The Northern Antidote

So the idea of poking up to the subtropical Northlands to combat the wet weather was a fine, fine idea. The Southlands (these Kiwi, they didn't get too crazy when they were naming regions...) where I would have gone if I had stayed on the South Island, are apparently flooding like whoa, after five straight days of torrential rain. I, on the other hand, have spent the past week with sunny and somewhat cloudy weather, cruising the skinny jut of the Northern Island above Auckland. I first rode up the Eastern side of things, that being the non-touristy. I'm not sure if it's less scenic or just incrementally farther from Auckland, but it's not as vacation-developed, being instead rolling hills devoted to cows and sheep. I shot straight up to Cape Reinga, where the Tasman Sea meets the South Pacific (When I say shot, what I mean is rode over the course of four days) and spent a rest day at a preposterously scenic campsite run by the Department of Conservation on a beach up there. For the rest of my time, until I go back to Auckland on Sunday to fly out on Monday, that's the plan. I'll ride a shortish ride each day, and then set up my tent at one of the various beachside campsites DoC runs. Oh, except Saturday will be spent snorkeling around looking at tropical fish, and tomorrow morning is set aside for HISTORY.

That deserves a new paragraph. I'll be at the Waitangi Treaty Grounds, where the Waitangi Treaty (surprise!) was signed. (Quick history time!) The Treaty is now seen as the formative document of New Zealand. It was signed by British administrators and some Maori chiefs to bring them under the aegis of the crown. It kind of didn't mean much at the time, but was never exactly broken, and has since been rehabilitated into a living, legitimate legal document. So that should be great. I'll be honest: New Zealand history is kind of boring. In the 14th C, some Polynesians arrived via canoe. After a few centuries, the British (and French, but really mostly the Brits) arrived. There was no genocide, they mostly swindled/strongarmed the Maori out of their land, while their diseases killed a good chunk of them off. The country became independent, but not until 16 years after they could have, because they were proud British subjects. That's really about all that happened, outside of a strong rugby tradition and some proud service in wars overseas. So this is the one big site of historical meaning I'm pumped about. Other than that, beaches and trying to un-ridiculous my tan lines. (I have glove tan lines, people. It's pretty silly.)

The East Cape

I've recently finished up with the East Cape circuit, which was, in a lot of ways, even better than the Coromandel Peninsula. The Cape, as its name would imply, is the Easternmost jut out of the North Island of New Zealand. Because, I suppose, it isn't that close to any cities, it's pretty sparsely populated, despite being gorgeous. I rode around the perimeter, from Opotiki to Gisborne by way of Hicks Bay, mouth agape much of the time. The riding was pretty hilly, up and around the coastal range, but the roads were better than in the Coromandel, and there was much less traffic.

I stayed in campsites overlooking remote bays, ate ice cream that was homemade at Macadamia Orchards (I'm used to orchard meaning apples, but I've seen macadamia and kiwi orchards around here, so I'll have to expand my definition, I guess.) The countryside was totally stunning, even when the road turned inland and I was in the rolling hills of the mountain range rather than hugging the coast.

The East Cape is also where a lot of Maori people live, both traditionally and currently. The route I took is dotted with marae, the the Maori meeting houses/community centers. They aren't tourist centers, though, so I didn't have the opportunity to look in one to see the flax weaving and wood carvings. I did get to see the Anglican Maori church in Tikitiki, which I'm told is similar, and was certainly stunning. I have some pictures I'll get up when I'm able, but imagine a good-sized wooden church wherein every square inch was covered either with a flax weaving or carved wooden decoration. It was certainly stunning, and I can only imagine the marae are even moreso.

In general, I found myself fascinated with the current state of Maori people and the social politics of race in New Zealand, though frustratingly without any effective vectors to investigate. (As a man in transit on a bike, it's hard to really dig in...) An argument with a Czech woman at my hostel (totally civil, but we certainly disagreed) about responsibility vis-a-vis alcoholism and poverty and economic opportunity really got me considering them as an analog to both Native Americans in the US, about whom I know shockingly little, I guess because I'm an Easterner, and also African Americans. (There are a lot of signs up in stores/restaurants about no one in gang colors being allowed in and a lot of graffiti around.) Hopefully I'll figure out a way to learn a bit more.

In any event I can't recommend the East Cape enough. A beautiful rural coastline, some lovely nature domains (I saw a 2000 year-old tree that was sacred to the local Maori tribe.) and wonderful people. If I'd stayed longer, I hope I would have gotten a better understanding of the dynamics of the area, but, regardless, it's about the prettiest countryside I've yet seen.