We all have these photos … throwback photos!
It’s described as ‘nostalgia-inducing pictures … from a different era of your life”.
Every Thursday we will throw a photo of ‘way back when’ on our blog. Why on a Thursday? Because it’s just a day away from the weekend … and we love weekends!
You are welcome to join in or just enjoy the photos (#TB Thursday).
New Zealand – 2019
We are still ‘hanging around’ in New Zealand with our TB Thursday posts. After a visit to the beautiful Cathedral Cove in the Coromandel Peninsula and the bubbling mud pools in Rotorua, we are now taking you on a hike we have done back in April 2019.
Whangarei Falls
Whangarei is the regional capital of the Northland Region and the most northern city in New Zealand. This city is situated 162km (100 miles) from Auckland and if you travel by bus (like we did), it will take you 3 hours through some beautiful places.
We wondered what Whangarei looked like (and at the same time read that you can hike to the famous Whangarei Falls).
We started our hike from the hotel where we were checked in and had to walk 7km to get to the falls (of course we had to walk that 7km back again).
It was still autumn when we visited the falls, which meant there were not a lot of water. It was however a beautiful hike through the forest and along the Hatea River.
A rather modest Whangarei Falls
The falls were a good rest stop where we enjoyed sandwiches and cold drinks. We then walked to the top of the falls from where we could admire the view. From there we took the forest path again to hike back to our hotel.
On the way back, we saw a fallen tree and was astonished at the patterns at the one end of the trunk. We also enjoyed a walk through the autumn coloured trees.
Should you want to read more about our weekend in Whangarei, you can do that here.
Wet and Dusty Roads 
The picture of that fallen tree trunk is truly amazing.
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That’s true Carl! We couldn’t believe our eyes when we saw it … it almost looks man-made, but I suppose that’s nature’s own artwork 🙂.
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Dit lyk so rustig en koel daar! Ek was in die Coromandel omgewing, maar nie daar by die pragtige watervalle nie. Pragtige foto’s Corna. Ek is so ver agter met my blog. Sal die week probeer om n Throwback pos te doen😊
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Ek onthou dat dit so lekker koel was – die woud het by tye soos ‘n feetjie woud gelyk, regtig baie mooi! En die pad van Auckland tot by Whangarei was net so lieflik. Ag, moenie gejaagd voel om ‘n Throwback pos te doen nie … ek kuier nog steeds heerlik tussen jou mooi foto’s deur 🌸.
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Ek geniet die Throwback poste baie. Weet net nie waar die tyd heen verdwyn nie.
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Ja, die tyd vlieg … dit was net nou die dag nuwejaar en hier is ons alreeds in Februarie!
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Vreeslik ne.
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Beautiful pictures. Love waterfalls. 🌸🌹
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Thanks Jessica 🌸. Yes, even the smallest waterfall is a joy to see in nature, isn’t it?
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A fun hike but that is the strangest tree trunk I ever seen.
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It was a really cool hike John! That trunk … isn’t nature amazing! I actually bought a souvenir (a candle) in Rotorua that was made from this tree trunk with the same patterns.
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Dis darem maar lowergroen daar ne!
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Dit is Dries. In NZ is alles groen/groener/groenste 😉. Dit het redelik gereen in die 4 maande wat ons daar was (en dit was gedurende laat somer en herfs), so ek kan verstaan waarom alles so groen is!
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That looks and sounds like a lovely day out 🙂❣️
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It was indeed Jo … any day out in nature is a good day! And when you’re entertained with so much beauty, it’s a bonus 🌸.
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That’s a beautiful looking waterfall 🙂
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And I think it must be spectacular during their rainy season. But nonetheless, it was a pretty walk through the forests!
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Pragtige fotos, Corna.🤗
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Dankie Una 🌸. In NZ is dit maar moeilik om nie ‘n mooi foto te neem nie … alles daar is so groen! En die see en pragtige strande is nooit ver nie.
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The falls may be modest but they are lovely, and the tree trunk amazing!
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It was lovely to see the falls through the ferns and high trees – almost like a fairyland. That tree trunk … it’s probably one of the most amazing (natural) things we saw while we visited NZ!
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Whoa, that tree trunk is so bizarre! I’ve never seen anything like that
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Exactly! We had to look a couple of times at this from different angles to make sure it was indeed a natural tree trunk!
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Absolutely stunning! Thanks for sharing, I love seeing these photos from your past.
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Thanks Tricia for joining us on our TB Thursday posts! We also love looking back to these photos (and remembering the good times we had on our journeys)!
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Looks like a good day out and that tree pattern is extraordinary.
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To walk in these forests in NZ and see flowing rivers and waterfalls, were probably the highlights of our time there! That tree pattern … I was fascinated by it and was quite happy to buy a souvenir (candle) in Rotorua a month later that looked exactly like this trunk!
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A lovely memory.
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I added a comment to the other post but not sure it took. This is a lovely walk. It all looks so well thought out for maximum enjoyment and appreciation of Nature. That tree is great and the little duck…I would have given it my sandwich too!
