Start from Ardmore (NZAR), take off from runway 21 and head north following the Southern Motorway into Auckland CBD, then out west past Whenuapi to Helensville, right at the southern end of the Kaipara Harbour.
REAL NZ Auckland includes photoreal coverage all the way up to here, but the scenery still looks awesome as you continue north, with the RBE topo defining the coastlines of the 530 square kilometres of water, surrounded by 3200 km of shoreline.
Continue in a general north direction, and explore all the inlets, outlets, islands and peninsular before finally making your way up the Wairoa River to land on runway 4 at Dargaville (NZDA).
This flight is a perfect opportunity to explore some of the quite un-spoke about rural northland, and makes for an interesting landing with the runway in a slight ditch in the ground.
I flew the route in the Warbirds DC3, cruising at an altitude of 4000 feet with a speed of 150 kias. It took me just over an hour from engine on to engine off. You may wish to do it in a different aircraft and fly to/from different airstrips- there are plenty in the region.
