Reunited at last!

#newzealand #travel #adventure

Yesssss…….We were finally reunited with our bikes! 😁 After what seemed like forever, we finally got the call to say we could go and collect them. So after a whirlwind tour of the Northland, we hot footed it straight back to Auckland, picked the bikes up on our way through, and headed straight back out to the Coromandels.

We pitched up for the night in a campsite at Hot Water Beach and bloke got straight on to building the bikes back up and checking them over…All good, I’m relieved to say.

Next morning we took a 3 hour kayak tour to see Cathedral Cove. You can’t go to the Coromandels and not see Catherdral Cove, it’s an iconic place and the scene of many a photo for any Kiwi tourism promotion. There were 8 of us in our group, in two man sea kayaks. We set off from the mainland and paddled out to a small island, had a paddle around it and then our guide led us through a cave, everyone made it through without hitting the rocks on either side.

We continued on to the Cove and landed on the beach with as much style and panache as we could manage. No one caught a wave or overturned so Brad, our guide, was very pleased and relieved – seeing as the beach was quite busy and we had another group following us in. Our reward was, he immediately set about putting together a make shift cafe, offering tea, coffee and biscuits, while we were left to go and explore the area. What a beautiful place, the beach was stunning, the tide was in, so getting between the beaches required swimming through the Cove itself.

If you look closely you can see bloke on the far side of the Cove

Even the long drop (toilet) had a stunning view

On the way back, Brad stopped to tell us about the conservation areas of no fishing and the sea was so clear we were able to see the fish clearly, swimming just under the kayaks, along with jelly fish and sting rays (if you get the chance it would be amazing to snorkel at this spot – Stingray Bay :bloke) . The weather was on our side too, we were blessed with wall to wall sunshine for the day, (not forecast). Brad was really enthusiastic, with plenty of stories and information about the area to keep us entertained. The nice thing about doing these tours is the information of the local guide, it’s great doing stuff on your own but often it’s worth paying for expertise, learning as you go, it was a fantastic way to spend a morning.

We spent the rest of the day chillin in the sunshine on Hot Water Beach, where bloke had a chance to try out his new toy, a bodyboard (it’s a pretty easy way to frighten yourself without taking the time to learn how to surf :bloke) . We briefly went to join the fun further down the beach and pinched someone else’s pre dug hole to test out why Hot Water Beach gets its name. When you dig a hole within a small area of the beach, the water is so hot, it is almost impossible to stand or sit in it without adding cold sea water to it. People dig large holes and sit in their very own hot pools. The downside is, it can get quite busy at low tide (unpleasantly so :bloke).

So, having spent a couple of days relaxing at the beach, it was time to go ride the bikes and make our way south to spend some time with the family. We left the Coromandels and headed to one of my favourite places, Rotorua. Whakarewarewa Forest is an awesome place to be, you’re able to ride right past giant redwood trees and tree ferns, lush foliage everywhere, and this time of year the foxgloves are out too. Somewhat amusing to me, as I think of the foxgloves as always being out around my birthday (June) back home and here, they are out for Christmas.

It would so good to get my bike back at last and even better to get to ride off road for the first time in about 7 weeks! I’m still rocking the knee brace, but generally my knee is feeling stronger. I managed a couple of hours before I gracefully bailed out and let bloke go burn off some energy on his own for a bit (the higher up the hill you go, the better the tracks seem to get. There are so many to choose from and the grading system is so different to the European model you never really know what you might get :bloke). Better to build up gently and see how the knee handles it. Unfortunately, it was just a brief stop in Rotorua on this occasion but it was long enough to get my fix. We’ll be back before we know it.

Feeling pretty good, the following day we stopped in Taupo, at Craters of the Moon bike Park for another couple of hours of xc shredding (this is a bit like Swinley forest, Berkshire, wicked fun, bermy and really fast on the 29er :bloke), before continuing on to Napier.

We got there just in time for a quick change and out for dinner and a burlesque show. My family are friends with Cherry Boomb, aka Miss Burlesque New Zealand, who has just spent two years living and working in London. She has returned home and is now putting on shows in her home town. It was a fun night and that kind of set the tone for the rest of the week. Lots of delicious meals out, plenty of wine and even a few cocktails thrown in for good measure. We went along to watch the Christmas Parade, which feels very odd in the sunshine and warmth.

If you ever find yourself in Napier, it’s worth taking a tour with Hooters (the car hire company, not to be confused with the American bar chain – http://www.hooters-hire.co.nz), they offer tours around Napier city, in vintage vehicles, to look at the Art Deco buildings or out to the many vineyards in the area. We did it in January, when we were last there and it was so worth it to learn about the history (and sample the booze :bloke). Napier was struck by a large earthquake in 1931, flattening most of the city. It was very quickly re-built, the style of the time was Art Deco and the houses were very cheap and easy to put up quickly to get people back in homes as soon as possible. Many of them are still standing today and in excellent condition, hence Napier being known as the Art Deco Capital. The area itself is called Hawkes Bay, and the region is well known as the fruit bowl of the country and home to a vast selection of vineyards and wineries (there are literally dozens, a “cellar door” tour can leave you desperately wanting cheese and biscuits :bloke) .

We got to spend a lovely week in the Bay with the family, just chilling out and catching up with friends. Lots of lovely food and way too much drink. We managed to squeeze in a day at the beach while they were working and bloke got to practise drowning on his bodyboard in some fairly decent size waves (it’s amazing how long you can hold your breath when you need to :bloke). I had a very nice day sitting on the beach reading my book and watching the show. I can’t remember the last time I sat on a beach and did nothing. This could become a regular thing.

We also booked a cheeky little morning SUP (Stand up Paddleboard) lesson around the marina at West Quay (with http://www.paddleboardinghb.co.nz). I’ve done it before but not for years and only a couple of times, so it was really nice to have a lesson.

We were taught the basics, along with some techniques to get us out of trouble, if needed. Bloke wasn’t just being lazy and catching a lift back to land by the way, this was us practising a towing technique. So we now have a SUP to add to the ever expanding collection of toys on board. I’m hoping to be able to get decent enough at it to be able to do some yoga on it by the time we head home. Always got to have something to aim for eh?!

So after a lovely week, we are now on the Interislander ferry, crossing from Wellington, the capital city of New Zealand on the North Island, to Picton, at the top of the South Island. Our adventure continues…….