a friend picked for her. We convinced her to put it on trade for $1 reserve. I don’t think it will go far, but you never know! It doesn’t help that we tried it in the Antiques category but it has some how shifted to building.

https://www.trademe.co.nz/a/marketplace/building-renovation/portable-cabins/listing/4194428280

It rained and it rained and it was still raining. The weather settled around 11am, so we packed up to go. Leaving the solid shelter behind to slowly get through the bog out to the main track. I didn’t attempt to keep my feet dry and just walked through all the mud and water.

It took us nearly an hour to do 800m. That may give you a better idea of how hard it was to get our bikes in and out of Bog Hut. On the main road we quickly fuel up with a sandwich. Once we started cycling the rain began. I wasn’t too worried as it was a lot of downhill fun. We went over several bridges and a couple of neat suspension bridges.

We were quite tired and wet by the time we hit Harrisons Creek. We almost stayed but decided to carry on to Piropiro. There was the allure of a potential hot shower that kept us moving. Despite being very wet and a little cold, I was enjoying the ride. The ups were slippery and hard, but it did make me warm

We got to the lodge around 3pm and discovered it was $560 a night for a bathroom and for a shared bathroom room $390. Now I really want a hot shower but not that badly. Nope, this is for the ebikees with $10k bikes. Our next hope was Camp Epic which is 2km or so over the hill. We arrive there to a locked gate. Department of Conservation camping it is. We arrive and find the highest bit of ground to camp on. This is a free campsite accessible by car and is a favourite of hunters. We ride past our friends on the dirt bikes but I can’t see them. As I finish off the inner workings of our tent Rowan looks for a stream to swim in.

He gets chatting to our bike friends and they invite us into a farmers shelter to warm up at the fire. We thank them and chat for a little bit and decide we better get out of our wet clothes. After a thorough wash with a bottle I can get in the tent and complete the set up. I join the fireside and Nick has boiled the jug so we can have a hot drink. Bruce and Nick are old farmers who come out here quite a lot. They are probably here more than at home. We cook our dinner with them and have a good yarn until 10pm when we all head off to bed. Sharn offers to take us out to Taumarunui or drop us wherever we like tomorrow. Rowan and I are exhausted and gladly take the offer. Rowan even more so than me with his cough still from the flu.

Up up and more up. We left camp at 10am and steadily went up most of the day. Just before the track there was a tractor. We ended up meeting a whole group on ebikes heading to the lodge for the night.

I am incredibly jealous of the ebikes. This trail would be so much more fun without slogging it up the hill. However the scenery is incredible. I can highly recommend anyone who wants to should do the trail.

Made it to the 10km mark

The forest just got better from there.

We made it to the highest point wahoo. We encountered some people on dirt bikes who pretended they were allowed. I am sure they are not. They told us about a hut off track we could go to but it would be hard to get our bikes there.

An 800m slog through the bush we finally made it to the Bog Hut. Built in the 60s for researchers looking at plant life and animal life in the area. It has a fire, we got it lit for a small amount of time. It ended up going out. The wood is far too wet. Freezing our buts off after a swim in the creek. I am waiting for my dinner to be ready then I can hop into bed and get warm.

The fog was thick, too thick to cycle in. We waited until 12pm for it to clear before heading off. We have 30km to do today but we know we will be slow. It is uphill and we haven’t been on our bikes for far too long.

Rowan is struggling. He hasn’t had much sleep and is not 100%. We carry on and try to push ourselves a bit. My lowest gear is making the chain rub against the tyre. I avoid the lowest gear for most of the day. This meant I had to walk parts.

Rowan picked up a new mascot. This is Timothy. He now rides shotgun

When we got to camp it was before 4pm but of course it started raining. We hurried to get pitched and once we were done the rain stopped. There is a tiny stream that we walked down to for a quick wash. By the time Rowan cooked dinner we were eating in near dark. Now all washed up and in bed. Hopefully Rowan gets some sleep tonight.

We are heading south and finally getting back on the trail. We have enjoyed our time with the family. Kindly they offer to drop us off. We get to Lake Mareatai in the afternoon. There is a freedom camping area right on the lake. You are allowed here 2 nights.

