Day 50 - Rotorua to Whakatane and Ohope (Maraetotara Church)

Day fifty we left Rotorua after an enjoyable night with Jeff and Mavis. We drove to the caterpillar bulldozer display. This display tells the history of the bulldozers in New Zealand and especially in the central North Island. Well worth a visit.

We drove on towards Whakatane, stopping in a beautiful stopover beside Lake Rotoiti. Mort decided to tease a swan with a piece of paper that looked like food. The swan thought Mort's thumb looked better and gave it a goo nip. One up to swan. We drove on slowly and branched off into Kawarau. It is a nice town. The food was cheap so we had a cooked meal there. The paper mill, although not working at present, is huge.

WE stopped in Whakatane and walked the streets before joining the others at Ohope Beach. The hill road from Whakatane to Ohope is not built for big motorhomes. We had a second gear crawl to get to the top. We moved to a free parking area at Maraetotara Church for the night. No computer coverage so no blog until now.

                                          At the Caterpillar Display

                                          Buses parked at Lake Rotoiti

                                                       Swan looking for Mort's thumb!!!!

                                          Parked at Kawarau

                                           Tourists in Rotorua