Another sparkling day in NZ!! I love it here, there is so much more I want to explore and see and do...but I'm also homesick. I miss my man, my dogs, my family and my home, and so I'm ready to leave and someday I will definitely return to hit up the southern portions of the South Island that I missed.
I went into town and ordered a flat white to go and drove towards the ocean. Windows open, surfer music on the radio (techno beats, low base grooves, very chill...a gal could get used to this), I drove towards Whale Bay and Manu Bay to check out the surfing sitch.
What beautiful views of vast blue! And don't kid yourself, those waves are way higher than your head. A few surfers were out at the low-tide, catching waves and riding them for a lot longer than I do! I sat in the warm sun, sipping my flat white and enjoying the moment, all relaxed and happy. The homes that are tucked into the hills and near the beaches are relatively small but pricey for NZ home prices (maybe around NZ$700,000), but all quite funky and no two are the same. A nice change from all the U.S. homes that look identical.
I also wanted to check out Whaingaroa which is right next door to these surf spots. At the top of the hill they had the Raglan Surf Life Saving Club--a commonplace building in the surf towns here due to extreme waves and rip currents.
Overlooking the bay, I checked out this little monument, I assume an homage to the Maori culture and heritage.
Four stone statues were situated at points opposite each other, a circle of stone pavers connecting them and all leading to a tile mosaic in the center depicting a star compass, the cardinal signs. The statue for East had interesting shell eyes; East represents the sky father, rising sun, Tawhiri wind god, life, growth, geneology and flight.
North represents the fire goddess, music, the heart, passion, soul, and heat:
South pays respect to Tane Mahuta (the tall kauri tree Wendy and I had visited at the beginning of our trip), Mother Earth (yay!!!), nurture, weaving and cold weather (remember, we're in the southern hemisphere, so south is cold!):
And West represents the setting sun, surf, marine life, all things water (also note the cool tile mosaic that ties this all together):
*sigh* My time here was coming to a close. I drove back to Auckland (a rather unscenic drive on actual highways) and returned the campervan. They were nice enough to completely reimburse me for the tire I had purchased (YAY!!!) so I was definitely a happy camper about that. Their shuttle took me over to the airport with plenty of time to spare--the nicest airport I've ever been inside, plenty of great shopping opportunities! My flights were teeeerrrrrrriiiibbbblllleee....I arrived at Boston, honestly delirious from two days of sleepless travel, and Jeff arrived with a huge smile!! I was so happy to hug my honey and be back home, even if it is uglier than in NZ...ahh, Zoe was so excited that she did the full-body wag for 20 minutes upon my arrival. Shelby was interested for a minute and then realized that I would be staying.
I am so excited to one day go back and explore more of that amazing country, everything is breathtaking and beautiful and so laid-back! Wendy was a super travel partner and we had a blast together. Where will our ladies' trip take us next year? :-)
I had one more place to explore before heading home, and it was positioned a couple hours south of the Auckland airport, making my travels tomorrow less frantic. Raglan, home to world-class surfing competitions, sounded like a nice little place to check out some ocean views while winding down and packing.
I headed north past the Waitomo cave region--something I'd like to do when I return to NZ, but not on this trip. As with many of the great spots around this country, the road leading up to it wound its way through steep mountain pastures, completely lacking the advertisements and other clutter lining the popular roadways in the U.S. I love how unassuming even the most popular places are here.
I found my way into town and checked into the nearby campground. The afternoon sun was hot and I made my way towards the bridge over an embayment. Hundreds of families were cooling off in the water, jumping from the bridge and tall tree branches into the deep aqua blue below.
I was surprised to see almost every family seemed to be of Maori descent, do large populations of their people live near Raglan? I've heard some of the world's best surfers are Maori (cannot back up that statement as I am a beginner surfer--but I think I heard that someplace...), and I suppose if you grow up surfing in world-class waves, you'd get good at it really quickly.
Anyway! The downtown of Raglan is what I would call slightly upscale touristy, peppered with a couple of casual haunts. Palm trees lined the grassy median, surf shops, yummy kebab and ice cream takeaways...a back alley hoppin' bar scene with triangular flags running crisscross above diners drinking beer in their flip flops, loud techno surfer music, a heavy beat filling the air. I found a really funky little sitting area with repurposed metals. Wendy would have loved this!! Check out all the cool seating arrangements!
