Its been a while since we've blogged - so we thought we better have a fantastic weekend away to keep our fans (yes that's you two mums) happy!
We've had a few weekends away in the campervan since returning from our trip home, but late October's Labour weekend was the first bank holiday in a few months, which meant an opportunity for a trip a bit further afield.
We've been to the Coromandel
before, but as we were on our road bikes that trip didn't afford many opportunities to get off road. New Zealanders (and especially Aucklanders) love the Coromandel for its mix of beautiful beaches, lush forest and stunning vistas. Add to that it being under 2 hours from the AKL metropolis you can't go wrong.
Our first priority was the Pinnacles walk - a long day walk (or often split over two days with a stay in a mountain hut over night) which is argued to be one of NZ's best. With Carrie in tow we were able to camp in one of the Department of Conservation sites near to the trailhead and backing onto the Kauaeranga River.
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| Not a bad spot (minus the rubbish bag!) |
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| A river runs through it |
Setting off for our walk on the Saturday morning bright and early we soon left the gravel road and were climbing through lush forest.
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Gulp - one of many swingbridges en route
(swing being the operative word) |
The trail was almost empty and we were treated to some fantastic views as we climbed the old stone pony track (built originally when logging kauri was big business).
After a few hours of climbing and a brief stop off at the hut for a snack we climbed the last very steep section to the Pinnacles themselves.
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| Nearly at the top! |
The views from the top were absolutely amazing - 360 degrees of both the Firth of Thames and the Pacific Ocean on the other side of the Coromandel. What a day for it!
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| Ahhhh |
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| Lush forest |
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| Number one happy hiker |
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| Number two happy hiker |
After demolishing our lunchtime sarnies we climbed back down - spotting some interesting rock formations on the way...
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| Near and far |
We decided to take a longer route back - avoiding the 80 people who were booked into the hut for the night, and enjoying some more stunning views across the other side of the valley.
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| The close up views weren't bad either |
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| Happy days! |
A few hours hiking and a couple more swingbridges later and we were soon back at base.
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| This was more scary in real life! |
Upon setting up camp on the Friday Matt had spotted the fireplace provided and had been busy collecting dead wood (which was plentiful with the campsite only opening that weekend!). It turned out he had collected
a lot so we spent a few hours that evening being singed by an absolutely massive fire (by massive I mean taller than me)!
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| Cosy - this was early days in the life of the fire |
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| A bit later on - sparks were flying! |
The next morning we jumped back into Carrie and set off up the coast to get further North.
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| More lovely views en route |
Our destination was 'New Chums' beach - recommended as one of the best beaches in NZ, and it didn't disappoint. A thirty minute walk over rocks to get there meant that it was fairly quiet, with no development, cars or boats. Absolute heaven for a few hours of sunbathing, reading and paddling (still a bit fresh for proper swimming without wetsuits!)
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| A little bit of paradise |
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| Quite a long bit actually |
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| Matt's big footsteps |
We spent Sunday night at a farm campsite further along the coast, enjoying a spot of hill running (got to keep training!) before bed.
The next morning the sun was still shining so we decided we needed even more beach time which meant heading back to Cathedral Cove - one of the highlights of our cycle tour last time, as well as being Pete Cope's favourite place in NZ!
Cathedral Cove is famous for its impressive rock formations so with the SLR in tow this time Matt got snapping...
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| A break in the serious photography |
Unfortunately the weekend was drawing to a close and we were soon back in the van (with a cheeky fish and chip stop en route) and back to Auckland. What a weekend though, definitely one of many as the summer really gets started!
