Winter at Matauri Bay.

My last snapper caught at Puriri Bay before leaving.

After another lovely time at Puriri Bay we were moving further north to Doubtless bay area where we were to meet up with Rod, Catherine and Grace who were on their winter break from the farm.  The cows were dry and the stock off to winter grazing so they were looking forward to some well earned time off.  They were staying in Taipa at their friend Barry's place.
  Jocelyn and I decided to stay at Hihi Beach camp which is at the southern end of Doubtless Bay and only about 15 minutes from Taipa.  The camp is quite small but very tidy and the beach is right across the road.  On day two I got the kayaks down and got rigged up for a fish.  Rod,  Catherine and Grace arrived for lunch and were obviously looking forward to their time up in the far north.
  After lunch I got Rod sorted with what he needed in Jocelyns little kayak and then we wandered across the road and launched them into the bay.  We paddled out straight from the camp only about 200 metres and deployed the softbaits.  !0 minutes later I had a snapper in the back that weighed close to 14 lbs.  Rod was in a bit closer and had been getting a few hits then his rod buckled over and he was into a good fish.  I had the only net so after seeing him getting towed around I thought I better get over there and offer some assistance.  It was a bit of a circus but I eventually manouvered my kayak close enough and managed to slip the net under a really nice snapper of around 10 Ibs.
  Rod was pretty stoked.  Not a bad effort being his first time soft baiting and fishing from a kayak.  Then to top it off a little while later he repeated it with another snapper around the same size.  The fishing up here is really amazing.  We were straight across the road from the camp only a couple of hundred metres out and catching quality fish like that in the middle of the day. Needless to say Rod was a happy camper and after a couple more nice fish were landed we headed in.

 Catherine and Grace had gone back to Taipa so Jocelyn met us on the beach with the camera.  Rod and I got out our fish  and stood together for photos.  This is where the number one son issue becomes apparent again.  Later in the day after reviewing the photos,  even though we were standing together holding our fish there is no sign of me in any of the photos.  A little bit of my snapper at least makes a couple of the shots.  It's alright I'm getting used to it so I don't need to run off to see an analyst.  I will cope.  Haha
 

A bit of my snapper made the shot.

We were all going to Barry's place at Taipa for dinner so we took all the fish around there for filleting and cleaning.  Some of the bigger fillets we set aside for smoking and the rest were processed ready for the fry pan.  Barry made us feel very welcome and over the next few days he took us out fishing   in his boat and Rod did a couple of free dives looking for kingfish.  A couple were spotted but he was unable to get a shot.  Winter not being a great time in close for kings.
   We also went for a drive up to Cape Reinga for the day. Being such a clear day, looking out from the Cape the Three Kings Islands were visible in the distance.  These Islands are another of those places I have always said I would visit one day and go fishing.  I Guess I should get onto that as I am not getting any younger.
 On the way back we took the road down to the Te Paki stream which leads you past the big sand dunes then onto 90 mile beach.  Rod, Grace and I climbed up one of the big dunes so Grace could surf down on her board.  Unfortunately we had just had a heavy shower of rain and with the dunes being wet the board wouldn't slide so that plan turned into an epic fail.  Never mind, we carried on down the stream until we came across some people well and truly stuck in the sand and needing help from a four wheel drive.  After that was all sorted on to 90 mile beach we went.

Grace on that perfect white sand.

Looking along the coast from the cape.

 Catherine you are hiding from the camera again.

Cape Reinga light house with Rod and Grace.

 It was a good trip down the beach.  We stopped a couple of times and collected tuatuas and rod spotted a seal hiding behind a log and having a snooze.  The rest of the trip was uneventful except for the few times Rod missed seeing the dips in the sand and we hit them at speed and our heads were in danger of colliding with the roof.
  We all had a good time at Doubtless bay and us at Hihi camp.  Rod and family left for Tauranga and then Rotorua to catch up with family and friends and Jocelyn and I packed up and moved to Matauri Bay.  This is a commercial camp in a beautiful setting right on the beach with the Cavalli Islands spread out from the bay.   There are quite a few people who winter over here in their campers.  The couple next to us stay here every year for up to 8 months.  We arrived late in the day and got set up, and the following day as we were short on supplies we went to Kerikeri and stocked up on essentials like wine and beer.  Oh and some groceries. Haha.  The next couple of days the weather really packed it in with strong winds and a bit of rain.

