Holiday: Day 11 – No Rush Russell!

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7.05am: Morning All! Happy Saturday!! 😎☀️👍

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Day 11 – Where are we?
(Saturday, 9th November)

9.12am: Today, we’re planning a trip to the coastal town of Russell, north-east from our base here in Paihia. Historically, Russell was originally known as the ‘Hellhole of the Pacific’ and you won’t be surprised to NOT see this mentioned in Russell’s tourist brochures these days! 😉. It acquired this reputation by becoming a magnet for many of the ‘wrong types’ of society, including escaped convicts, thieves, prostitutes and dodgy alcohol sellers.

I think we’ll feel right at home! 🤪😲

With everything here in NZ clearly displayed in two languages – where we’ve noticed Māori is nearly always first – Russell is no different and is also known by the ancient Māori name, Kororāreka. There was a strong proposal in January 2023 to switch it back to its original Māori name, but that doesn’t seem to have come about.

Why visit Russell? For us, today was another day of culture where we wanted to learn more about this famous location. It was originally a Māori village that became the first permanent European settlement and seaport in New Zealand. Whaling was the primary industry, but it took another 50 years (until 1890) for it to establish itself as the biggest Whaling Port in the Southern Hemisphere. 🐳🐳

History lesson over and back to 2024, where since our holiday began, we’ve already used planes, trains, buses, ferries and a rental to get around. So how will we get there? Well, time for another ferry – or it’s a very long swim!! 😉. Yes, we could have also driven, but it would have taken much longer. ‘Doing the numbers’ here suggested it’s a short 2km by water and a mighty 15km by road.

9.20am: We were soon parked in the town’s car-park – and even mastered the ticket machine! 😆😆

Ferry Good!

9.45am: With our Ferry tickets in our hands (15.5NZD – £7ish – for the both of us) we boarded the good ship ‘Waimarie’. I think it just about met the criteria for a ‘Ferry’, size-wise, and less than half-an-hour later, we had arrived in ‘the Hellhole’.

10.05am: Hello Russell! First impressions? A ‘Hellhole’ this isn’t! With a population of less than 800, it’s another quaint location (I’m beginning to run out of superlatives describing our visits to small towns in NZ!) and has a very strong ‘island feel’ about it. There’s a small Museum, conveniently called the Russell Museum that according to their blub: “shares the culture and stories of Kororāreka and Īpipiri Bay of Islands with the world”. There are also various boat trips priced from around 16NZD to a whopping 150NZD each for an island tour around the Bay. On the waterfront, there are numerous eateries whilst further ashore, you’ll find supermarkets, bakeries and all the usual makings of a small town.

It all felt very relaxed and unhurried together with an air of sophistication! Suits us! 👏👏

But most importantly (for me!), there is the famous Hotel called the Duke of Marlborough, where many of you have suggested I get a pint! 👏😋. In the spirit of verification, I accept the task!! 😁🤪… but I may need to double-check my findings!

More detail on most of the above, coming up! 👍

TODAY’S TRIVIA: Here in New Zealand, you’ll never be more than 120km (75 miles) from the ocean!

Cop Shop!

Our first stop!

10.05am: This is the old Customs House (completed in 1870) right on the shoreline. Later, in 1890, when the Port trade eventually declined, the building was sold to the Police, and remained in their hands until 2010!

10.11am: Many of the trees in New Zealand are quite old. Here was the Moreton Bay Fig Tree, planted in 1870 – and in the news in recent times because it’s slowly decaying and there’s a danger that it’ll crush passing tourists! 😲

Head for the Hills!

10.27am: Now for the ‘serious’ part of our day – THE WALK! And not just ANY old walk either, as we headed up, up and even further UP via the Flagstaff Hill Walking Trail. And in spite of the well-constructed set of steps, it WASN’T all like that!

