Here’s a bit of a plot twist for the day. We started the morning driving toward Auckland. First stop: a random café at Hampton Downs Motorsport Park. Don’t even ask why we picked it 😅 it just had solid coffee reviews and honestly, it delivered.
But the real main character energy of this stop was the collection of iconic racing cars, apparently owned by Mike Whiddett, a New Zealand drifting driver. Absolute eye candy if you’re into cars. And right next door, through these huge glass windows, you could see a Toyota Gazoo workshop with cars at different stages of being built, which was actually pretty cool to watch.
After that we headed into Auckland, said our goodbyes to V and M (sad times 🥲), then jumped into another friend’s car and started heading north. We made it to Matakohe for the night.
While we were there, we managed to check out the Kauri Museum and honestly it was kinda wild how much stuff they had. There were massive displays showing what life was like when the area was covered in ancient Kauri forests, plus exhibits about the logging industry, the tools and tech they used, and the day-to-day lives of settlers, loggers and craftspeople. It really felt like a proper throwback moment.
After such a random mix of experiences that day, we finished things off with dinner at a nearby hotel. Low-key the perfect way to end the day 🍽️✨