Coromandel Coast

May 2010









The Coromandel is a beautiful part of the North Island of New Zealand. Based on work colleagues recommendations we stayed in Hahei, and this was definitely the best area to stay, due to it's proximity to some of the natural wonders in the area and also the feeling of isolation it gave.















One the Saturday we started with a boat trip on Mercury Bay around to Cathedral Cove, with a lot of information on the history of the local area provided along the way. We stopped at a snorkeling spot, to view some of the fish and even got to see a stingray!








After our cruise we headed off to Hot Water beach, hoping that we could dig ourselves a hot spa. Unfortunately the tide didn't go out enough and there were a lot of people digging but not much hot water to be found!





From Hot water beach we headed back to the wharf to take the ferry across to Whitianga, where we enjoyed a drink overlooking the water.







On Sunday we headed off on the Kauri drive to have a look at some of the big Kauri trees. The road is narrow and mainly dirt, so we were glad it wasn't a busy weekend, as it got a bit hairy when cars came the other way. The trees were beautiful, but not as magnificent as some of the redwoods we had seen in California.



We headed to the main Coromandel town, which is a quaint little village, but in all honesty not much else, this is one of the reasons that made me glad we had stayed and based ourselves in Hahei.