There was plenty to do in Napier and we could easily have stayed longer but the time had come to move on. Napier had blessed us with lovely weather and the temperatures had warmed up before we left so we left with pleasant memories.
The next stop was Awakeri Hot Springs where we planned to spend a couple of days. This place had an amazing hot water pool but the other facilities were pretty basic, although adequate. One of the great attractions of the area was Julian’s Berry Farm, and that warranted two visits from us. The berries were fantastic, but the cafe food was amazing.
The day after we arrived my sister Deborah arranged to take us on a tour of the Essity Paper Mill where she works. We all really enjoyed that and learned a lot about the process of paper towel making. What we noticed was: the heat; the amount of water needed; the large degree of automation; and the speed of the process – one operator told us that if there was a problem they had 30 seconds to sort it before it became a major. The mill makes a big effort to conserve – both by recycling any reject material and by using steam rather than electricity. Certainly an interesting place and it was lovely to see how well respected my sister was with the workers there, and the to see the project she is working in at present.
After another delightful dinner we had a good soak in the hot pools. The pools are well maintained and and a lovely temperature, as well as being quite large.
The next day we headed into the town of Whakatane to have a browse through the shops, and also drove out to the Whakatane River mouth just for a look. The last time we were here there had been a big storm and the whole river mouth was choked with logs. This time the conditions were calm and there was very little debri around.
That evening we had a delightful dinner at my sister’s. By this time the rain had started to fall and we took it in our stride, not realising that there was a weather watch for the area in force until 11am the next day. That only held significance for us when we looked out of the window of our van the next morning to see rivers and lakes where motorhome and caravan parks should have been. The little road leading to the parks was also inundated in places.
We decided we would lay all the mats, as well as the two planks of wood that Gary travels with, in front of our front wheels before we set off in an effort to try and prevent ourselves getting stuck, or the wheels from digging themselves into the mud. Turned out it was a good plan and we drove out without any trouble. Meanwhile a couple of the roads in Awakeri were closed due to floodwaters but the road to Tauranga was clear so off we went. Flooding was certainly evident in the fields around Awakeri as we headed away.
Here’s hoping there is better weather ahead!
Away From Home NZ 