Coromandel Peninsula

Our first adventure in Pokey took us out to the Coromandel Peninsula, about 2 hours from Auckland, to visit our friend Tim's parents, John and Karen, and to get a taste of the remote, gorgeous peninsula. We spent the evening with John and Karen - reliving Pete, Tim, and John's ski trip to Fox Glacier almost seven years ago, getting local Kiwi tips on where to go on the North and South islands, and enjoying a home cooked meal.

John and Karen's house, overlooking the Coromandel Bay

After packing up the next morning, we headed for the tip of the Peninsula to Fletcher's Bay. We stopped in Coromandel Town for the famous mussels - which are HUGE and very delicious. We then continued on. The road was a windy, narrow road for about an hour, which at the time seemed very challenging as it winded around the bends of the coast without guardrails, until we came to the 50 km dirt road out to Fletcher's Bay - a single lane dirt road, hugging the side of a cliff, that two cars could narrowly pass each other on! Once we arrived, it was worth the long drive - the views were stunning! Fletcher's Bay is a perfect mix of the Maine and California coastlines - the sounds and inlets of Maine, with the dramatic rocks and cliffs of California. We enjoyed a run/hike on a trail around the tip of the peninsula and a night of camping on the beach.

Amazing, HUGE mussels in Coromandel Town

The long, windy, dirt road out to Fletcher's Bay

Carrie enjoying the view from Pokey, the honeymoon suite!

From Fletcher's Bay, we drove to the east coast of the peninsula to Whitianga, a quaint little beach town. The break on the east coast of the peninsula is much bigger and Whitianga reminded us of a mix of Hawaii and California. We caught a rugby game in a local pub with some friends from the hostel.

Larger breaks on the east coast of the Peninsula

We then continued south to Cathedral Cove and Hot Water Beach. We hiked down to the beach to walk under the Cathedral Cove and enjoy the serene beach. From there, we drove down the road to Hot Water Beach. We got a local kiwi tip to rent a shovel and head out to the beach to dig ourselves a thermal pool in the sand. The water coming up through the sand was so hot we needed the ocean waves to come cool it down!

The beach at Cathedral Cove

Pete digging our hot tub out of the beach

We then headed back to Auckland to meet up with Malcolm, a friend of mine from work, and his family, who are over here for the Rugby World Cup.

carrie