We say our goodbyes and set our tent up. Rowan confesses he is feeling like crap. Eek we thought we got away with not getting sick, but it looks like he caught something. We meet a lovely couple in a camper and they make me a cup of tea complete with a gingernut biscuit.

The next day Rowan is full of the flu. We achieve precisely nothing. The fog is incredibly thick and lifts around lunchtime. We have breakfast at the local cafe and get some supplies for dinner. My camper friend makes me another tea!

Still unwell and about to be here a third night. I suggest we go stay somewhere like a lodge. Rowan doesn’t want to, but I find a cute airbnb and book it for two nights. I achieved finishing my book. I must say it has been rather cold here. I have been sleeping with socks to stay warm.

I am looking forward to comfort, a fireplace, a hot shower. Loosing those comforts we come to expect has been quite liberating. I appreciate a lot of different aspects of life we just take for granted. Look at this arty, quirky, cosy cottage.

The place feels like home. Deb is a great host and the property is meticulously clean. I relax straight away and cosy up by the fire.

That bed is amazing. Staying here turns into 4 nights. Rowan finally starts feeling better and we enjoy our stay. Mangakino has a really good vibe. The community look out for one another. It has seen a lot of growth property wise in the last 5 years. My curiosity gets the better of me and we go check out a house. The agent unintentionally talks us out of buying here. The market has risen x5 in the last 5 years. The agents here have decided with the downturn market not to drop the prices of properties in the area. There has been one sale in the past 6 months and that is because the owner was desperate and took $200k less than advertised. The agents have successfully cornered the market and would rather sell no houses than let the property prices drop. There are roughly 40 properties for sale and some have nearly been on the market for two years. A subdivision was put in and available from October, yet not one section has sold. In saying all this, we wouldn’t say no to buying here. It would just need to be at a lot less than the agents are telling their vendors to wait for.

Our last day here is super relaxing, I potter around and get us organised for the trip ahead. Rowan prepares our meals. I am just about to hop into a hot shower (won’t have one for a few days) read my book and aim for an early night.

We have been here with the family over two weeks. We have helped (I hope) with some packing, organising and cooking. Rowan’s automatic job whenever we stay somewhere. We have op shopped and found some goodies that are needed. Aunty Deb needed a new desk, we got rid of her old one on the marketplace and picked up the new one on the same day. Rowan found us a few more bits of gold to add to our collection. We went back to a Hospice Op Shop where we had found a gold bangle 6 months ago and gave them a $50 donation.

The kids had a teacher only day. Rowan and I took all 4 out to Raglan. We fossicked on the beach, found a crab and lots of mussels. The boys want to eat them so we took them all home. Preston found a fish stuck on the end of a hook. It looked okay, but not knowing how old it is we took it home for bait.

I built a sandcastle complete with a moat. Then had fun destroying it. Before heading home we got fish and chips for lunch. The kids played on the playground. Then we headed to Bridal Falls on the way back. The walk was longer than I remembered. Especially with 3 boys with no shoes. Karstan in particular moaned the whole way there and back.

We got some new smoke detectors for the house and got some screws to fix up an electrical fitting. It was taken off to paint some time ago and was never done up again.

I found Anita a brand new Mathew’s at the Sallies for $250. She just needs a king base now.

Aunty Deb told us about a Lions Club op shop only open twice a week. This place is my favourite shop in the North Island. Really well run, super cheap. It makes me want to live near Cambridge. Rowan got a bunch of fishing rods from them. Which he sold 1 for $60 to help pay for them. He also got a $10 tent that was new and I sold it for $100.

Rowan ended up with a really bad staph infection on his finger. It got so bad that he started a course of antibiotics. It is too sore to cycle with.

Nellie has gotten a year older. Rowan cooked her burgers for dinner as per her request. I made two cheesecakes. Nellie and I went to Okoroire Hot Pools for a dip. It was really relaxing, I did wish it was a little warmer. It is a bit of a hike to get there, nice bush scenery and the river is next to the pools.

Nellie had a soccer game in Papamoa on Sunday. We headed there with two boys and took them fishing in Tauranga. No luck there so we headed to Maketu where we ended up beach combing.

