Day 9 : Where I explore 'hill billy' country

Douglas 

I wake up along with the rest of the countryside. Cows moo, cocks crow, and farmers drive motorised vehicles across the fields.

I'm standing next to the van, planning my next move, which is probably going to include breakfast, when a van drives up the access road, and parks next to the little 'rail buggies'.

A woman emerges and starts busying herself, taking the wraps off the buggies.
I realise that she is part of Forgotten Adventures, and a group of customers will soon be arriving.

I beat a quick retreat up the hill, to a derelict tile kiln. It's Douglas main tourist attraction Douglas-brick-kiln

The Forgotten Highway is a great road to drive. Some really tight corners snake through some great scenery. Little white spindly thistle seeds are being blown all over the region. They swoop past my wind screen carried along by the slipstream.

View Whangamomona in a larger map

Whangamomona

Found a camp site with no problems. Was looking to stay at the 'heritage' pub but the no-vacancy sign was hung in the window. The camp-site was deserted but for an older couple from Auckland. Their vans interior is outfitted in white beaded panel-work. Looks like they are living in a mobile kitchen.



We chat for a bit and exchange notes on where we've been and good places to camp. They've just been up on the side of Mt. Taranaki .

View Whangamomona Camping Ground in a larger map

The camp-site is a tidy little facility on the floor of a valley. There's a pool and a jungle gym for the kids, but the communal gas stove wasn't hooked up, and I have to pay extra for hot water in the showers.
When I arrived Chickens were poking about in the grass, and a farmer was clinging to the hill side whistling at his dogs. Looked like he was trying to retrieve a recalcitrant animal.

A cow wondered past the camp fence in the afternoon, mooed at us 'out of towners', and headed off past the campsite, up the road that led into the village. I and the couple from Auckland mused as to where it was going. Was it taking it's self home, did it get lost from its herd?
I got the impression that it was asking me a question when it mooed at me. Or possibly it had sneered 'what the hell are you looking at'?

Cow in camp

I'd just finished cleaning up after dinner when all questions were answered. A couple (looked like a mum and a daughter) of farmers on a quad bike, were herding the cow back up the road. The poor animal was jogging a bit and it's bloated udder swayed uncomfortably. It notice the open gate to the camp-site and dived though, hoping to escape it's masters?

There were several minutes of general hilarity as we stood next to the amenity block and watched as the mum and daughter team tried to persuade the animal to leave the camp-site and get back out onto the road.

A lamb wandered past while I was having dinner. There are more animals on the streets here then people.

Cascading racism

Gotta love this catholic protestant thang. Black/white, Capitalist/Red, homo Erecrtis/Neanderthal. Everyone is split into groups and they hate someone else.

A group of locals show up in the park around dinner time.I'm cleaning up after enjoying a Spag bol dinner and I watch them hooning about the camp-site. The friendly old guy from the other camper wanders past with a pile of dripping plates and cutlery. He makes a comment on the arrivals being ' a similar sort everywhere you go in the world', and that mine are 'probably worst then theirs' though.

I realise that he has identified these visitors to the park as Maori, and he is comparing them to the Aboriginal people of Australia.

Later that night I'm having a shower, next to this noisy group who are having a bbq. There is one loud Maori woman, who earlier that evening referred to her children disparagingly, as Pākehā. At this time she was slagging off Indians. She doesn’t like the food and she doesn’t appreciate them taking all their jobs.