An Eastern Adventure '25

An Eastern Adventure ‘25

Our usual gathering of outdoor adventurers and flyers were gathering momentum for this year’s flight and camping expedition right up until a day or so before departure when my 8 aircraft sortie slowly whittled away to just one on departure day.

Family visiting, engines late overhauling, weather, other functions to attend, late starter, medical event put paid to our eight aircraft sortie. I finally reviewed the bad weather forecast late in the day on two or three weather apps and since I had loaded and refuelled that morning, I departed for Opotiki.

My late departure was also caused by a friend’s funeral to attend in Coromandel township prior to dispatching eastwards. I had never seen this disruption in any of our previous adventures so was very surprised.

I had advised Opotiki Aero Club, Club Captain, Terry Rogers of our accommodation requirements for the Friday night and since he was expecting us, I knew I needed to present a one aircraft sortie at least. The weather was certainly entirely acceptable for flight along the coast and very different to a number of forecasts but in line with the aviation forecasts I reviewed just prior to take-off.

A comfortable no stress flight was done in the late afternoon and on arrival at Opotiki the hills towards Gisborne were bright enough to attempt a direct passage through the mountain passes, should I have wanted to continue.

Landing at Opotiki was straightforward and I taxied up to a sheltered spot beside a windsock and shut down the Pelican and completed the logbook. Terry was the onsite before I got out of the aircraft and opened his hangar/office/lounge to show me in and asked what I was having for dinner. I said I had brought dehydrated food for dinner. He immediately suggested steak and corn as he had purchased roadside corn along the way to the aerodrome and needed to go and get some steak for us to eat plus get my refuel organised too. ��

Well, picketing the Pelican got underway and the refuel also was done so we drove off into Opotiki with two empty fuel containers and visited a couple of his tyre shops as we ventured into a fine afternoon’s tiki tour of Opotiki. Steaks purchased, after refuel of my empty containers, then away we went back to his hangar for corn and steaks �� and a chatter late into the night about aircraft, runways, fishing, engineering and anything else we could chat about.

One of his nephews called in and was offered a steak too. Bedtime was a comfortable mattress on the floor while Terry departed for home and left me to it.

Warm and cosy so a good night’s rest had me up at 6 am to prepare for dispatch but firstly I needed to see who else was joining today. Bob in his Classic Cub advised 10 am arrival in Opotiki so because I had a few hours to kill Terry took me into his tyre shop and handed me the keys to his spare vehicle and suggested a couple of places to visit while I was waiting for Bob to arrive.

Bob found a few showers loitering around Whakatāne so diverted to Whakatāne airport for a refuel before continuing onwards to Opotiki. I returned to the aerodrome to await his arrival and Terry closed his tyre shop and came out to see Bob and me airborne for Te Araroa but not before a quick cup of tea and chin wag for Bob and Terry.

The Classic Cub and Pelican were then airborne from Opotiki to Te Araroa via the coast as inland cloud buildup was suggesting it would be an impossible flight on the direct route. We knew that Peter Rix would be waiting for his second coffee when we arrived as we had already seen him arriving in Te Araroa via his track on the Flight Radar app on our phones. He has been a day late starting from Masterton as he and Nicola had been camping at the Boyd airstrip for a couple of days, up in the Kaimanawa Mountains.

A very pleasant coastal flight had us landing in light winds at Te Araroa to make a 3 aircraft group to fly south to Ruatoria after our lunch stop at the East Cape Manuka Cafe where we enjoyed our catch up with Peter and his recent exploits in his recently completed Savannah aircraft. 140 hours in 7 months is sure ticking the adventure box.

John Vanderwee was now texting us to see where we were and the plan going forward as he was now ready to leave Whitianga in his Cessna 172 to catch up on the adventure too. Ruatoria was the next stop so suggested he meet us there. He needed a long flight under a high-power setting to bed in the new cylinder that had just been fitted to his engine.

Whitianga to Ruatoria fitted this request and he also required seawards of the coast, to skirt the inland cloud buildup.

Peter, Bob and I arrived happily into Ruatoria to await John’s arrival. We checked out the old clubhouse on the airfield and took in the recent newly mown grass and baleage surrounding the clubhouse. The clubhouse now appeared to be a live-in quarters which we presumed was Air Ruatoria’s accommodation and office. This was confirmed later when Mahana Maru drove in and the lads had a chat with him about the local lay of the land.

