Hahei Beach

After a short trip via foot ferry to Whitianga for lunch we then spent the afternoon on Hahei beach soaking up the sun whilst Royston went after those elusive fish.

It was so warm I was more than happy reading my book and enjoying the views. We pretty much had the beach to ourselves though a couple of other fishermen came along later in the day.

As the sun began to set we drove up to the Cathedral Cove carpark for the views back over the beach and out to sea, with the moon up and the pink sky it made for a nice end to the day.

The Yurt at Hahei

Being the middle of winter we thought it would be apt to stay in a tent...we did however choose a fancy Mongolian tent (yurt) set in amongst an orchard not far from Hahei beach on the Coromandel Peninsula.

The owners have done a fantastic job with the set up - inside a lounge area and two double beds with curtains for privacy, along with a dining table and electric kitchen appliances.

Whilst outside is the sink area and bbq for cooking, with the toilet and shower also accessed from the deck. Alistair cooking the steaks for dinner and Royston supervising.

We had such stunning weather that we were able to have breakfast on the deck both mornings and enjoying the views from the yurt.

The view from the back of the yurt down over the gardens.

Pre World Cup Warm Up

This afternoon we headed to North Harbour stadium to watch the final All Whites games on home soil before they head off to the football World Cup. They seem to have got confused with the colour of their shirt though...

The game against a NZ eleven from the local league was pretty dire and they will need to step up their game for the World Cup or there will be three heavy defeats. Fortunately they will have their European based "stars" available then.

Back to the 80s

Tonight we had a real blast from the past as we went to see Tears for Fears and Spandau Ballet in concert at the Vector Arena. Tears for Fears on first for an hour's set playing all their hits and getting the crowd warmed up.

Spandau Ballet have only just reformed after a 20 year absence and have never played in New Zealand before. They seemed to have a great time on stage and that filtered through to the audience and we pretended we were back in 1983! A great concert full of all the old hits, the 80s were the best...

Tutukaka Coast

This weekend we have been up to stay at a bach in Ngunguru with friends. Once again we were very fortunate with the weather, a glorious autumnal weekend. The view down the estuary at Ngunguru.

The morning was spent at Wooleys Bay, a stunning beach, and we were the only people on it for most of the time.

Royston fished and I soaked up the sun. Only a couple of small fish today though.

We then spent the afternoon exploring a bit more of the coastline, including Tutukaka marina.

And some of the smaller bays, not such nice beaches here though at Kowharewa Bay.

The view from the lookout down to Ngunguru was pretty good though. A lovely relaxing weekend away.

Waikawau Bay & Little Bay Again

This morning we popped (well 20 minutes along gravel roads...) to Colville to pick up some more bait from the very unusual general store. On the way back to the bach we stopped at Waikawau Bay, the next bay up from Little Bay.

A much longer beach than Little Bay, with a Department of Conservation campsite running alongside it - maybe a cheaper option for the future. No flash baches along this beach.

Back at Little Bay we spotted an alternative method of transport to arrive at your bach, not too sure about the landing onto that small helipad though!

Such a fantastic weekend away, probably the best since we've been here, and we will be back to Little Bay again in the very near future.

Little Bay, Coromandel

For our anniversary this year we booked a bach at Little Bay in the far north of the Coromandel Peninsula. The bach had million dollar views!






We spent most of the weekend on the beach, Royston doing a few hours of fishing - a great beach for surfcasting as the drop off was very deep. This was his first snapper off the beach and made for a nice fish burger for lunch.






The view from the beach back up to the bach - the one in the middle of the photo.









Both evenings, boats came into the bay to moor for the night and take advantage of the good fishing.









The view back up to the top of the peninsula, not much up there!