9 people enjoyed a day trip that was more of a social outing than a tramping trip. The main feature of the trip was a one hour walk in an area of native bush that had been covenanted to the Queen Elizabeth II Trust for preservation. We followed this with a general walk around the history-steeped Bohemian village of Puhoi and a brief visit to the local A&P show that was on the same day. Four of us left The Bracken at 8am and met up with the others at the Puhoi turnoff off State Highway 1 north of Waiwera. From there we drove to the end of Tolhopf Rd in the hills behind Puhoi, and onto private farmland. After our usual introductions and prayer we set off across farm paddocks and soon entered the bush. We were on a ridge so had good views looking out to the east coast where we could see the top of Rangitoto Island and Mt Moehau in the distance; looking west we could see the Kaipara Harbour. The track through the bush was a bit rough at first as it followed a fenceline, then became a bit wider as it left the farm paddocks. We came out to a the Sugar Loaf Rock, a viewpoint once more on the edge of farmed land, with bare outcrops of rock. We had our morning tea stop looking out towards the east coast once more. We returned the same way to our cars and drove into Puhoi, stopping first of all at the Art of Cheese factory and tearooms. The grounds included a picnic area, small wetland lake and a wendy house for children. Inside the tearooms we could look through a window to see two workers dressed in white overalls and wearing plastic gloves making cheese, a very skilled and delicate job. A video we watched told of how the workers had to take extreme sanitary measures when entering the area, including dipping feet in a bath and donning the special clothes, and how the cheese was made out of milk curds and left for a length of time to develop into cheese. We parked the cars at a craft shop with their permission, then walked into the centre of the Puhoi village. The Puhoi Hall was hosting a market, with stalls inside and out on the road. The Bohemian Museum would have been worth the admission fee if we had not been so pushed for time (our leader Lin had to get back to Auckland early for a babysitting job). The historic Catholic church was worth a visit with its fancywork and Stations of the Cross pictures on the walls. We returned to the Puhoi Hall in time for the Bohemian dancing show at 1pm. There was time for a quick peep into Puhoi Hotel, perhaps New Zealand’s most unique drinking clinic whose walls are adorned with artefacts of pioneering and sawmilling. We were able to get into the A&P Show for a discount price ($1 instead of $5) and have a look at the craft stalls and animals on display.

We were away by 2pm, having had a time of fellowship, exercise and relaxation. To do real justice to the attractions of Puhoi, even when there is no A&P show, much more time is needed.