We departed the Waitangi Treaty Grounds thinking that maybe Cape Reinga could just stay on the bucket list. We could spend a couple of days chilling in Russell, the small village visible across the bay, the original capital of New Zealand and one of it’s oldest cities.
We had planned this journey in detail starting six months before our arrival. Some items had been sold out as early as four months ahead, so certain dates on our agenda had been fixed for months.
We had put nearly 5,000 kilometers on the campervan. It felt very liberating to say, “Let’s cut out two long days on the road and just relax!”.
Our route to Russell took us through Paihia, a modern seaside village.
A modern seaside village with a lovely waterfront outlook.
The ferry lineup had us waiting in front of the Bay of Islands Coastguard Station, a building with classic old trim.
Our campsite looked out over Russell back towards Paihia.
Having been founded and built in the 19th century, Russell is a small town and you could walk everywhere (population 768 by the 2018 census).
We had to go exploring!
As we walked out of the campground we came across this house, with an amazing garden of grasses.
This little gem is the “Cavalli House”, circa 1889.
The “Paradise on the Strand” also caught our eyes.
The Strand is a narrow one-lane road running along the water’s edge in front of Russell. While vehicle access is allowed, it’s mostly used as a pedestrian walkway.
Here we’re looking north along the beach in front of the Strand from the centre of town in Russell.
I’d be surprised if there were liquor licences available for issue in 1827. On the other hand, I’m pretty sure they were serving rascals and reprobates. The word “rapscallion” comes to mind!
This is the deck at the Duke of Marlborough Hotel as it stands today.
We chose the Swordfish Club for dinner.
The Swordfish Club and the Duke of Marlborough Hotel stand side by side, front and centre on the Strand on Russell’s water front.
The Swordfish Club had quite the display.
We sat on the deck overlooking the ocean and had another delicious dinner of New Zealand grass fed beef.
On the walk back we passed the police station. Russell has a reputation for having been a rather unlawful place before the signing of the treaty in 1840.
It looks like that’s pretty much settled down!
Russell is on a peninsula. The beachfront faced west toward Paihia. A second beach called Long Beach is on the east-facing side of the peninsula.
After a relaxed morning on our second day we walked out to Long Beach and took in the sights on this less developed side.
Along the way we saw additional signs advising the locals to protect the kiwis.
Kiwis take kiwi protection seriously!
Long Beach is a lovely, out of the way beach. It’s much sandier than the beach along the Strand, and seemed to be the domain of the locals.
Turning to the left, you can see the open Pacific Ocean through the gap between the islands on the right and the peninsula on the left.
Turning to the north end of the peninsula, we made our way to the top of Flagstaff Hill, with an open 360 degree view of the surrounding area.
This is looking back into the bay in front of Russell From Flagstaff Hill. Paihia is behind on the right.
What a pleasure it was to be able to make our way around on foot rather than driving from point to point.
With a nice day of walking the streets of Russell behind us, we went back to the campsite and got ready to head for Whangarei in the morning.
Grampafacts 