We spent the last night of our Anniversary Day holiday camped on the edge of the Firth of Thames at Little Waikawau Bay. We had a swim before dinner, but the water is pretty shallow, and the “beach” was stony and not easy to walk on in bare feet.
Continue reading Rocky’s Goldmine Trail
Month: January 2015
Waiwawa River
On Sunday the wind was forecast to be a bit stronger than the day before, so we thought about kayaking from the Ferry Landing at Cooks Beach into Whitianga Harbour. One look at the choppy current rushing past the wharf made us think again, and we decided to head further inland and have a play in the Waiwawa River.
Continue reading Waiwawa River
Hauhei to Hot Water Beach
Commercial kayak tours south of Hauhei are promoted as “remote coast”, and only leave in the mornings before the wind gets up. We were on the beach ready to go soon after 8.30 am, so we had a chance to talk to the tour guide before any of his customers arrived. He told us to beware of hidden reefs, and to check out caves carefully before paddling inside. Most importantly, he drew a map on the sand to show us where to find the ‘blow hole’.
Continue reading Hauhei to Hot Water Beach
Cathedral Cove
By the time we loaded the kayaks and all our gear into the camper-van it was nearly midday. We were keen to get down to Coromandel as soon as we could, so I drove until we reached the top of the hill on the Kopu – Hikuai road where I knew there was a nice spot to stop for lunch.
Continue reading Cathedral Cove
Picnic dinner at Silverdale
I’d got my heart set on a kayak yesterday evening, so even though the weather looked a bit dodgy we loaded the boats on the car and drove up to Stillwater about an hour before high tide.
By the time we were ready to unload, it was bucketing down, but since it was warm and no wind we decided to head up the Weiti river anyway.
Continue reading Picnic dinner at Silverdale
Lake Maraetai and Mangakino Creek
The last day of our summer holiday turned out to be the best adventure of the trip, despite being immediately followed by the biggest hassle.
Continue reading Lake Maraetai and Mangakino Creek
Piripiri Bridge, Pohangia River
We probably chose one of the quietest nights of the year to camp beside the Manawatu River, at the eastern end of the gorge. We did hear a couple of trains go past, but almost no trucks. Continue reading Piripiri Bridge, Pohangia River
Kiriwhakapapa Road End
When we first pulled in to this DOC reserve on the edge of the Tararua mountain range, I though we might have the place to ourselves, but then we saw three or four other groups of campers tucked in among the bushes.
Continue reading Kiriwhakapapa Road End