I had booked a full days coach tour of the far northern tip of New Zealand. The bus picked me and a few others up from the front of the motel. Although the coach was quite full I managed to grab a double seat for myself near the front so I could hear the driver. He was a great tour guide having grown up in the area and seemingly knowing everyone we met. He explained that because it was high tide this morning we would head north to Cape Reinga along SH1 and come back down Ninety Mile beach. I feel this was certainly the best way round.
We first stopped at the Ancient Kauri Kingdom, the only unashamedly commercial stop of the day. This woodworking factory creates furniture and trinkets from tree trunks recovered from swamps. The kauri wood is so hard it is still good after being submerged for thousands of years. I was tempted by some of the smaller items but in the end I didn’t buy anything.
This huge kauri trunk is inside the shop
It has been hollowed out to form a staircase to the balcony
This is a great looking sofa but they wanted £15,000 for it and I suspect it’s rather uncomfortable
From the Kauri Kingdom we headed further north. It was quite a warm day although it was overcast. We stopped for a break outside a shop in a village on SH1. The driver was quite honest, he said that his sister ran the shop but they sold the biggest ice-creams in New Zealand. He wasn’t wrong! The chap in the queue in front of me had the “large” which was insanely huge so I had the “regular”. This was two big, fist-sized, scoops of ice-cream teetering in a cornet, all for about 70p! A group of us happily stood in the carpark licking our ice-creams until they were small enough not to be in danger of dripping. Only then did the driver let us back onto his coach!
The curved east coast of the northern tip of New Zealand is called Great Exhibition Bay. We stopped at Rarawa beach on this bay. The sand on the east coast beaches is white in colour whilst the west coast beaches are yellow. It was a shame that the sky was overcast as I’m sure that it would have been a really nice place if it was sunny. We went for a short walk along the beach before returning to the coach.
I did pick up some nice looking sea shells from Rarawa beach
We then drove the rest of the way up to Cape Reinga at the top of the north-west coast. This isn’t quite the most northerly point of New Zealand but it is more easily accessible than the Surville Cliffs on the north-east coast. By now the sky was clearing and it was turning into a nice afternoon.
In Maori folklore the spirits of the dead travelled north and departed New Zealand from Cape Reinga. It’s also the place where the waters of the Tasman Sea and Pacific Ocean meet. The water is always choppy, even on a still day. It’s a short walk from the coach park to the lighthouse. There are some fantastic views to be had along the way.
From the coach park looking north out over the Pacific Ocean
To the left are the light blue waters of the Tasman Sea. The darker blue to the right is the Pacific Ocean
It’s not a tall light house but it is on top of 300 meter high cliffs so its light can be seen for over 30 miles
The lighthouse has been modernised so it’s now unmanned and even solar powered. By batteries, I guess!
Once everyone was back on the coach (it took a bit of rounding up) we drove the short distance to Tapotupotu Bay on the east coast of Cape Reinga. Away from the crowds at the cape this was a nice place to have the packed lunch that the tour company had provided.
Pohutukawa trees beside the bay
This chap was enjoying what surf there was
After lunch we drove to the sand dunes on the west coast of Cape Reinga, through the village of Te Paki and along a stream with the same name. The bed of the stream is hard packed sand and our bus easily drove along it. Most people seem to use it as an access road to the north end of Ninety Mile Beach. We stopped at the sand dunes in order to try the local sport of tobogganing down their steep sides. Our coach had a number of sleds although I chose the safer option of standing at the bottom of the hill and watch other people career down.
Coming down on a toboggan is much easier than scrambling up
This girl was from a different coach tour. She looked rather pensive at the top but seemed to enjoy the trip
From the sand dunes we drove along the stream to Ninety Mile Beach. Rental vehicles are not allowed on the beach so a coach trip is the best was for tourists to see it. We stopped and got off the coach to walk down to the waters edge. By now the sun was shining strongly and it was a glorious afternoon.
Looking south down Ninety Mile Beach
This rock with a hole isn’t the famous Hole in the Rock. I was to visit that tomorrow
This girl from our tour enjoyed the walk on the beach
Panorama from looking back to land from The Bluff with Cape Reinga to the left and Ninety Mile Beach continuing to the right
Driving further south along the beach we came across the carcass of a dead whale. Our driver seemed interested in it as he drove round it several times! We exited the beach near its southern end before stopping at the Ninety Mile Beach holiday park. This was a useful loo break and gave the driver the opportunity to hose the sand off the sides of the coach.
Jets of water come up to wash the underside of the vehicles
From the holiday park we drove back to Kaitaia and the motel I was staying at. It had been an excellent day out, especially for only $40 (£15) and I’d thoroughly recommend it. After a shower I was ready for dinner. The motel was doing an “all you can eat” Christmas buffet and I took full advantage of it.