Matauri Bay.

  Then unfortunately I got crook again and ended up in hospital for a few days but I came right and by then we were to travel to Katikati and look after Ken and Vicki's place and their dogs while they were on holiday .  So I never got to do much at Matauri for the first 10 days or so.  While in Katikati we made sure to catch up with a number of friends and family we hadn't seen in a while .We also had grand daughter Luca stay a couple of nights and we had a great time getting to know her again.

Luca exploring at Ken and Vicki's.

We had lot's of fun.

  On the way back up north we stopped overnight in Whangarei at Jerry and Megs place who we had got to know while camping at Otamure Bay .  We had a very pleasant evening with a great roast dinner and a good number of wines as well.  What great company you meet doing what we are doing.

  We are now back at Matauri Bay and really enjoying it.  The fishing is really good here with plenty of good sized snapper.  Jerry and Meg came and stayed a few days and we met up for happy hours and evening meals.  The people camped here are great company. Most of them living in their campers permanently.  When I got crook and was in hospital they all helped out Jocelyn and had her over for evening drinks and snacks.  Happy hour here is full of laughs and as most of us are older types, a lot of memories and reminisences.   The camp has a winter rate fee of $125 dollars a week which includes power and all the use of the camp facilities including as many showers as you like. So all up it's pretty cheap living.  And when you wake up and look out the window why would you want to be anywhere else.

Great fish filleting facilities.

Looking out at a small part of the Cavalli Islands.

 The Greenpeace ship," Rainbow Warrior," has it's final resting place out here at the Cavalli Islands.  It was scuttled to be used as a dive site a number of years ago.  There is a monument up the top of the headland that looks out over the Cavallis and this in itself is worth a trip to Matauri Bay to look out and view this beautiful piece of New Zealand.  And maybe to also think back to that amazing piece of history that was the Rainbow Warrior tragedy.

The rainbow warrior memorial.

Another nice Matauri Bay snapper.

Breakdowns and duckshooting.

Jocelyn and I had a good time at Fantail Bay again, meeting up with 2 groups of campers we had met there before.  Bike riding, snorkelling and Kayak fishing taking up most of our time.
  Remember to click on the photos to enlarge.

Beautiful Fantail Bay.

But it was on our way back down the coast the dramas started.  Coming into Colville there was a scraping noise then a solid lurch from the rig and I eased the truck onto the road verge.  Getting out and having a look I could see broken axle springs and the axle it self had moved out of alignment, which was what had caused the rig to lurch sideways.

One tyre was damaged and a rocker arm on the opposite side was broken as well.  So we were immobile until we could get help.  That help came in the form of Mike McCall who runs a small engineering garage at Papa Aroha.  What a life saver he turned out to be.  He put a chain block around the axle and hauled it into line and we had a slow trip to his workshop where we parked up on the lawn.  He and his wife Ngaire live on the property and Mike said his family have been there for 5 generations.  Mike and I dismantled everything and then Jocelyn and I ended up in Rotorua getting new springs made at Archers and profile cutting new rocker arms. Trying to get new parts from the United States just wasn't happening.

All this took a week or so while we stayed at John and Margots.  It was great to spend time with them especially as they are retiring soon and have put a deposit on their own 5th wheeler, so we were able to plan future travels with them.  Getting back to Papa Aroha with all the new parts we were invited over to Mike and Ngaire's for drinks.  What a very hospitable couple they are.  They made us feel so welcome and treated us like old friends.  And after all the dramas were eventually sorted we were told we would be welcome to park on their lawn anytime we came to the area for as long as we liked.

Broken rocker arm.

Sitting on blocks

Solid plate steel.  These ones won't break.

