North Island Tour

In the beginning, a good deal of time was spent getting to know the other riders who would make up the group doing the Northern Island tour. There were 6 couples, each riding two-up, 1 couple each riding their own bikes, and one solo rider (The Entertainer). Most of us had shipped our bikes from the states and were very concerned about the reported damage. Fortunately, it turned out that most of the damage was minor, and all of the bikes were in good riding condition. Our first day of the tour was spent getting to know one another and riding on the wrong side (left) of the road. We made a short jaunt out to the town of Raglan on the West Coast and then went on to see Bridal Falls in one of the many rain forests on the islands.

The next day, the trip began in earnest and we rode through some of the most beautiful areas I have seen - little did I know that each successive day would bring even more spectacular views. We left Hamilton And began a 250 mile ride from Hamilton to Gisborne, on the East Coast of North Island. Gisborne is said to be the first city in the world to see each day's sunrise - something to do with it's proximity to the International Dateline, a concept I am still wrestling with. We rode through twisty mountain roads and low flat farmland and got our first look at some of the many rain forests in New Zealand. Even the hills without forests are green - this is a land of much rain, as we would soon discover.

Farming and ranching appear to be very big here, with cattle, sheep, LOTS of sheep, pigs, and deer being raised, while major crops are most likely avocado, grapes (New Zealand is rapidly becoming a major wine producer), berries of all kinds and corn.

This Eastland area is very much Maori country and Maori life was evident in every settlement we saw. There were carved meeting houses and several beautifully painted Maori churches. This is the area where the first Polynesian canoes landed, where Captain Cook first landed, and where Maori and European first encountered each other. The movie, Whale Rider, which depicts much of the Maori culture was filmed in this area.

The next day, we met some  local riders for breakfast and they guided us on the day's tour. This day, which was quite rainy, we would ride to Whakatane, and on the way we stopped in a Maori settlement and visited with the locals, who were most gracious and happy to see this rugged group of Harley riders. They fed us a wonderful lunch and I got an email address from one of them (they may retain much of their culture, but they are in the 21st century as well). The rain left us shortly after our Maori lunch and we continued on our way to Whakatane.

Doubtless Bay and Manganui

     According to Maori Legend, Taipa, on Doubtless Bay, was the original landing place of Kupe, the great Polynesian navigator who discovered 'Ao-tea-roa', the land of the 'Long White Cloud'.
     Centuries later, in 1769, a Yorkshire man, Captain James Cook, looked in on this expanse of water, declared it "Doubtless a Bay" and continued his circumnavigation of New Zealand. Within days, another explorer, the Frenchman de Surville, anchored on the western side of the bay for a number of weeks... who knows what history could have been written had these two great explorers met!