Sojourn to Gisbourne

We take our time getting on the road but manage the historic little village of Greytown the first settlement in the Wairarapa.  J spots a shoe shop and I am sunk, with no choice but to pull over and indulge the pediatric fantasies of my road trip mate.  Such is life, the day is grand the company divine and time is our ally.

I wander the streets while J shops before long we are on the road again this time heading toward Napier starting up the coast.  We chat and commiserate about past loves laughing, enjoying each others company and the beautiful spring day that is shaping up.  J begins to relax comforted that I am not going to suddenly want to drive on the "other" side of the road.  It is constantly on my mind that I must remember where I am and concentrate on staying on the "appropriate" side of the road.  The scenery is the usual spectacular vistas and twisting winding roadways.  I even manage a few roundabouts with a major incident.

After several hours we decide to pull off the road for the evening, no worries.  We start looking for camping spots, however it being off season there are few open.  We can't seem to find anything, daylight is waning and time suddenly has become an issue.  I spot a sign advertising a beach side campground, we wheel off the road and head into the hills.  After driving for an hour we are no closer to the elusive beach campground and decide to pull off to the side of the road for a conference.  We both agree it's pointless and burning unnecessary gas to keep searching for the campground we may never find, so we opt to perch on a bluff overlooking the coast and Napier.  The last light of day is disappearing as we cook up a scoff washed down with some fine local wine.  It is cold and damp but we have the million dollar view.  The moon glistens over a calm ocean, there isn't a lick of wind.  I wander down the hillside and play with some time lapse photography. 

Magpies chatter and call from the trees, somewhere down in the valley a wayward lamb bleats longingly for it's mother.  The sky is iridescent blue flecked with dark puff of clouds.  Off in the distance the lights of Napier twinkle like tiny diamonds.  I inhale the sweet sea air and sigh.  I am in love with this place, I have found my New Zealand.  The beauty of these two islands is that over time they morph into something even more beautiful than the last spectacular vista you just enjoyed.  Every turn in the road and hill that you climb reveals another facet of this amazing country.

J has been waiting patiently back at the camper huddled under a cadre of blankets.  She is smiling, a good sign.  We climb into the camper and prepare the bed for the night which require some acrobat maneuvers my circus training comes into play and soon we are settled in for the night sharing laughs and smiles.  Even though you can see your breath in the air we opt to do without the heater as it will use power we may need tomorrow. 
1:00am my back aches
2:00am my neck cracks
3:00am my shoulder throbs (a pig hunt souvenir)

4:00am sleep is finally my ally, ah yes camping 101, lets see another six nights of sleeping on a wafer thin mattress in single digit temps.

Kiaora