Back in the North

We get a late night sailing back to the North Island and drive off the ferry into Wellington. We're too tired to spend time looking for a nice pic-nic spot or similar to sleep and decide a quiet road without much traffic will be enough for the night. We find such a road, running along next to the river, nice and wide with few cars so we certainly won't be an obstruction. It turns out it's nice and wide because it's the main through-fare for traffic, especially the heavy traffic going to and fro the harbour. We're woken with the car getting buffeted by lorries, the sound of boats and the constant peering in of joggers and cyclists wondering who has parked up in their favourite exercise stretch. Still it means we get up nice and early with a day to see a very nice city, including the museum with a recreated house you step into, to get earthquaked. We also take a wee tour of the Parliament building and discuss similarities and differences between theirs and ours.

We're making our way up to a town called Napier, because Nicki's brother, Clem is to be running an ironman in a few days time and we're going to be there to cheer him on along with the rest of the family.

On our way up the road, we find a nice pic-nic spot to stay the night. It's just off the road next to a lake, with toilets and tables and all sorts. It doesn't feel like the sort of place you would set a horror film so we reckon we'll be alright this time. In fact, the biggest horror was the toilets but as it was quite remote that wasn't really a problem, there were lots of bushes. We had a lovely peaceful evening and are enjoying our breakfast the following morning looking out over the lake when first we're joined by several passing cars who saw the toilet sign then screeched away in terror at the sight that awaited them, then, obscurely, an empty bus that came, sat quite a while, then left. Then it was the turn of the motorbikers to arrive, then a mini-bus full of young offenders turn up, we think to perform some community service but in fact it seemed they just came to swim and smoke, and finally we driven away when the roads department workmen turned up and started ploughing into the place.

Next on the road is Taupo, and we meet the rest of the family there to spend the day supporting Clem. The Ironman consists of three events, each supposed to be the equivalent of a marathon, a 3.8km swim (2.4 miles), a 180km (112 mile) cycle and a 42 km (26 mile) run. Clem finished in 11 hours, almost to the dot, despite two punctures and his handlebars breaking. This insane feet inspired us all and the following Day, back in Morrinsville, Tanya, Warrick, Nicki and I did our own ironman event which we adapted slightly to our own abilities, and renamed: TinBaby. a 10km cycle, followed by a 2.5km run and a 400 meter swim.