The weather has been awful here – well awful to us, totally normal to the Kiwis. I have to keep reminding myself that this is their spring – it’s like April to us. It’s literally rained everyday since we arrived on November 6th with the exception of maybe one or two days. We decided we were just going to take our chances and headed up to Paihia and see the Bay of Islands, rain or no rain.
Bay of Islands is off the east coast of northern New Zealand. It’s made up off 144 islands ranging in all sizes, with only a few inhabited. It’s beautiful – so green, both the water and hills.
Here’s lots of pictures:
For quite a while Hannah and I stood on the bow of the ship. At one time I thought it reminded me of Kate Winslet in Titanic.
The islands in the bay were made by hot lava rising to the surface and cooling quickly. Some have almost no vegetation on at all, while others are lush just like the mainland. It was very interesting to see the differences.
Seagulls have to have a place to build their nests. I had just never thought of where they did this. Here’s one spot. They love these rocky outcroppings. It’s the perfect place for their eggs to hatch because their chicks blend right in with the rocks. In this picture there’s at least a dozen chicks.
Here’s a close up of a chick. Look just to the right of the top seagull.
One of the highlights of the adventure was the opportunity to swim with dolphins. I should have had a clue how cold the water was going to be when they handed out these wetsuits. 
They had us all get in our suits with masks and flippers, then jump into this net. Nicholas was one of the first ones in. So brave!
I’m smiling here but it’s only to cover up the fact that I became an instant ice cube when I jumped in. I don’t remember ever being that cold. It instantly took my breath away. After being in a while and focusing more on the dolphins than the water we did get a little more used to it.
Once they had everyone in the net, they moved the boat to where the dolphins were. This was pretty exciting. It was like being on a water ride (well I guess it was a water ride, just one we weren’t expecting). Once they found the dolphins they yelled go and everyone swam out to swim with them. It was pretty exciting. We didn’t get as close to them as we would have liked but it was still a wonderful adventure! One of those once in a lifetime experiences.
Here’s more dolphin pictures:
Once we got back on board we continued along our way. It was nice to be warm again.
This is one of the main attractions in the Bay of Islands. This hole is huge, big enough for cruise boats to go through, although you have to really watch the weather. On board the ship they have pictures of the arch when the Some days when seas are rough, huge waves are crashing through here. Luckily on the day we went it was calm and we were able to go through.
This is the view from the other side of the arch. What you see in the water is a school of fish. These weren’t little fish either, they were enormous, about 15 inches long and 12 inches tall. It was amazing. You could follow their every move as they swam all around our boat. It was neat to watch. It was funny to see the gannets (similar to a large seagull) try to grab one out of the water. There was no way they’d be strong enough to grab one of these huge fish. That doesn’t mean they weren’t going to try though.
Not far from the arch was this cave. It’s big enough that the boat was able to pull in. The water was such a beautiful color. 
For lunch we stopped at Otehei Bay. It’s pretty remote. The boat we were on also serves as the mail carrier. They drop mail three times a week.
While at lunch we had the opportunity to hike up to the top of the highest hill on the island. The view was definitely worth it!
Here’s some of the pictures.
The flowers and trees were gorgeous.
After lunch we were making our way through the last remaining islands when the Captain got a radio call that a huge pod of dolphins had been spotted so we headed in their direction.
On our way there this dolphin swam right up and started swimming along with us. It was amazing how fast he could swim and with so little effort.
At one point, we had two swimming side by side. It was so neat!!
More dolphin pictures – they were one of the best parts of the trip.
Due to time constraints we had to move on. I could have stayed there all day and watched the dolphins. They seemed so happy and willing to play with us.
On our way back to the harbor we saw more beautiful sights.
All around New Zealand you can find these trees in bloom at this time of year. I think they’re called rata trees. Some have crimson flowers, the only ones I’ve seen have white. They smell so good. We have several in our backyard in Ruakaka. Every time we walk outside it was a reminder of the tropical paradise we are living in. 
After returning to shore we headed back home to Ruakaka. We stopped in town at Pac ‘n’ Save (the grocery store many people go to because it’s the cheapest around). Even right in town they have beautiful flowers.
This really is a tropical paradise.
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