  Anyway Mike and I spent the next morning drilling holes in the new rocker arms and getting everything bolted back on to the rig and fitting the new tyre back on.  Then we said our goodbyes and took the road to Coromandel.  We needed to empty the tanks at the dump station so called in there and then as we took off I looked in the mirror and couldn't believe it when I saw a wheel fall off the rig and tip onto the road.  Getting out and having a look I could see the stub axle had broken and when the wheel fell off the brake shoes had fallen out and gone through the side wall of the brand new tyre we had fitted less than an hour before. " Damn it."  It was a bit of a head in the hands moment.  I got on the phone to Mike and he came in and we decided to limp around to the NZMCA camp on three wheels, which was  just around the corner and we  got underneath and dropped out the axle.  Mike was feeling pretty bad for us too but obviously when the spring had broken previously and the axle had gone out of alignment that is when the stub axle had cracked.  And as it turned out we were quite lucky it had happened when we were so close to the camp where we could park up and get it fixed.


  So after loading the axle onto the back of the ute by this time it was late afternoon on Friday so I had to wait until Monday morning to drive to Thames and find an engineer to help us out.  On the third try I found JCD Engineering who turned out to be another company who really try to look after their customers.  As it turned out we couldn't get everything completed before we had to leave for the south island for duck shooting.  So we left the rig in Coromandel and took off for Wellington.
  We were going to stay overnight in Wellington as our ferry was the next morning at 9am.  Our nephew Lance had recently purchased a house in Owhiro bay around the coast a bit. So he was happy to put us up for the night. It was great to catch up with Lance again who was a bit envious of me going shooting.  Lance used to shoot with us down there a number of years ago but with his busy lifestyle he finds it very hard to get the time now.  Lances girlfriend Colleen came around as well and we spent a very pleasant evening having dinner and yakking. Thanks Lance, and we loved your house.

The crossing was smooth and we landed in Picton and headed straight off to Kaikoura.  It really seems easy now using state highway one again rather than taking that long Lewis Pass road.  Rodney was on his new deck having a beer or three with his neighbour Nigel when we pulled up so it didn't take too much persuasion to crack the lid off a bottle myself and for Jocelyn to find a bottle of wine.
   Since last there the house had a makeover.  Not only a lovely large deck out front but new double glazed aluminium joinery and a new kitchen with all new carpet and Lino as well.  Rodney doing most of the work himself.  Looks awesome.

Friday arrived and Jocelyn and I were to pick Dane up at Christchurch airport on the way to Geraldine.  Was good to see Dane again and he was looking as keen as I to get into the shooting.  Things were to be a bit different this year as grand daughter Monique was working on the farm we were shooting on so we were going to stay with her rather than at Brian and Ingrids. And Moniques friend Crystal was going to shoot with us. Just before dark we went down to the maimai and set out all the decoys.  There had been a flood through there early in the week and the water had been right up through the middle of the maimai. So we had a bit of mud to contend with.

That night it was around to Brian and Ingrids for the traditional night before shooting dinner and socialise.  Its always good to see them all again and feel so welcomed.  Jocelyn was with us this year but she was off to Invercargill the next morning to stay with Joel and Julie for a few days.

The female crew.

The outlook from the maimai.

  The maimai was going to be a bit crowded this year. We had the usual shooters Rod, Dane, James, and myself, then Crystal was shooting and for support staff we had Monique and Gracie supplying coffees and loading cartridge belts.  Initially the ducks were a bit slow arriving but we ended up getting a steady stream of them coming in during the day.  We ended up with 70 for the day which is reasonably good.  Our last years tally of 140 was one out of the box and we weren't really expecting that again.  We got another 20 or so the following morning then it was around to the offal hole to pluck and breast the harvest.  All up with all  the maimais there was over 200 ducks off the farm for the weekend.
  The following day it was goodbye to everyone for another year then back up to Kaikoura.  We had an excellent meal of roast wild duck cooked in the webber with all the roast veggies and gravy to go with it.  Yum.  Meals like that take a bit of beating.
  Rod and Dane did a bit of hunting at the neighbours. I was still stuggling a bit with arthritis so was finding the walking a bit tough at the moment.  They both got a deer each.  We also had a night up in a hut on the neighbours station and a few goats got bowled and a bit of meat harvested.

Nigels back country hut.

Rod and Dane back from a hunt.