After some tasty food in my belly, I went for a looooonnnngggg walk on the beach. Such a pretty evening!
This whole area near the town is technically Raglan Harbor, or Whaingaroa, and the actual surfing occurs in Manu Bay, Whale Bay, and other nearby areas. Today there were some folks windsurfing which was pretty cool!
I forced myself to go back to the campervan and clean out the trash and pack everything so I was ready to go for my lengthy travels ahead. Blah! I came here with two very full backpacks so I didn't have to check any luggage, but I had bought souvenirs (ahem, bulky yarn...) and I had to manage a way to stuff it all in and make it fit. I wrestled with my bags for an hour and I came out the victor! Now time to chill out with some knitting and journaling before falling asleep on my last night in NZ...
Low tide in the region is at 9:30 a.m. today and I had to drive about two hours to get there. Where? I had read about these terrific rock formations further north on the west coast but it is imperative visitors get there at low tide. Thanks once again to the numerous !!!! in the description for this place, Wendy's handy dandy travel guide by Scott Cook steered me towards Tongaporutu and the Three Sisters.
I was hoping Amie and Chris might come with me but they decided to stick around Opunake for the day. I said my goodbyes and sadly drove away. That homesick feeling started to creep back in again, even though I knew I'd be home soon and should enjoy the remaining time in NZ. It was a gorgeous morning!! Plenty of sunshine and time to explore again.
I arrived about 1.5 hours after low tide, which meant I had to hurry to see everything before the water rushed in and then would be unable to get past it to see the gorgeous sights!! A small parking lot, complete with plenty of freedom campers and day-trippers, was the gateway to some supposedly way-cool rocks along the sea. I hopped out and picked my way out to the stretch of beach already filling up with a tidal river.
I hugged the colored layers of rock on my left and sloshed through knee-high saltwater, continuing towards the ocean. Black sand and rock caves would be submerged soon.
The site originally had three tall rocks jutting out of the sand and the ocean, dubbed the Three Sisters. One rock has recently fallen and so they are down to a pair.
Gigantic rock arches decorated the beach for as far as I could see, and I ran and frolicked on the sand, hoping to take it all in before the tide washed me out to sea.
This is a place where you let go and allow childlike exuberance to fill you up. I felt so playful and free here for some reason, and with very few people around, it was easy to feel like I was the only gal on some remote stretch of land.
What an amazing area! I desperately wanted to keep exploring further to see more, but that tide comes in so quickly here...*sigh* As I walked back, I saw a huge wrack line of driftwood, more caves and flourescent green algae.
Time for a quick pb&j and an apple and more driving north to my destination...
Exactly what do the locals of NZ do on the weekends? I was about to find out! We awoke on Saturday rather early to be ready for our morning. Chris was anxious to get to the good surf spots while the tide was low at 9:30 a.m. and we had a bit of a drive to get there. Sunscreen is a necessity, even if you have olive skin tones and tan easily like I do. The sun is super hot and powerful due to the very thin ozone over the country, and so even I have to apply 30 spf every hour or so. I don't normally use any up here!
Surfboards, wetsuits and sunscreen in tow, we hopped into their white Delica van (check out the dashboard features: an altimeter and some nifty thingamabob that indicates the vehicle's degrees off from parallel to the ground, so you know when to stop so you don't flip the whole thing over!).
A 30-minute drive down the Surf Hwy, past plenty of dairy cows and pastures, led to Ahu beach. The locals keep abreast of changes on the beaches and how those changes impact surfing. Perhaps 30% of conversation revolves around surfing, and yet it's always interesting because it's always something new. Anyway, Ahu beach was a great little surf spot known mostly by locals.
Chris parked the Delica and the waves looked fairly decent. Now, I am a beginner surfer. As in, I've only been on a surfboard five times. In New Hampshire. I stood up on the board twice, each time for about two seconds before getting tossed off. NZ has world-class surfing. HUGE waves. But maybe I'll luck out and have small waves that I can manage...they didn't look too bad until I actually saw a person surfing against the wave to put it into perspective--they were shoulder-to-head high. Um. No. Not a good idea for me to surf there! Amie and Chris hopped in and I decided to walk along the beach for a good long while. What a gorgeous morning for that!
