More from Waitangi

The sun that rose this morning has stayed with us all day.  Our local guide said that the weather was bad all last week, so all were happy for the sunshine and blue sky.

One observation I want to note is that the color of the ocean has changed from blue to green.  Does depth explain it?  Our ship captain in his noon report always tells us how much water is under our keel.  As we made our crossing from the Cook Islands, it was often in the 5000-meter range, more than 15,000 feet!  Now that we are anchored in the Bay of Islands, the depth is significantly less.  I’ll keep an eye open for a ship’s officer and ask.

We opted for today’s included excursion, which was by motor coach into the central part of the island.  We tendered in a couple of hours early so we could see the town.  Of interest in Paihia was an old stone church, St. Paul’s Anglican, built in 1926, but on the site of  the original 1823 mission station established by Henry Williams.

The highlight of our coach tour was a walk to Rainbow Falls near the town of  Kerikeri.  With a drop of  about 60-feet, this spectacular falls put on her finest show this sunny day as her spray revealed a perfect rainbow over the stream below.  These photos are from two of the lookouts along the trail:

The topography here is of rolling hills rather than the mountains we will see elsewhere in New Zealand.  Owing to its rich soil and subtropical climate, the area is renowned for its production of kiwi fruit, citrus, and avocados.  Hoping to find all of them on our menu this evening!

Auckland, New Zealand, tomorrow.