  In no time it seemed Dane was back to the airport and we had to get up early to catch the ferry in Picton.  Unfortunately sometime between when we left Rod's and we got to the northern side of Kaikoura they closed the road to Picton because of rockfalls.  Which meant we had to book on an afternoon ferry and wait for the road to open.  We eventually got through and made the ferry for a 2.15pm sailing which meant we got in to Wellington around 6pm.  And we arrived in Rotorua at John and Margots around 11.45pm.  A very long day after getting up at 5.30am.

The following day we were on our way back to Thames to pick up the repaired axle.  They had found the stubb axle on the other end was also cracked so had replaced that as well.  So in theory we were back in business.  Then it was back to Coromandel where we were met by Mike who put it all back together.  Unfortunately we also found that while we were away the freezer hadn't been working and there was a very unpleasant soup floating in the bottom of it.  Fortunately I had to help Mike with fitting the axle while Jocelyn cleaned out the horrid mess in the freezer.  There were a few gagging noises emanating from up above us as we worked but we both tried to look very busy.  It sounds like insurance will cover a fair bit of the cost of the axle repairs and as yet we may have to do a claim to replace the fridge and freezer as after about three weeks it's still pretty unpleasant when you open that freezer door.

After many thanks to Mike for all his help we hitched up and pointed the rig towards Thames.  We called in at JCD engineering again and got them to test the other axle for cracks.  They found no problem with it so with a sense of relief we headed for the far north.  The first night we stopped at Uretiti Beach just south of Whangarei and ended up staying 3 nights.  It was like winding down.  When we were in business you had to deal with problems all the time but now when problems occur it seems like a real inconvenience and you struggle to cope with it.  You almost feel like you are waiting for something else to break or go wrong.   I think the only cure is probably to go fishing so with that in mind we headed to another of our favourite camps. Otemure Bay.

We parked up on our usual spot where we can look out over the sea.  After getting settled in I had a bit of a wander down the beach and the water looked so clear, so I thought I would go for a snorkel and take the speargun for a swim.  The 5mm Wettie suit was doing the job and keeping me warm and I even managed to sneak up on a couple of snapper and head shoot them for dinner.  There were a few small crays around, both reds and packhorse but nothing of any size. With snapper for tea things felt like they were back to normal.

A couple of nice pannies with the spear.

  The next morning I was keen to get out in the kayak for a fish so I was up fairly early and out to a reef where I had caught large snapper before.  I hooked up almost immediately and the line was getting stripped off my reel at a great rate.  It was definitely a good fish. I was in shallow water with kelp and rock all around and this fish played dirty trying to get into the reef. At one point I thought I was going to end up on the rocks as the swell was lifting the kayak up and into the foaming white water.  Eventually I started to get the upper hand but was applying a lot of pressure to the line.  Then looking down I could see colour then this very large snapper rose up through the clear water and after it tipped on it's side I eased it into my landing net.  This fish was definitely 20lbs plus. Not a bad start for the morning.  After slipping him into the back I spent the next hour or so landing a few more keepers and also losing 2 other large snapper when the hook pulled.  But I  was pretty content with my morning fish.

The big fellow.

He was in such good condition.  The fish I mean.

  We met up with Roger and Lorraine who we had first met in this camp.  They had a dairy farm about 10kms up the road and had just employed a 50/50 share milker.  Once they have tidied everything up with the sale of cows and the transition of the new share milker they plan to travel around in their caravan like we do in our rig.  We also got to know Morris and Anna from Kerikeri who also came over for drinks and it turned into quite an evening.  Lorraine loves crayfish so her and Roger came down to collect one I had caught and a few too many drinks were consumed that night.  Poor Jocelyn was not feeling well the next morning.  It turns out Lorraine said she wasn't that well either the next day.

I ended up supplying most of the camp with fresh snapper and the camp hosts received a fillet of kingfish for their large family while we were at Otemure. I smoked the other fillet of kingfish in the webber, and that came out a real taste treat. That large snapper fed 4 different campers and they all said how lovely it was to eat. People say those large fish are no good to eat but I disagree as I have found those large well conditioned fish are excellent to eat. Just as well, as I really like to target those big ones.

Those kingis can really pull on light gear.

Early morning excursion.