Barefoot in the sand...ahhhh...
Amie and Chris were getting out of the water just as I finished my walk. Apparently the surf wasn't very good at Ahu today. Just as well because it was time to head back, grab some grub and go to our next adventure...
"Amie and I waited until your visit so all three of us can go dam dropping!" Chris (aka "Extreme") said eagerly on the first day of my arrival. "What is dam dropping?" I asked him cautiously. "It's where you lay on a sled on the river and go over a dam!" he enthused. Huh. I hadn't done any typical NZ crazy activity like bungee jumping or zorbing...well, why not? So off we drove to push ourselves over a 33' dam.
We met up with our guide for the day, a native Maori also named Chris. First things first: put on wetsuits, booties, helmets, life vets, and grab buoyant sleds with handles.
Chris the guide went on to explain the significance of the river to his people. It originally separated two tribes that often clashed with one another, and one day, a brave Maori leader had a peaceful protest to stop the violence. This was noted as the first of its kind, occurring even before Gandhi and Martin Luther King, Jr. led their people. Amazing! Then Chris said a prayer of sorts to the spirit protecting the river, a dragon-type of spirit that you must ask permission before you enter the water, requesting safe passage for the people who are not native Maori.
Now we were ready to throw ourselves off of a dam! We took a look at the dam from the side--wow...it was a lot steeper of a drop than I thought it would be!! I was nervous but determined to go over. We had eight options, starting from "easy" and going up to "extreme!" for how to go over the dam. The first level was on your belly, head-first. Amie went first and landed in the pool below with a thumbs-up!!! I edged up to the dam lip and our guide Chris held the sled for me. I shimmied awkwardly like a plump walrus up into the correct position on the sled, staring at the almost vertical pane of water cascading down the dam. The pool 33' below seemed calm and ready for me. After a brief feeling of panic, I said I was ready and Chris gave me a push. !!!! I felt like I was in free-fall!!! Flying down the water and I gave a fear-strangled scream halfway down. I landed in the pool and was a bit shaky. I wasn't sure if I liked it or not...so I tried it again! I really liked it the second time and so after we all went over, we climbed back up and tried level #2, on our backs, head-first. The whole way down I could see only clouds, no sights of the water or the drop itself, just the feeling where your stomach drops funny on a rollercoaster. Way cool!!! What a rush!! To see a video of me, go to: http://www.flickr.com/photos/42726451@N08/4375316032/
And so the levels progressed, #3 was on your butt, feet-first, which was actually quite intimidating because it was so easy to flip off partway down the dam and scrape your hands on the concrete. That was as far as I was willing to push myself. Amie and Chris kept going with the increasing levels. Amie stood on the lip of the dam, the guide holding on to her life vest. She stood straight as a board with the sled held in front of her. After two times of losing her nerve, she finally was ready. She fell forward, still stiff and straight, swan diving and the sled landed and down she flew the rest of the way!!! Then it was her fiancee Chris' turn, aka "Extreme." Chris climbed up on the side of the dam, about 7-10' above the lip of water. He stood stiff and fell forward, airborne for a couple of very long-seeming seconds before hitting the water!!!! WOW!! Check out Chris at:
http://www.flickr.com/photos/42726451@N08/4375309372/
We laughed and laughed the whole way home about how cool of an experience that was. Definitely worth the pricey cost!
After quick showers, we left the house once again for a potluck dinner party. Amie's surfer friend Caitie from Scotland was having people over at her boyfriend Robin's house up on the mountain. His digs were up a crazy curvy road, so steep, probably the steepest road I've ever driven up. Once up there, it was a sweeping view of the ocean and the rest of the mountain behind the house. It wasn't anything fancy but it was a cute little place, unfinished and with an outhouse building for the "necessary room."
We had amazing vegetarian food selections and yummy beer, then headed up the hill for a campfire and some jazz music thanks to those who brought their instruments. We watched the night sky fill completely full of stars, even more than I had seen in Northland (including Orion, who was upside down!). I chatted with some sweet lassies from Scotland and enjoyed myself thoroughly. What an amazing day! And so great to experience the local scene for the insider's view of NZ life.
Oh...my...goodness...gracious...
