Aroha Island

Our destination for the night was Aroha Island Eco Centre, a tiny island in the Kerikeri inlet in the Bay of Islands. It is linked to the mainland by a permanent causeway and has a visitor centre, accomodation and a campsite with, for the wussy campers we have become, (solar) hot water and electricity.

It was like staying in a nature reserve. We camped amid fantails and a large and noisy passle of ducks who spent a lot of time parading around the camping area. Kererus cooed noisily in the trees, variable oyster catchers trilled on the shore. Tuis called from the treetops with their unmistakable bell-like song.

And, the dark, we heard the screech, in the distance, of kiwis.

Aroha is a haven for the birds, who can often be seen there at night.  We set off in the evening, armed with a torch covered in red cellophane, treading as noiselessly as we could along the paths.  A fingernail moon glinted on the silver fern trees.

We couldn't claim for sure to have seen a kiwi - though we glimpsed something brown scuttling away among the leaves: it was nesting season. Still, there was something quite magical about the quietness of the wood and the water, still as a millpond.