  From Otemure we have moved on to Puriri bay again for a few days.  The weather was great when we arrived but has now turned to wind and rain. The last couple of days Jocelyn and I have been helping with tree planting in the DOC reserve over the hill from camp which was quite rewarding.  We have met a few of the locals who seem very keen about the resurgence of the kiwi population that these new plantings encourage. We are going to be moving further north shortly so will keep you informed of our future travels.

Yum. Puriri Bay John dory.

Stunning Puriri Bay on a fine day.

It's been a while.

Well it's been nearly 4 months since I've written a new story about our travels and escapades, and yes I have been told it's time to get another one out.  When last I wrote we were in Invercargill and since then we have travelled most of the length of New Zealand.

Tia all rugged up.Boxing day Nevis valley. 6 degrees

  We had Xmas with Joel and Julie and Tia in Invercargill and on boxing day we went through the Nevis Valley again starting at Bannockburn and coming out at Garston.

Stewart Island.

Day trip Stewart Island.

    Soon after that we started on our trip north.  The first night we made it to Cromwell and from there we went on to Wanaka where we turned onto the road for the west coast.  It's such a beautiful drive around Lake Hawea and then over the saddle to Lake Wanaka, then over the Haast Pass and onto the Coast.  There is a free camping area by the ambulance station in Haast.  But a suggestion to make a donation to the ambulance is always well received by the campers.
  We had a good look around Haast and down as far as Jackson Bay,  then we travelled up to Lake Paringa and stayed a few days there.  I did a bit of fishing here and caught a few very pretty brown trout. They have such a gold colour to them.

Pretty Lake Paringa brown trout.

Paringa camp.

Typical west coast warning sign.

Then on to Franz Joseph to restock with groceries. We stayed here 2 nights then we moved to the DOC camp at Lake Mapourika called McDonalds Creek.
  From this point we started to experience some typical west coast weather. The rain became pretty persistent.  Going fishing in the Kayak I experienced another first by catching an eel on a fly. It is a lot harder getting the hook out of an eel than it is a trout.  We worked our way further north and again stopped in Punakaiki where we met Jocelyns Auntie Barb for a coffee.  It was great to see her again and to see her doing well. She was working at the tourist shop and cafe there so it was just a short catch up and she was back to work.
 

Jocelyn and Auntie Barb.

The rig on the west coast.

Rugged coastline north of Punakaiki.

Buller River after a bit of rain.

Marble hill camp site by springs Junction Lewis Pass.

Sunrise. Marble hill.

 We ended up back at Kaikoura to stay with Rod and Catherine and Gracie before we were to cross over again to the north island.We stayed about a week with a bit of fishing and spent a bit of time down at the beach with Gracie.

Rod and Gracie. Hunter gatherers at work.

 With the state highway open again through to Blenheim it was a much shorter trip up to Picton. We had about three days to spare so we went out to Whatamango Bay on the Port Underwood road which is another DOC camp and stayed there.  We did a bit of Kayaking and swimming and the usual looking around  then we were to take the 6.30 ferry sailing on to Wellington.  When we got there we were told the sailing would be an hour later at 7.30 so by the time we boarded we were starving. We had cheated and paid $45 dollars each for the private lounge where you could eat and drink as much as you liked.  Alchohol and coffees and soft drinks were all within the $45 fee. It was very quiet and comfortable and I think value for money.
  So it was pretty late when we hit the road out of Wellington and we carried on until just North of Hunterville where we pulled over into a rest area and had a bit of sleep.  From then on it was uneventful and we made it safe and sound to Heidi and Pauls in Papamoa.It was great to see our North Island family again and we had a very happy week playing with wee Luca.  We also stayed with Ken and Vicki in their new place at Katikati for a couple of nights, then we moved on to Whitianga where I started to stock the boat and do a few chores before we were to head off and fish the Nationals.
  Friday night arrived along with Ken and the rest of the crew who were Mick and Kens good mate Steve.  It was getting close to dark by the time we cast off the moorings and took the channel out of the waterways.  Jocelyn was off to Auckland to spend a few days with her sister Joan.
  Ken set a course for the Barrier and by the time we went past Opito bay it was dark.   It took around 5 1/2 hours to get to our anchorage on the northern end of the Barrier which was about 12.30 am. The next morning we were up at daybreak and on our way out to catch some marlin.  As it turned out we had a pretty good start.  We got the lures in and about 15 minutes later we were hooked up.  Steve was on his first ever marlin and he had it to the boat pretty quickly.  The tag went in, some photos taken and it was released unharmed.  It was still only 7am and we had our first marlin for the tournament.
  Over the next  week we had a great time.  We all caught a marlin with Steve catching his second as well. Also I was lucky enough to be on the rod when we hooked a short billed spearfish.  I had never caught one of these fish before so another first was ticked off. All the marlin were released and we had a few more hook ups that didn't stick and a few more sightings as well. We had a couple of down days with the weather and rough seas but it was a great crew and a very enjoyable experience.