My mum lives in Papamoa, we got invited to have lunch. Which was perfect timing. It all happened very fast as she had other friends arrive too. On our way back from Papamoa, we stopped at McLaren Falls. Rowan convinced Preston and Karstan to get in with him. On the way home, the car in front of us chucked some kids toys out the window. We turned around and picked them up. Kiah, the middle child loves soft toys.

Two weeks went rather fast. There are a lot of bugs going around with 50% of the house hold sick. So far, we have avoided it. I did get a sore throat, but that was it.

A very easy day ahead. We need to be in Matamata around lunchtime for my cousin to pick us up. Nellie lives in Cambridge, we will wait out some weather with her. The day is really flat and rather boring. A trail follows the road for 95% of the way. We pass a nice looking cafe not long into our ride, we are good and keep moving. There isn’t much to look at with just farms around us. I do have a chat with a farmer as I go by.

As we got closer to Matamata, we started seeing a lot more people on the trail. Rowan stopped to point out to me a waterfall in the distance. As we were discussing it an elderly gentleman stopped to chat to us. 30min later we parted ways. He was telling us all about how much he loves his e-bike, makes me just want one more. The falls we can see are Wairere Falls. He tells us it is a bit of a hike to get to. I have added it to my list of walks I will do.

We arrive on the outskirts of Matamata at Firth Tower. Last night I researched a Geyser we had heard about on a sign coming into Te Aroha. This is the world’s only natural soda geyser. This geyser makes bubbly water and I wanted to know if we can drink it. Turns out it is bottled. Lemon & Te Aroha! By the time I got all the information while soaking up in the hot pool I thought I better find out where I can buy the stuff. Turns out Firth Tower has it. So as we came in we got a bottle to quench our thirst. It is sweeter than I would like. I will have to try the plain water next.

We hung around Matamata waiting for our ride and ended up in the visitor centre. Which of course is hobbit themed.

When Nellie arrived we took her out for a late lunch.

We arrived in Cambridge later afternoon to all the kids saying hello. Nellie has 3 boisterous boys. Also living with her are her parents, sister and nephew. My aunty and uncle have a new house in Te Awamutu they are moving too next month with my cousin Anita and son Kortez. It is really cool seeing all the kids. We always love visiting them. They all call us Aunty & Uncle as is the Māori way.

Roughly 70km today!

We got moving fairly early with a coffee to move us along. The pool called for me to jump in, they open it at 6.30am. A fairly big day ahead, but she is pretty flat. A few minor up and downs but flat and boring. It really did get boring. We stopped in Ngatea for Subway, it was still early 10am so we got a foot long each and had half now and we will have half later. There was two op shops that we may have looked at while our food settled.

From there we followed a canal. I tried to get a shot of Rowan reflecting in the water but I was too slow.

Honestly, it was a pretty boring day these cows are the most exciting thing I saw all day and it was just before Te Aroha

We did get to follow on some tracks, which was good. Most of the ride from Tirohia was on the Hauraki Rail Trail. We did do a lot on back roads with farm after farm to look at.

We arrived in Te Aroha just before 3pm and we went op shopping, so predictable. After that we went to the holiday park, about 3km from the town centre.

Once we were set up we hopped into the spring spa. It is not as hot as last night, I wish it was hotter but Rowan was happy.

36km today!

We headed off at a good time and went back the way we came in. Our first hill was right there. It took a couple of breaks to make it up, but we did it all on the bikes. Then it was downhill to Tapapakanga Regional Park, then back uphill. This hill wasn’t bad at all. There was a nice view at the top where we had a snack.

From here we stuck next to the coastline all the way to Miranda. We stopped at Kaiaua for lunch. It was a good hour before we got back on our bikes. Only 13km to go.

There is a cycle trail next to the road, which was a bit haphazard in parts from recent storms. But we followed it in parts and ended up at the Miranda Springs Holiday Park at 2pm. Nice and early. After set up we got into the pool which is pretty hot. We lasted 40min before needing to get out. After dinner, we hopped into bed to read our books. Then we decided to hop back in the spa