Road trip from Stratford to Maungaraki

South of Stratford is the town of Patea, which has a monument to the Polynesians who arrived by ocean-going canoe (waka) and originally settled the area. The monument was famously used in the music video for a No. 1 hit of the '80s, Poi E.

Two different kinds of waka--a topdressing plane, which landed in a paddock next to the road just as we were driving by, and a restored American car that pulled in next to us at a petrol station.

Nearing Wellington, we took the inland route around Pukerua Bay to get to Lower Hutt. The last photo is a view of Wellington Harbour from Maungaraki, a suburb in the hills above Petone at the head of the harbour.Read more