New Zealand's North Island

Most Australians touring New Zealand go to the South Island and maybe the southern region of the North Island, but we wanted to see Russell and the Bay of Isles area. So we landed in Auckland and took off toward the north end of the North Island.
We sailed from Russell through the Bay of Isles, an extraordinary group of small islands rising out of the ocean into the mist. During the sail we encountered fairy penquins, so cute floating along on their backs in the gentle seas.
Russell was a cute little seaside town. We arrived four days before their very busy summer season began so we had the town all to ourselves. Everyone was happy to us as we were their first tourists of the year!
Our next trip to New Zealand will be a car tour of the South Island, maybe next year...