Ray's Rest... Firth of Thames

 

I left Warkworth and had a very pleasant, hassle free drive...

Up hill and down dale...

And stopped for the night at Orewa.

I managed to park in my favourite place there...

Fronting to the sea... And this was my view for the evening.

 

Further along past the cars is the surf club...

There were lots of people out enjoying the evening...Walking their dogs.

There was even a rubbish bin right outside... 

That was very convenient as I could dump all I had accumulated...

Including old newspapers...

It was Saturday... Again... And I would have a new one!

I only buy the Herald on Saturday.. It takes me all the week to read it!

The next morning I was woken early by strong wind and rain.

It had been forecast but often these things pass over during the night...

But not this time. I was rocking and rolling...

I decided to be brave... Hold on tight to the steering wheel...

And go as far as Albany... There is a big shopping mall there...

That seemed just the place for such a morning...

And I haven't been shopping/browsing for ages.

I had coffee, looked in a few shops, 

developed a headache from the noise...

And decided to leave.

The sun had come out... the weather didn't seem so bad after all.

My destination was Kaiaua on the Firth of Thames...
A freedom parking place called 'Ray's Rest'.
The wind  hadn't gone... It was tricking me...
It was very windy on the top of the Auckland Harbour Bridge.

Ray's Rest was very windy...
This is where I parked...
The usually calm sheltered waters were whipped up into
rough waves washing up shells and seaweed.

These photos don't do it justice... But the sea was a churned dark grey.

 

This is taken from my door step... The waves not far away...
But they didn't come in... The tide went out!

The colours of the sea as it got dark were amazing...
The cloud colours reflected in the water...

And this intense blue colour in the darkening landscape.
 I never get tired of watching the moods and colours of the sea...
It's always changing...

Next morning I woke to still, calm and peace...
The sea was totally quiet and the tide creeping in.
No wind... The sun was out...

But it didn't last very long... The wind whipped up...
The clouds and rain came...
And a rainbow...
It has blown a gale ever since I have been here...
I'm moving on this morning... Into Thames...
To collect my mail... buy a saw...
And I'm thinking about getting a flounder spear.
Early yesterday morning there was somebody in the shallow water...
Nearly high tide... With a light and spear looking for flounder...
What a yummy breakfast that would be.
I think I have to try it when I come back.

My Bedford Gets a Gears Makeover...

 
After my haircut... And indulging in a delicious chicken, feta and spinach pie for lunch...
I came here... To ModFab.
I had finally decided that the gears on my bus were...
At the most inopportune moments...Unmanagable... And a traffic hazard...
When I couldn't change gears quickly enough because they were being contrary...
And no matter what I did wouldn't be found!
So this place just out of Warkworth had been highly recommended...
And as I was passing...

I came to this workshop to seek help and advice.
Some people say driving an old Bedford is an ugly experience...
They remember them as school buses grinding up the hills.
But I was convinced things could be better than that...
And Farnie and Leon here, thought so too.
Farnie is a master mechanic...
I had been told he could repair or make anything.
That turned out to be true.

So here I am... Parked up in the driveway outside his workshop...
Home away from home in the sun this morning.

I was jacked up...
A big board put underneath...
 So a trolley with Farnie on it can roll under.

 
You will remember... From pictures of my previous repairs...
That the motor is accessed from underneath and inside...
So it's always a major disruption to take the inside engine covers off...
This time it was more than that as the gear stick was located further back so the carpet had to be removed.

 And the floor... Because the bolts and nuts holding the gears in place went right through the floor.
When Farnie tried the gears he was amazed I had driven it anywhere...
So I didn't feel quite so much like a dizzy bonde after that.
His first plan was to take out some of the links which were loose
 and caused too much movement in the gear shifts.
Then relocate the gear lever closer to the handbrake.

 

Mmmm... I muttered to myself as I peered into the depths...

 

I've put lots of pictures as you people who know and love Bedfords...

Or Izuzu motors really,

just might like to have a 'closer' look...

And know what you are looking at!

 

I could see what had been causing the problem...

The bus is a 1970 Bedford... The Engine is an Izuzu 6BD1 of the late 1980's early 1990's era.

The gears are Bedford gears, fidded with when the original Bedford petrol motor was taken out

and the Izuzu diesel motor installed.

I learned that the Izuzu motor in it's original vehicle was accessed from the outside - a bonnet that lifted up, or the front cab lifted off the vehicle to expose the motor - easy access.

It's when they are put into a Bedford vehicle that they are crammed in and difficult to access for repairs with no outside opening bonnet... It is all making sense to me now!

There were links and rods and bushes and pins everywhere...

Which caused the gear shifts to be difficult and not easily found.

 

Here is some part of the gears in the vice... New bushes... New pins...

Whatever they are! I couldn't see them...

 It all looked a black greasy mess to me...

But then what do I know about such things?  Nothing!

 

 And here on the workbench... If you look carefully...

You can see the abandoned gear stick with it's silver knob.

I think the bit of metal sticking up out of the vice is what is attaches to.

So tonight I have a  great gaping hole in the front, inside my home.

I have covered it up with a big old drop cloth to stop the draughts...

And I'm glad it's not a cold night.

My Latest Haircut... For Better or Worse?

I had enjoyed five lovely days at Uretiti... But... As the Walrus said...
Way back in 1872 in Lewis Carroll's poem 'The Walrus and the Carpenter'
It was time to (talk) think of other things.
I desperately needed a haircut. I was feeling very wild and woolly.
So I made an appointment in Warkworth...
With a recommended hairdresser...
Seeing I was going that way.
I couldn't wait to get there... You know how it is!

These photos are the result... After a windy walk along the beach!
Just what I wanted... Not too short... A sharper shape...
And something that would look after itself without too much fiddling on my part.
In the last year or so my hair has decided to be madly curly...
No matter what I do... It does it's own thing.
Which is great for my 'On The Road' lifestyle...
A hairdryer is a waste of time and effort... So that's easy!

It also had to withstand the beach... Wind... Fishing...
And be able to be taken out to dinner when invited!
I feel much better... In the dark I look 10 years younger (haha)
And there's room for it to grow again.
White hair is difficult stuff... So the wilder and more ecentric the better...
Lots of people think this lifestyle is odd... And off-beat...
So me and my hair will be odd together!