The first stop we made was in Opua. Opua is located in the Bay of Islands in the Northland Region of New Zealand. It is well known as the first port for overseas yachts arriving in the country after crossing the Pacific Ocean. We had actually been to Opua multiple times prior to the start of our road trip with Ed’s parents, but this time our reason for stopping was to look at a sailboat Ed and I were considering to buy. (For those who may not know us personally… Ed and I have dreamt for years about living and traveling full time on a sailboat of our own; this dream being what led us down the path of selling all of our major belongings and saving for over 3 years. Throughout our New Zealand road trip, we had plans to look at a few different sailboats that were for sale.)
We ended up spending most of the afternoon on the water with Sam and M, the owners of a Moody 376 named Seahawk. The two of them had left England 18 months prior and made it all of the way to New Zealand on Seahawk (they had literally just lived our dream!). They were looking to sell because their work sabbaticals were coming to an end and they needed to return to England.
We loved Seahawk as well as the owners, but after careful consideration, we decided to pass on making an offer. Ed is quite tall and one thing he would like in a boat is to be able to fully stand when down below, and unfortunately he could not in Seahawk.
Working our way south, we headed for the town of Matamata. The landscape surrounding Matamata is lush and green with beautiful rolling hills as far as your eyes can see. Located just south of the town center is the home of “The Shire”, also known as the Hobbiton Movie Set. And yes, of course we signed up for the tour!
The tour is approximately 2 hours in length and costs $89 NZD ($55 USD) per person. Because the tour is primarily a walking tour, my suggestion to anyone interested would be to wear comfy shoes, and as you can see from the photo above, I wore my trusty flip flops. Overall, we enjoyed the Hobbiton Movie Set tour and would definitely recommend it if you’re a ‘LOTR’ or ‘The Hobbit‘ fan. It was however quite crowded, and we usually try to steer clear of busy tourist traps, but it was something we (especially Ed) had been wanting to see even before we arrived in New Zealand. One of the major highlights of the tour was getting to enjoy a cold beer and cookie at the Green Dragon.
Shortly after our tour of The Shire, we hopped back in Peggy and headed south on highway 1 towards our next destination, Tongariro National Park. The park has 3 active volcanoes: Tongariro, Ngauruhoe (aka “Mount Doom” in the ‘LOTR’ films), and Ruapehu. Our plan was to hike the 19.4 km (12 miles) Tongariro Alpine Crossing the following day; the trail passes the famous Emerald Lakes, and I’ve wanted to see these stunning natural crater lakes for quite some time.
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An Advantageous Life 
Very nice!
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