Some of the terrain was rougher than others, but in the main, it was all pretty safe in spite of no barriers nor rails to defeat gravity! Getting to the top felt good! And we were both rewarded with some amazing 360° views out across the water and the Bay of Islands. Everywhere looked peaceful and unspoiled by human hand – but that could have been about to change…

…with the sight of the Celebrity Edge anchored some way out and looking like it was here for the day. Regular Cruisers will already know that this is a BIG vessel. Costing US$1 billion back in 2014, it was clearly here to allow its passenger complement of (almost) 3000 to discover the delights of the local area. And we saw some of them… mostly Americans, no doubt here to escape the immediate aftermath of the US Election.

10.40am: Having finally made it to the top where the Flagstaff stood proud, in addition to views out to sea, we discovered a Tablet at the base that described the troubled history of actually keeping the Flagstaff erected! It seemed that every time one was put up, the Māoris cut it down, again and again! Hōne Heke, a powerful voice of the Māoris back in the day, claimed responsibility and where all this wood-felling signalled a short war between British troops and some northern Māoris in March 1845.

10.45am: Maybe not surprisingly, going down was a tad easier – and we were rewarded with some very err, green greenery on our descent…

…where the pathway was of a more solid construction. We had now come full circle, which was perfect, as it took us past a famous New Zealand landmark…

The Duke of Marlborough

11.15am: We arrived just as we could see Cruise passengers descending on the town in the distance and so, time to move quickly.

The history of this place is a fascinating one. The Hotel opened in 1827 under the name “Johnny Johnston’s Grog Shop“. Maybe unsurprisingly, his CV listed his previous employment as ‘ex-convict’! Clearly, he was also a ‘marketing natural’ as he soon changed the name to what it is today, simply because at the time, the Duke of Marlborough was the richest man on the planet. The rest, as they say, is Wikipedia, and it’s now a very upmarket establishment with the honour of being New Zealand’s oldest licensed Hotel!

Sadly, they didn’t stock Guinness, but I was offered ‘something similar’. Ann sampled the non-alcoholic Sipsmith G&T and whilst we were waiting, I took some shots of the Hotel’s interior. Total cost of the round? 28.68NZD (£13.30).

This was clearly a piece of the Empire that had been frozen in time. Our American friends were going to love it!

“Refreshing rascals and reprobates since 1827“
(on a sign outside the Hotel)

We finished our drinks, just as the Restaurant began to fill up with… guess who? All-in-all a massive slice of history that demonstrated perfectly how far the Empire reached around the globe. Huzzah! 👍👍

Russell Museum

12.02pm: Our next stop was one of the town’s two Museums (the other being Pompallier Mission and Printery which we didn’t visit). The Museum explains the history of the local Māori and incoming European settlers & whalers. Originally opened in 1956, it soon outgrew its space and in subsequent years has been subsequently expanded. Entrance cost 12NZD each (about £5.50).

There is plenty to see here, but it did all feel somewhat cramped – maybe time to expand again?!?!

Just a final few words about this place. For the size of Russell (800 folks and falling) the Museum punched well above its weight in terms of content and display skills! 👏👏

Christ Church

12.50pm: It was now much warmer (but at least there was a breeze!) and after dropping into the local supermarket for an ice-cream, we found a seat and soaked up some rays! Next, was our final stop for the day – New Zealand’s oldest surviving Church – ‘Christ Church‘ – it was constructed in 1835 by Gilbert Mair under the supervision of Missionary, Charles Baker and originally held services in both English and Māori. Today, since 1998, local people have taken over the role of a visiting priest, forming a Local Shared Ministry.

1.15pm: We really enjoyed today (apart from the ‘Guinness’). It was great to be able to walk around in the sunshine, enjoying the sights and sounds of this very peaceful location. It definitely had the ‘feel good factor’ and in many ways, felt very ‘English’. If you’re anywhere close to here on your travels, we’d thoroughly recommend a visit.

Tomorrow, we leave Paihia and head for Hamilton, 350km. (220 miles) away. Sleep well – see you on Sunday!! 💤💤