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I didn’t see your other comment (probably got lost in WP world somewhere 🙃) … but thanks for trying anyway. This was such a nice walk – probably our favourite hike of our trip to NZ. The forest, river, waterfall and amazing trees were all such a great combination of what Nature had on offer. Besides the amazing tree trunk, the duck was my favourite on this hike 😀.
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Nothing is better than a hike to a see something beautiful. Thank you for sharing yours.
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That’s true … although the falls were the reason we went on this hike, it was amazing to be surrounded by so much beauty on our way there!
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Very scenic, looks so lovely – and great hiking country
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It’s definitely a great hiking country – I can only imagine how amazing the trails must be on the South Island that is known for their spectacular hiking routes!
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The tree trunk is incredible. Nature is the best artists. Maggie
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It is incredible … I wish we knew more about it, but it just seemed that it’s been there for a very long time. And we only saw it when we walked back (after we walked past it on route to the falls without noticing it). You gotta love Nature!
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As others I am amazed by that tree trunk, I have never seen anything like it. Do you know anything about the tree? Looks like a lovely calming walk through some gorgeous autumnal colours. Whangarei Falls are charming.
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I wish I knew more about that tree trunk, but unfortunately I don’t. Only that it looks like it has been lying there for a very long time. Kauri trees are well known in that area (we actually walked through a Kauri forest on the way back), but I can’t say for sure that it is a Kauri tree (or part of it). This was probably our favourite walk while in NZ – I remember the immense tranquility we experienced as we walked through the forest and hearing the falls long before we could see them … such a lovely memory!
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More photos to bring back fond memories of our own visit to Whangarei ages ago. Thanks for the memories Corna.
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Oh, it’s great that you also had the opportunity to visit Whangarei Marion! I’m so happy I could share our own visit there with you 🌸.
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Looks like a lovely and peaceful walk. It’s always great to find a good spot to take a break and eat a snack while still admiring the views. The patterns at the end of the fallen tree trunk look so cool. I’ve never seen anything like that before.
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Peaceful indeed Linda … one could have almost ‘disappeared’ in that lovely forest. I totally agree on a resting place with a view – and this one was just perfect! It seems we’re all thinking the same thing about that tree trunk … 😉.
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Lovely! And what a tree trunk!
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Yes, that tree trunk … a mystery to everyone it seems to me 😀!
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I never saw a fallen tree trunk look like that! I am showing it to my scientist parents
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Oh, please let me know if your scientist parents have an answer 😉.
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They assume it’s a monocotteledan because it’s not like any other trunk
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So, I had to google this big word 🙂 … in other words, it might be some sort of a plant/tree. That’s very interesting. I wish we had taken more photos of this (then it would have been probably easier to identify this), but we were so fascinated by the pattern that we didn’t even bother with further photos. Thanks for letting me know 👍🏻.
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That tree trunk is amazing. I covet it…
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It is, isn’t it? The wonder of nature I suppose …
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Do you know what kind of tree it was? Wonder if they all grow like that or if this one was atypical of its species.
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I wish I knew! The Kauri tree is very prominent in NZ (and close to this specific area is a huge Kauri forest), but I can’t say whether this is a Kauri tree. I wish now that we have inspected it from closer by, but at that moment it was just so beautiful that we only took one photo (and it was towards the end of our 14km walk, so we were quite tired by then 😉).
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One reason I sketch is that it makes all of my sketchbooks “throwback books” where I can spend happy moments remembering and reliving some place and time in the past. These are great.
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Oh yes, I can completely understand that your sketchbooks bring back wonderful memories!
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And you often remember the time you spent doing the sketch.
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Thanks for this photo of this Waterfall. We must return again back to New Zealand. Anita
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A waterfall is always a beautiful sight in nature! Yes, there is just so much to see in New Zealand, a visit there would have to span over months to see all the beautiful sights!
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You two find the most beautiful places Corna. When I was in high school many, many years ago I became friends with a gal that was an exchange student from New Zealand. Because of this we hosted a teenager from Costa Rica when my son was in high school. What a fun experience learning about other cultures.
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This was a lovely place … I think the walk through the forest was actually more of a highlight than the waterfall itself 😄. Yes, I agree, it’s a great way to get to know other countries’ cultures. Berto had an exchange student from the Netherlands in their high school … probably because our home language (Afrikaans) is very similar to Dutch!
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Such a lovely and refreshing share of the Whangarei falls, forest and autumn colours, thank you for sharing these amazing pics Corna 💕🌸
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Thanks for stopping by our TB Thursday post Henrietta 🌻. It was wonderful to look back on this magical walk in the forests of Whangarei and its waterfall. You must have a great weekend.
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More smile-inducing nostalgia Corna with such delicious nature. The tree trunk patterns are just incredible, you must have been over the moon to have discovered it. I hope all is well with you guys and that Berto continues to recuperate well.
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At first we couldn’t believe that the tree trunk was “real” (almost as if someone had just put it there), but it was clear that it had broken off the tree – pretty incredible. Thank you, everything is good this side of the world – Berto is going for more tests tomorrow and we will see the doctor again on Friday (fingers crossed) 🙂.
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