Mike's childhood friend now lives on the big island of Hawaii. And to get away from the hustle and bustle of this vacation paradise, he needs a vacation getaway that is really secluded. His vacation house or bach (pronounced "batch" for bachelor) fits the bill quite nicely. It is located on the north end of the northern island of New Zealand, near Russell.
 |
| This is the view from the path leaning to the bach (beyond the stairs). To the left is the sleepout, a guest house of sorts, and to the right is the long drop. |
 |
| A view of the main balcony. The handrail is covered with grapevines. There were plenty of grapes but we arrived a few weeks too soon for them to be ripe. In the background is a wood-fired water heater. You toss in a beer-crate of wood (grown on the premises), light it and in about an hour you have hot water that lasts for days. |
 |
| A view from the balcony. In the distance you can see Tom's sailboat moored in Pomare Bay. |
 |
| A lesson in self sufficiency: Water is collected from the roof (background) and stored in a 15,000 reservoir (foreground). The water is then pumped up the hill to a 100 gallon tank that produces ample water pressure for all the faucets in the bach. |
Next: Check out the inside on the bach.