I had departed just as Mahana was driving in so that I could be first onto the Tolaga Bay strip to see that it was still suitable to land our fleet on and no cattle roaming the strip. Glenn, our Gyrocopter pilot at Tolaga Bay, had missed my call earlier but texted me as I flew to Tolaga that the strip was set up for our arrival so that was reassuring since it was 3 weeks since I last landed there.

Beautifully fine conditions with blue sky really sets these localities up well for our overnight memories and a quick circuit and landing followed. I confirmed all was well to the others at Ruatoria and they set off soon afterwards.

Positioning the Pelican so we could line the others up for the overnight tie down, I starting refuelling the Pelican from the 20-litre spare fuel container I had carried and noticed Leanne had arrived at the gate ready to collect us.

After the fuelling was complete, I departed with Leanne in her twin cab Ute to do some shopping and then she took me on a short trip around Tolaga Bay community, stopping initially for some shopping along the way then onwards to the ocean beach �� where she showed me their bus �� bach holiday accommodation to see if we might all be interested in overnighting out there at the beach. A beautiful spot at the water’s edge perched on a hill incline.

She discussed their large logging and transport business as we drove around before arriving back at their property adjacent to the airstrip. This is when the others started to arrive overhead for their pre landing inspection of the one-way agricultural airstrip they were being encouraged to land on, for their overnight.

Leanne and I jumped back into the vehicle to arrive shortly afterwards at the entrance to the airstrip to watch them taxi into their parking position, tie down their aircraft and throw their overnight gear aboard the Ute for transport back to Leanne and Ricky’s place.

An impressive collection of transportable buildings greeted us and we watched Ricky and his friend constructing a boat shed, on the edge of the property, with newly sawn timber.

Leanne showed us to our overnight accommodation where we deposited our bags and then adjourned to the deck for a couple of coldies to discuss our days adventuring.

Ricky, a retired speedway ace, and his builder friend spent the evening watching Speedway finals on TV while we chatted away the evening outside on the deck.

Next morning had us down breakfast ready for our fine mornings walk to the nearby Tolaga Bay wharf which was awaiting our inspection. However, as we passed the signposted Cooks Cove Walkway, enroute to the wharf, I encouraged our flying adventurers to the hill climb to the lookout and continuing pathway along the ridge tops. These proved to be great views of Tolaga Bay community, wharf and ocean beach.

Returning to the road and onwards to the wharf, we had Glen drive up in his vehicle �� to have a quick chat on the roadside where he then gave us directions to his house bus located at the far end of the closed camp grounds.

This was where he had parked his Gyrocopter while he worked on the replacement of some of his failed flight instruments. This seemed to be a very unusual situation on his new Gyrocopter so we all chatted about his unfortunate situation and we reviewed his bus campsite and his flying expeditions from Tolaga Bay.

Afterwards we made it out to the historic wharf and made of to the far end even though the last third had a wire fence to stop people accessing it. Damage had occurred during cyclone Gabriel where logs had been deposited on top if the wharf during the floods that occurred during that storm.

Fishermen were still accessing this area in attempts to catch their fish.

A surf school for young surfers was also being conducted at the beach end of the wharf as the waves were quite suitable for this to happen that Sunday morning.

Returning to Leanne’s place had us packing our gear into the Ute for return to our aircraft for our onwards journey to Gisborne.

Leanne and Ricky had been fabulous hosts and were keen to see us back in Tolaga Bay again. Leanne filmed each of us getting airborne and we departed happily on the next leg of our eastern adventure.

The hillsides along the coast showed lots of damage from Gabriel but were sunny and bright to encourage us southwards to Gisborne.

I had earlier telephoned the Gisborne control tower to obtain permission for Savannah ZK SVN to land in Gisborne. Peter Rix had found that his ADSB signal had been intermittent when transiting Napier airspace enroute northwards to Te Araroa. This would normally prevent entry into Controlled Airspace, a necessary permission to land at Gisborne airport.

Permission was granted on the basis that he was heading south to Masterton to have the system repaired.

I led the way to Gisborne and landed on the grass runway 14 and as I taxied off this runway past the Avgas fuel pump ⛽ I spotted Murray Callister starting his RV7. This was now the fifth aircraft to join our group.

