Monday, February 9, 2009

Kauri Grove and Waiau Falls

Sue, me and Yuka at the Cat's Pyjamas

We left Whitianga on Tuesday and said our goodbyes to Sue and the Cat's Pyjamas (the cats are in the background!). Yuka and I decided to go back to Auckland through The Kauri Grove. This meant that we would cross the peninsula from the east to the west and then go down the west coast on our way back to Auckland.

The access to the Kauri Grove (an ancient and indigenous tree found, I believe, only in New Zealand) is a bit rough; they are slowly paving it, so mind the dust.
Kauri Grove

When we got there, we only had to walk a little ways until we could see the gigantic trees. This little grove is all that is left of the primary kauri forest that used to be in this area. There was a huge logging company in the area for a really long time and the wood was used for the making of ships and furniture and such. No one really knows how this little area was spared, but during the 2nd World War, the government wanted to cut down this area for logging and met with intense resistance from the locals. The locals won and we can now enjoy the cool shade of the grove and watch in awe, how majestic these trees really are.




I don't even span half of the front of this tree!

When you see this sign, what do you think of? I'll show you what I thought of! See below!



After the little show, we hopped back into the car and then stopped again when we got to the Waiau Falls. Tiny little waterfall, but very peaceful and freezing cold (but refreshing 'cause I only put my feet in; I'm getting smarter!
Waiau Falls

Goodbye the Coromandel!

2 comments:

Anonymous said...

hi its guillaume ! i finally found your blog ! hope you have a nice trip around new zealand ! here is my email if you want to keep in touch with me : gui.renard@gmail.com !

come back to whitianga! if yes, we are all waiting for you !

L said...

Hi Guillaume. Nice to see you here. Hope all is well in Whitianga and that you found some good waves. I'll definitely let you know if I ever get up there again. Would be cool, was my favorite backpackers to date!

L