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.

A financial adviser with clients in the Waikato and the Bay of Plenty has pleaded guilty in the Tauranga District Court to a $1.4 million fraud.

The Eagles Nest spills across 75 acres of a peninsula looking down on the Bay of Islands along the way to Tapeka Pt.

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.

A great boys' trip up north is about golf and sleep not babes and beach for family man Rob Cox.

Elisabeth Easther visited Russell for a sneak preview of the Bay of Islands Walking Weekend and found a wealth of wanders on offer.

The lovely Bay of Islands has something for all, writes Penny Lewis.

A bottlenose dolphin thought to have lost its calf has adopted a baby of another species.

The sky is the limit as a Northland town turns on the charm for a winter festival, writes Elisabeth Easther.

Rachel Grunwell finds plenty to keep her busy on a weekend in Russell.

Danielle Wright discovers clubs happy to welcome you in out of the cold.

Ewan McDonald completes a personal triathlon in the Far North.

Fire services were called to a fire at a geothermal power plant in the Bay of Islands last night.

A New Zealand rich-lister has put his Bay of Islands palatial retreat up for sale, saying he is keen to move on to tick off his "bucket list" of life-long dreams.

Elisabeth Easther discovers a gem of a town in Northland where the train runs down the middle of the main street.