I am so sore from yesterday's three-hour tramp. It's winter at home and so I haven't climbed anything resembling more than a hill in about four months (unless you consider level 3 on the treadmill to be "hill climbing"--ummm, yeah, I don't think that counts). Snowshoeing requires different muscles if you're a beginner like me. And so, I am sore. Which means today is a lovely day to walk around Opunake and take it easy!
Amie and Chris had to work (it's a Friday) but I had time to sleep in, enjoy a flat white at this great little coffee shop in town (they have a patio out back, sweet as!), relax. After sending postcards, buying a cute top at the surf shop, and going for a jog along the cliffs next to the ocean, I went to Amie's school for some after-work socializing (i.e., boozing it up at 4 on an empty stomach).
Her co-workers are amazingly friendly (hey, I live in New England--we aren't openly friendly to most folks, I think the cold has something to do with that). The school principal and I chatted over wine about marine science and commercial fisheries issues that plague NZ. Aaahhh, time to unleash my nerd...
The evening brought some friends to Amie and Chris' place, so more wine and the eternal presence of tortilla chips and guacamole along with laughter and good conversation. It was great to chat with one of my best gal pals whom I miss terribly (Amie, when are you moving back?!) and get to know her fiancee Chris better (Chris and I apparently enjoy debating various issues--and we are good at agreeing to disagree). No photos from today because it was a day to relax and gear up for tomorrow, our big day with surf potential and a little something they like to call Dam Dropping. More on that soon!
My first full day in Opunake brought sunshine, so I decided to go for a tramp on Mt. Taranaki in the Egmont National Park. Amie and Chris were busy working so I set off on my own for some adventures.
This whole region is another oddity in that it's mostly plains or rolling hills, pastures for dairy cows, then suddenly there's a huge volcano. The pastures go right up to the beach where suddenly there's a 75-foot cliff down to the ocean. I was ready to hit the mountain today! It's amazing how the clouds hover like a little cap on top of the volcano. They cascade over it and down the flanks until it whips by you. Being surrounded by those clouds is a very cool feeling, but hold onto your hat!
Wendy's handy travel guide was left in my stead, and so I found what sounded like an awesome loop hike! *SCRMW The drive up to the mountain was otherworldly, with tall tree branches arcing over the road to form a lush green tunnel. A short drive up the mountain and I parked the campervan at the Dawson Falls Visitor Center, complete with native Maori artwork, including what we U.S. folks would call a totem pole.
The Maori believe in spirits (more on this later when Amie, Chris and I go dam diving). Do any inhabit the mountains and these forests?
NZ folks on the whole seem to have an excellent set of morals regarding conservation and preservation of their phenomenal natural resources. Plenty of signs on trails warning the tramper not to encourage the spread of didymo, which is also called "rock snot" and is a huge problem.
It's a diatom found in warm, shallow water and can spread very easily, covering the stream substrates and vegetation and thus impacting aquatic flora and fauna. Signs on the trail encourage trampers to clean off their boots to keep it from spreading. Other signs on the trail say no dogs allowed. Zoe would not be happy to hear that!
There had been a lot of rain recently so the trail had soupy spots where the wooden edged dirt "stairs" reside. The route opened up to river beds to allow for snowmelt waterways during peak flows.
A series of small pools of water near tiny waterfalls and seeps nicknamed Wilkies Pools. Although small in circumference, they are probably a few feet deep, enough for one or two people to spend time relaxing on a hot tramping day. Today the strong winds kept it chilly and so I passed on the swim.
I kept walking, crossing streams coming down the mountain, stepping gingerly from rock to slippery rock. Around the bend brought a nice view of Dawson Falls.
I was captivated by the clouds coming over the summit, check it out!
Have I mentioned I also love clouds?
It was getting very windy, definitely windier than our hike on Arthur's Pass! Onward and upward to the Stratford Plateau. Although the area was technically a parking area, it felt more like the base camp for a mountaineering expedition. I imagine when snow is on Mt. Taranaki, it's a formidable sight. By this time, the wind was reaching ridiculous speeds, small pebbles from the parking area were flying up and hitting me in the face, and I truly was unable to walk against the wind. Walking with the wind caused me to end up on my tiptoes rather than my heels!!