We both then taxied over to the Aviation Museum to position ourselves for the two days tie down we expected while in Gisborne. This enabled the other three aircraft to position beside us as they landed and taxied in.

Unpacking our gear, tents for 3 of us, and overnight gear for the Top 10 Camping grounds at Waikanae, we called a taxi and departed for our overnight.

Our flight southwards from Gisborne was weather dependant so we booked in for one night only but needed to rebook the next morning because the approaching weather now delayed our departure. We had expected to overnight the next afternoon at Okepuha Station but we did not want to get weathered in there so decided on a day trip only with return to Gisborne for another night.

The 3 campers needed to move tents as a school group was booked in at our sites. This done it was away to the airport as Richard Coop had been advised we were now only day trippers because of the approaching weather.

I was first to arrive once again due to me being the only pilot to have landed there previously. Richard had mown a strip for us up the one way north south direction of the strip and ensured no stock, so was awaiting our arrival.

Another very spectacular strip with its hilly surrounds, green grassy slopes and its 12% slope up to the south towards the fertiliser bin, on Mahia Peninsula, close to the rocket launching site, a little further south.

My initial flight over the top for inspection suggested it was suitable but a little tailwind would perhaps not allow a landing. The nearby hills also needed to be avoided due to the close proximity of the strip to them.

I flew a wide circuit and descended close to the terrain and found I had 20 kts of tailwind but smooth conditions so I continued approach low to the descending terrain and landed very close to the threshold for a smooth landing and good deacceleration as I carried on up the strip to the fertiliser bin.

I then passed the message onto the others, who were now airborne behind me, waiting for my assessment. Three others continued on to land and the Classic Cub overflew and returned to Gisborne to await our return for the second overnight.

Richard soon popped up to greet us and discuss our landings, plans and a bit of the station background along with how he handled the winds here. One of his musterers also arrived on his quad bike with five dogs straddling the frame and discussed his plans for the morning with Richard.

This then led to Richard advising us of Portland Island and what to expect so Murray decided to leave his aircraft at Okepuha and hitch a ride with Richard in his C180 to see Portland Island with us as none of us had landed there before.

Richard and Murray departed first and then I followed, with JV and Peter following along. The Cessna 180 landed first and I overflew the landing area and sized up the risk but decided the Pelican could land without too higher risk and then successively landed on the stubby grass near the parked C180 of Richard’s.

JV in his C172 elected to overfly and return to Gisborne while Peter in his Savannah overflew then also landed. The ill-defined landing area, covered in stumpy grass clumps, was very off putting but Richard’s assurance was a positive, for us to land.

The three aircraft on the ground in this most unusual area allowed us a quick walk around to the boating jetty area where sheep were shorn and loaded for return to the Mahia Peninsula and markets. A little of the history was related by Richard before we returned to our aircraft and then flew onwards to Gisborne, to weather the approaching front in an area we could entertain ourselves in wet conditions.

Peter in his Savannah continued south to Masterton to enable his faulty electronic system to be repaired as his entry into Gisborne had only been permitted on the basis that he was enroute to a maintenance facility for repairs.

Our team of 4 aircraft were now back on the ground Gisborne for a late lunch at the airport cafe followed by another taxi ride back to camp ⛺ where we awaited the approaching frontal band of weather.

The big decision now was where was dinner to be eaten since our first night’s meal at the fishing club on the wharf was very hard to better.

Our emergency rations didn’t attract our interest as much as the outdoor attractions we were observing around Gisborne township so we walked over to the Sunshine Brewery, Pizza bar in a nearby street, to enjoy a great selection of pizza.

Next day as our walk around town got our breakfast needs satisfied, we observed the approaching cloud band but decided we could hire bikes and perhaps finish a local ride before the rain settled in.

Unfortunately, we only got about half way around our planned journey before we got wet and also found our recommended cafes were closed so after a single file ride along the highway back onto Gisborne, with large semi-trailers dodging us, we stopped for lunch at a bakery to put the hunger pains to rest.

Fortunately, we had packed our tents up while they were dry and had booked a cabin for the four of us to stay dry. This enabled us to enjoy a Cosmopolitan Club dinner nearby after we dried out back in camp. Leaving the Cosie Club, we came across Ricky Kuru who was just getting into his Ute to return to Tolaga Bay so had a quick chat with him then returned to camp to ready ourselves for the Wairoa sector next day.

(To be continued)