Catching the world's first rays, two days running

We've had an amazing few days on the East Coast. We've found it quite different to other parts of New Zealand. On our way north from Tolaga Bay, we stopped in Ruatoria to buy some food and find out about things to do in the area. We spoke to a really informative guy in the Ngati Porou Tourist Office who gave us directions to a hut on Mt Hikurangi. This mountain is sacred to the local Maori and is also the first place in the world to see the sun each day. We arranged to go back there the following day. In the meantime, we put the tent up at a campsite on the East Cape (in pretty heavy rain), had some quick dinner and an early night.

Next morning we woke up early (very early for us) and went to the East Cape lighthouse to watch the sunrise. (It's the world's most Easterly lighthouse). We saw the sunrise, but not from the lighthouse, which it turned out was 20 km down an unsealed road and then a 25 minute climb up a hill. Very early wasn't early enough. Still - we got some great misty sunrise shots of sea and cliffs.

We then drove back down to Mt Hikurangi. After doubling back along some more unsealed roads (Boycey the Subaru is not enjoying this trip much) to find phone reception and confirm that we could go up, we were on our way. It was a stunning, blue sky day, with brilliant views of the other mountains and the coast. Just before we reached the hut, we got to some carvings, which were put up there just before the millennium, and celebrate the Maori ancestor, Maui, who Maori believe hauled north island up out of the sea, by hooking Mt Hikurangi with a fishing line. The carvings were quite spectacular, even more so because of their position overlooking the mountains and coast, the fact that the sun was going down, and that we were there by ourselves.

We took lots and lots of photos, before hiking up to the hut. Staying up there was a good adventure, if a little spooky. We collected firewood and got the stove going and had our freeze dried dinner. After Damo had taken some trademark nightscape shots, it was very dark and getting very cold. We dressed in pretty much everything we had with us (including hats) before snuggling into our sleeping bags on the top bunk. It was a bit of a restless night - animal noises galore and with the wind ripping past (and through) the windows, it was certainly atmospheric. Morning came, and with it, another race to the sunrise. We made it this time (even fitted in some freeze dried breakfast), and watched the sky glow red next to the Maori carvings on the hillside. It was magical.