As we work our way slowly north we popped into see friends here and there- It's our first time visiting here so feel lucky to have hooked up together and checked out this magic spot. So reminded us of our little home in Cornwall near the cliffs with the  natural, wild beach just a stroll away.

Wihi beach is a beautiful beach to stroll on but just behind the trees is a sea of holiday homes ranging from the classic batchs to newbuilds that are all closed up, and not a sol in site ! Just out outside Auckland I would imagine there's a lot of second home owners here.

During this time of visiting friends we received the news of Isla not receiving the support she needs - should she return back to school - This follows on from our previse post ..... Before we started this journey in our bus Isla was happily enrolled at our local school and receiving the extra teacher aid hours she needed to attend school safely - but now after homeschooling her for a year and a half ( also due to covid) we're returning back home and [...]

We stayed in the little village of Te Puke with some new friends. Friends of friends and a pass by popped by and hit it off. We had the 10 cent tour around their village, the weekend market then a recharge in the local backery. We enjoyed a couple of evenings of shared kai together before heading off on the road again to Tauranga. Sorry didn't take many pix here.

This is stunning walk to take - We heard about the woods just a little out of town - so headed on in - soooo beautiful it is. We just drifted around taking it all in. Manley redwoods and Punga tree ferns (New Zealand silver fern). We even had a little fantail come and visit us for a good few minutes, and sang a little song while fanning it's tail as it went, which I actually managed to record which made my day. Then a [...]

Wow Rotorua is special spot for all the wonderful bush fringed lakes that make up the Rotorua lakes. So natural and un spoilt, geothermal heated , bubbling springs to float around in for hours, and not only soaking up the good minerals, but the beautiful dense bush and the surrounding wildlife too. Most wonderful bath ever, and it was even more magical when it started to rain.

As all of you - our followers know, we've now been on a mission for the last 6 months to raise awareness for PWS -  ( for the new followers- if you've not read all our website yet,  this is a very rear condition that our youngest daughter Isla has ) . We've been meeting many, many people as we travel from day to day, and always share or mission with them. It's been wonderful meeting several families within New Zealand also living with PWS [...]

We spent a few days in Cambridge parked up at our friends place. It's always nice to catch up with mates as we travel - especialy when we've had a bit of wet weather and feeling a little cooped up in our weee bus ! We can also spread out a little more during school time, and a double bonus of getting on top of our washing and grab a long hot bath!  which by far beats our shower in the bus . Cambridge is [...]

We continued to travel slowly north- from New Plymouth- up the coast and inland to Te Awamutu which is known for its sheep !  We've had quite a spell of wet weather, so there's been extra driving, schooling and crafts until we got to Te Awamutu where we visited the pools and enjoyed a much needed bit of exercise and time out of the bus !