Lots of lovely beaches ⛱️

We went to the cinema in Tauranga and saw The Salt Path. It's a film based on a book which there is now a big hoo-ha about! We liked doing something a bit different and avoiding the rain, we enjoyed the film although it definitely isn't as good as the book and it now appears the book isn't as truthful as it makes out. 

Anyways, back on the road up onto the Coramandel Peninsula. This is somewhere that keeps coming up as must-go on the North island. We did a walk to Catherdral Cove and the weather took us by surprise, we both had way too many clothes on! The walk started on Hahei Beach and as we approached I could see dolphins. We stepped on the beach and there were loads of them surfing the waves and jumping out the water, some very close to shore, there must have been about 50 of them in total. When we came back they were gone so it felt like perfect timing. 

The beaches are beautiful, Catherdral Cove beach has a wonderful big stone archway and a little waterfall trickling down to the sea. Afterwards we popped to Cooks Beach where we spotted some New Zealand Dotterel, a very pretty bird only found here. 



The next day we had planned a walk up The Pinnacles, in the middle of the Coramandel Peninsula. We'd had a lovely day previously so were slightly disappointed when we woke to rain but off we went. It was a miserable but lovely walk, we got very wet and on the way back some of the paths had turned to streams and waterfalls. Luckily there is a hut not far from the top which we had managed to shelter in for the worst downpour of the day.


The view from the top cleared a lot while we were up there and although still very cloudy, you could imagine how spectacular it would be on a clear day. When we got back to Hades there was a rainbow waiting for us. 



Continuing north we found a free shower as we passed by Auckland, which was definitely needed after a sweaty rainy hike! We'd found a free camp at the Waipu caves, which was useful as we wanted to visit them anyway. The cave was awesome, you wade through water to get through to the deepest bit where there are thousands of glowworms. It's pretty mesmerising. I then spotted an eel in the water as we waded out. 



Our next stop was at Whangarei Heads where we were continuing our great kiwi hunt. While the sun was out we sauntered along the glorious beaches then, after the sun had set, we put our head torches back on and headed out on a walk where they are sometimes seen. No luck again! We heard plenty of calls and am sure we've been very close to some kiwis but are yet to get the sighting we want. 


As we left Whangarei Heads we walked up to the Mt Manaia Lookout, not a far walk but steep which means great views at the top. We've also seen lots of very substantial boot cleaning stations while in this Far North area of New Zealand to stop the spread of Kauri dieback. Kauri trees are native giants of New Zealands forests which are unfortunately on the decline due PA or (Kauri dieback). Feels like a very familiar story to what's happening to our Ash trees back in the UK. 



We've only got about 5 days left until we return back to the UK, it's crazy how fast our time here has gone! So the next blog will most likely be the last so we'll try and make the most of the next few days 😊 

Lots of love, 

Lisa and Matt 💕 





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