At the birthplace of the nation, Winston Aldworth and his kids encounter our gritty past.

Almost 2000 foreign tourists have experienced the Bay of Islands as the cruise ship season kicked off this week.

A_MC230814NADPITA3.JPG HOT TOPIC: Pita Paraone has called a hui to discuss next year's Waitangi Day commemorations. PHOTO/MICHAEL

Two families have reached a custody agreement over the dog - named either Wilson or Bear depending who you asked.

Two Northlanders died in car accidents over the weekend, one of them drowned after the van he was in was swept away by a rain-swollen creek.

Lindy Laird samples the delights of the Bay of Islands.

A_040815HOSSPLDRAGON1.JPG - please run this pic with the story on page 2 Advocate Sat The "it!" Bay of Islands Food & Wine Festival

Olympic gold medal-winners Blair Tuke and Peter Burling will be honoured with a parade through Kerikeri's main street on Friday. The

A former teacher who admitted using his phone to film women in a bathroom and teenage girls in a public changing room has had his teaching registration cancelled.

A 22-metre long blue whale washed up on a private Far North beach has excited a marine mammal expert but also sparked a health warning as the giant sea creature decomposes.

Police have arrested three young men following a number of burglaries in the Kerikeri region over the past couple of weeks.

The two people who died, Vernon Lawrence-Samuels and Ryan Wikaira, both 23, had been at rugby training before the accident.

On the way out to Moturua Island, our guide pointed out a spectacular mansion on the sprawling hillsides of Russell.

The completion of a settlement of major Treaty of Waitangi claims is in the balance after a hui was held to resolve issues over its management.

Jane Jeffries discovers the places that say 'yes' to dogs.

A Tauranga family has been reunited with their beloved cat 16 months after it went missing.

Firefighters had to lift a car off a man who was thrown halfway out of the driver's window and trapped under the vehicle when it crashed.

Bottlenose dolphins could disappear from the Bay of Islands if nothing is done to halt a decline apparently caused by too much interaction, a report warns.

Five walks that highlight the historic significance of Waitangi and nearby areas

Guided trip up Waitangi Estuary is a great introduction to kayaking, says Donna McIntyre.

Going walkabout is a great way to experience the winterless north, says Donna McIntyre.

INCREDIBLE PHOTOS: Woman saves two-metre-long sevengill shark after it became stranded while fleeing hungry orcas.

Another slice of Kiwi coastal paradise could be headed for the open market after the Department of Conservation turned down the chance to buy it.

An upstream river paddle is fun and games on a budget for all the family, writes Rob Cox.

Catherine Smith discovers a vibrant dining scene in the gastronomic capital of Northland.

A waterfront mansion built for NZ's most notorious drug lord, complete with helicopter pad and mythical "escape tunnel", is again for sale.

A veteran yachtsman spent two cold, wet hours perched on the mast of his heritage yacht after it hit rocks and sank in the middle of the night.

A vehicle has been seized because its owner had gathered more than 600 cockles - 12 times the legal limit for the Auckland and Coromandel areas.

Up to $10,000 of taxpayers' money was spent on a rescue in Northland over the weekend for a group of Aucklanders "who were not in real danger", police say.

More than 500 people gathered on a hilltop in the Bay of Islands yesterday to celebrate the bicentenary of Pakeha settlement in New Zealand.