June Excursion Part 2

 

The next stop on Tuesday’s drive was at the Les Batkin Reserve to see the Tuakau Bridge.

This 210-metre long, six-span concrete suspension bridge was opened in 1933.  It replaced an earlier wooden bridge, built in 1902, that had been badly damaged by floods during 1929.

The Waikato River was running fairly high, not flooding but certainly not at a low level either.

Crossing the Tuakau Bridge reminded me of the nursery rhyme about Humpty Dumpty.

A quick stop at the Port Waikato Boat Ramp gave a good view of the 425km long Waikato River as it approaches its mouth and enters the Tasman Sea.

Shops are scarce in Port Waikato, but this country store supplies most basic needs.

Lunch was a picnic-in-the-car at Maraetai Bay Reserve – nothing fancy, just a sandwich and a couple of biscuits with a nice hot cup of thermos tea.

From here, it is possible to walk into the Port Waikato Sand Dunes area.  I went as far as the small stream but decided I didn’t really want to get my feet wet, and so I ventured no further.

We had another frost this morning, but it has been followed by a calm sunny day with a high of around 12 degrees Celsius.

I’ll write about the end of my excursion tomorrow.

Keep smiling 😊

Margaret.