Steves first marlin coming to the boat.

All lit up.

Tag about to go in.

Steve, Mick and Ken.  Lay day weather break.

Steve fighting his second marlin with Mick ready to grab the leader.

A bit lively still.

My first short billed spearfish.

  Getting back to Whitianga Ken and Mick were straight back out again with a new crew of Jake and his mate Sam. Jake and Sam both caught marlin and for Sam it was his first and I hear he is now hooked on game fishing for life.
    Jocelyn and I were to head up North for a couple of weeks with friends Dave and Donna at one of our very favourite spots Puriri Bay. It was great to be back in the far north and straight away we were back into plenty of fish to eat.  We had a bit of wind and a small amount of rain mostly at night but it didn't seem to matter.  The company was great, the bay was beautiful and the weather was still warm. Swimming every day.  Kayaking and snorkelling. And cooking up amazing seafood meals every night.  What more could a bunch of old Kiwis want.

Puriri Bay sunset.

Great snapper Donna.

   Dave and Donna took off back to work so Jocelyn and I packed up and went to Otemure Bay for a week or so.  The water was very clear when we first got there so I spent a bit of time snorkelling.  I found a bunch of small crayfish and took some fish bodies down to them and they got straight into it, taking hunks of meat off  then  sitting there munching away on it.   There are also still a lot of small packhorse crays here too so maybe it's a nursery area for them.
   I had a couple of good days fishing here with some nice size snapper falling to my softbaits.  I love sharing fish around the camp.We got to know quite a few people in these camps and a lot of them are not fishing people or are unable to get out there so they really appreciate a few fresh snapper fillets.  There were 3 ladies all travelling in their own campers, 2 of them in their 80s. And they loved the fish that much they reckoned they were following me back to Puriri bay when we left so they could get more fish.

some good Otemure snaps.

  Ken and Vicki had another 2 weeks off so they were coming up to join us at Puriri.  Unfortunately the first few days were very windy but eventually it settled and we were back into the fishing.  Ken had his small inflatable boat and me my Kayak. So it wasn't long and we were supplying the 3 old ladies with snapper again.  I did some more snorkelling here as well.  I took my gear in the kayak and headed further out towards the entrance of the harbour and out here I found a good size packhorse cray.  So the neighbours camping beside us were thrilled when I gave them the cray to eat because I can't eat them and Jocelyn doens't like them.

Nice packhorse cray.

Ken and his friends at Puriri.

More Puriri bounty to share.

  After this we were off back to Whitianga for Easter.  Heidi, Paul and Luca were coming up in their caravan to stay and the weather really turned it on for all the campers for the whole weekend.  Ken Paul and I did an overnighter in the boat without much luck and we also had an afternoon snorkelling in the marine reserve off Hahei .  There were large snapper following us around and swimming right past our masks and when I dived down I found a number of XOS crayfish in the cracks and crevices.  All perfectly safe as you can only look and not touch in the reserve.

Jocelyn and Papillon.

Heidi, Paul and Luca having fun in the waterways.

Excellent shades for a bike ride Luca.

  Jocelyn and I are now back at Fantail Bay.  Now we are back in the north we seem to be visiting all our favourite haunts.  Some places you just have to keep going back to as they tick all the boxes on what we enjoy.  We are not sure where we are heading next but I guess we like it that way.  We will be going back south for 10 days in the beginning of May for duck shooting then we intend to spend the winter in a number of camps in the far north.  If any of you are keen to catch up with us up there give us a call and we will be sure to enjoy some time with you.