Beaches, Hikes and Birthdays

Time flies when you are surfing, hiking, driving and having a blast.  It has been over a month now in New Zealand and we have covered most of the North Island.  The last two weeks has been all over the map and we have currently planted ourselves at Laura's Aunt Pauline's house in Ngunguru (have fun pronouncing that one!).

Our stay in Opunake was a short one because we soon found out that the town was full of lies.  Starting from the entrance sign it read "world famous surf" - that was a lie.  The world famous surf is north of the town closer to New Plymouth.  The surf was a mediocre beach break and then a famed man made reef break that they built, costing way too much money, doesn't even work.  The town was also supposed to be 'boutiquey' and it was very much the opposite.

We pulled shoot and made our way further up the coast to New Plymouth for the next few days.  We found a backpackers called Sunflower Lodge that let us set up our tent in their backyard.  It was a great place in town.  From there we did trips to all the surf spots and wondered around town.  The swell was on the small side but we managed to find some great waves.  I had another one for the memory bank that I can tell to my great grandchildren.  There is this beauty of a wave called Stent Road which is a rifling, right, reef point break.  I managed to surf it in the 6 to 8 foot range on a glassy morning.  It had been awhile since I had surfed that size and it was a little intimidating but I managed to have an AMAZING session.  It is a very busy spot and the whole of Taranaki goes there to surf so I only went there once.

After that session we went to find a more manageable wave up the road at Ahu Ahu.  Lots of options to surf around there but the wave of choice was the mellow left that was peeling down the line.  It was a great way to compliment the right at Stent.  We surfed this wave a couple more times during our stay in New Plymouth.  We had one other poor beach break session somewhere I can't remember.

Our non-surf time in New Plymouth was spent wandering the city which has a nice boardwalk, shops and restaurants.  We really enjoyed our time there but it was cut short due to the weather supposedly clearing for our hike and a deadline to be up in Ngunguru.

So a little over a week ago we packed up and made our way inland to do the Tongariro Crossing by Lake Taupo.  Not only is this place beautiful and scenic but it's also where they shot the evil volcano thing from the Lord of the Rings, for those who are interested.  We got into town and made our way to a campground in Whakapapa, which is at the base of a ski hill.  Since we arrived later in the day only to stay for one night, we opted for a cabin. It was well worth the cost since the temperature was much colder in the mountains. We also liked the mattress experience since it was only our second time in NZ.

Our Tongariro Crossing began with a 7:30AM pick up by one of the shuttle operators who drop you off on one side and pick you up on the other.  We were prepared for what was meant to be a grueling 19km, 7hour minimum hike between two volcanoes.  We set off at the starting point around 8AM and soon realized this was a very user friendly hike as a jogger passed by. The well-groomed trail that slowly elevated was almost wheelchair accessible. The trail did eventually get a bit tougher but what was grueling was the weather. The temperature dropped about 15 degrees Celsius at the top to below zero with the nasty wind chill.  We did not get the best weather conditions but we managed to have awesome views and a great time.  We finished the hike in just over five hours and had to wait a while at the bottom for our shuttle to pick us up.

Victory beers were enjoyed at the apres ski pub where we decided that we would return at a future date to do other activities. It was now time to head off to one of the jewels of New Zealand - Raglan.  It is the famed left hand paradise and also our first true surfer town in the North Island.  Everybody is there to surf and people come from all over the world to surf these truly amazing waves.  We arrived around sunset and eventually found our tent site at Solescape.  Fun place full of travelers and surfers.

First day there we checked out Manu point which is the closest point break to town, meaning the busiest.  It had 10 guys in the water and barely a ripple.  We decided that that morning would officially become laundry and window shopping time.  With all that complete and bakery sandwiches in hand, we drove back to Manu to have lunch.  I almost choked on my sandwich as I inhaled it down to get into the water.  Waves had doubled in size and only about 6 guys out in the water.  Fun session and a nice warm up to the place.

The next day was more of the same at Manu point but busier because word got out swell was around.  The wind was onshore but it didn't keep people out of the water.  Laura and I surfed Manu for a while before I had a solo session at Whale bay.  To my absolute surprise, as I got in the water, everyone got out.  I had about a one hour session all to myself in 6ft of fun.  Guys eventually showed up but I had my fill.  Solo sessions are always a great feeling but what makes it kind of difficult is being in a new spot especially when it is not small.  It took some careful maneuvering to make sure I didn't rip off my fins on rocks but in the end I managed to score some epic rides.

Next morning was one more session at Whale bay.  The points were picture perfect but just a touch on the smaller size.  Put a few hours in the water, packed our things and then made our way to Ngunguru.  It was a 4 hour journey and we made it to the sunny east coast.

Last Friday was the beginning of Birthday extravaganza's.  We started off Laura's birthday by going to an all girls high school to watch Laura's youngest cousin Claudia win awards.  From there I stopped at the grocery store to pick up picnic material.  Back in Ngunguru, Laura and I made our way with a little row boat across the estuary to the sand spit beach.  What started as a picturesque row turned into a windy, against the current row that took half an hour to get about 100 meters.  What started as "oh baby" turned into "oh! f this".  With that behind us we strolled to the beach to find ourselves the only ones.  I laid out the cheese, bread, wine etc on the beach.  We sat down to enjoy but our food was quickly covered in sand.  All the interruptions to my birthday picnic for Laura soon in the past as we enjoyed the lovely afternoon.  The rest of the day was spent at Kristen's old work place Schnappa Rock for a couple of bevies and then stayed for some delicious pork belly crackle dinner with Pauline and Nicola.

Last Saturday was dual birthday party for Laura and Pauline.  Pauline's neighbourhood friends came over and we had a blast until 2am.  The next day was Pauline's birthday where we spent the day at a wine and food festival up in Kerikeri.

This whole week has been spent hanging out at Pauline's and sleeping in a bed, with sheets and a duvet.  Sounds normal but we have not had that in ages. Judging by Laura sleeping 10 hours a day, it is being thoroughly enjoyed.  Aside from sleep we have been surfing Sandy Bay which is just up the road.  Nice, fun beach break.  Laura has been getting some great waves and is a fun wave all around.  We will be up here for Christmas/New Years and plan to do a couple of day trips to some spots around here.

The Crossing

Water Push-ups a move I have not mastered

Schnapper Rock for Dinner

Party Time!

2nd picnic of the weekend

Flowers Val sent to the Birthday Girls

Top Left: Come sit in the rain and stare at toilet