I made a 90-degree turn and headed on the trail towards the Enchanted Forest. Walking along the ridgeline, the wind whipped up on my left through the scrubby head-high vegetation and threatened to take me with it as it blasted towards the steep cliffs on my right. I began searching for the sturdiest plants to cling to should the wind get worse. Yikes! It felt very odd, like I was in a scary movie. The wind whooshed all over and around me, rustling the bushes, from far away to right overhead in an instant. Once over the ridgeline, I was in the goblin forest. If ever there was a place in which gnomes, faeries and forest sprites lived, this is it. It seemed to be a truly magical place in which anything is possible. The trees, some alive and some dead, stood with limbs intertwined, snaking around each other and over the path.
They were covered in moss so long that their trails of green fluttered in the wind, giving the appearance of craggy old arms overgrown with long hair.
Some lichens grew horizontally from the trees and looked like leaves.
I was alone but it felt like there were numerous forest creatures hiding, watching a silly girl tramping through their living room while wide-eyed and giggling. I slipped twice and fell hard, hitting the base of my left thumb near my wrist. It felt like I had bruised something, had a light sprain of the tendon, and it swelled up hotly for the day. I must have inherited my grandma's klutzy gene. But I had more forest to explore!
After hiking for a couple of hours, I came upon the highest "swing bridge" on Taranaki. A swing bridge is shaped almost like a V, with enough room for one foot in front of another while you cling to the braided metal wire for dear life. I am intensely scared of heights, but I was eager to try this, even with the winds whipping down the mountain and swaying the bridge. I had to know if I was really capable of going across.
I got halfway across and looked up at the mountain and then down the ravine--the bridge was easily 100 ft. above the rocks and streams below. I took a deep breath to steel my nerves just as a huge blast of wind hit the bridge. I gripped the metal tightly, waited for the gust to pass, and continued. Got to the other side and did a little victory dance and yell, arms raised--what a HUGE accomplishment for me!! On the other side, I saw this sign!!!!
And also ran into a lovely older gentleman from the Lake Taupo region. He was pleased to see the younger generation taking an interest in the natural world. We chatted for a bit. He has been to the U.S. twice, both times to visit his daughter in Dallas. I encouraged him to visit New England sometime. What a friendly man! Hope he's good with heights...
One more view of clouds coming over the mountain and I was back at the van.
Ahhhh, time for a shower before a lovely evening of fish and chips with my friends!
Another sparkling day in NZ!! I love it here, there is so much more I want to explore and see and do...but I'm also homesick. I miss my man, my dogs, my family and my home, and so I'm ready to leave and someday I will definitely return to hit up the southern portions of the South Island that I missed.
What beautiful views of vast blue! And don't kid yourself, those waves are way higher than your head. A few surfers were out at the low-tide, catching waves and riding them for a lot longer than I do! I sat in the warm sun, sipping my flat white and enjoying the moment, all relaxed and happy. The homes that are tucked into the hills and near the beaches are relatively small but pricey for NZ home prices (maybe around NZ$700,000), but all quite funky and no two are the same. A nice change from all the U.S. homes that look identical.
Overlooking the bay, I checked out this little monument, I assume an homage to the Maori culture and heritage.
Four stone statues were situated at points opposite each other, a circle of stone pavers connecting them and all leading to a tile mosaic in the center depicting a star compass, the cardinal signs. The statue for East had interesting shell eyes; East represents the sky father, rising sun, Tawhiri wind god, life, growth, geneology and flight.
North represents the fire goddess, music, the heart, passion, soul, and heat:
And West represents the setting sun, surf, marine life, all things water (also note the cool tile mosaic that ties this all together):
*sigh* My time here was coming to a close. I drove back to Auckland (a rather unscenic drive on actual highways) and returned the campervan. They were nice enough to completely reimburse me for the tire I had purchased (YAY!!!) so I was definitely a happy camper about that. Their shuttle took me over to the airport with plenty of time to spare--the nicest airport I've ever been inside, plenty of great shopping opportunities! My flights were teeeerrrrrrriiiibbbblllleee....I arrived at Boston, honestly delirious from two days of sleepless travel, and Jeff arrived with a huge smile!! I was so happy to hug my honey and be back home, even if it is uglier than in NZ...ahh, Zoe was so excited that she did the full-body wag for 20 minutes upon my arrival. Shelby was interested for a minute and then realized that I would be staying.
