Rotorua to Tairua

28.02.09

The weather forecast was not too good today, forecasting high winds and heavy rain, so we were keen to press on away from the mountain passes and winding roads. The conditions were pretty rough, buffeting the car and we were beginning to think we would have to pull over to let the storm pass, but as we came down from the mountainside to meet the East Coast at Whakatane the wind died down and the rain wasn’t so heavy. We had a fair distance to cover so we didn’t stop.

Whakatane is on the Eastern Bay of Plenty. It is one of New Zealand’s sunniest locations usually, but not for us today. The route then turned north and we followed the Pacific Coast Highway.

We passed through Te Puke, a town originally settled with Irish folk in the 1880s. The area is famous for being the Kiwifruit capital of the world. Pioneering horticulturists experimented with what was then known as the Chinese gooseberry, and developed an international market for it under the new name.

Along the drive we were treated to stunning views of the coast, broken up with fields dedicated to dairy farming and horticulture. This area is also home to goldfields which are still in operation. There are lots of abandoned mining sites with mining equipment and mining shafts signposted from the road. There are plenty of art galleries and local craft makers in this area.

The weather had eased off by the time we reached our destination of Tairua. This is a small town on the entrance of a harbour. There is a mount called Paku which is an extinct volcano at the mouth of the harbour and we stayed at Killyrudden home stay. www.killyrudden.co.nz This was a lovely home, owned by Margaret and Keith and their dog Emma. We had superb harbour views from our bedroom window, perched high up on the mountainside. We had a lovely evening meal in a restored boat on our first evening, and were glad to have arrived. We could now relax and enjoy this area for two nights.