Coromandel (Cathedral Cove and kayaking)

  Hahei, North Island, New Zealand
Friday, January 30, 2009

Parrots in the garden

We were rudely awoken at 4.00am by various scratching and pecking noises in the wall and on the roof.  Orchard House was truly a back to nature experience - one set in paradise.  At first we thought the noises were possums on the roof but they could have been birds as the garden was full of them, including colourful parrot like birds that had calls similar to guinea pigs.

Jayne on Cooks Beach

Anyway breakfast on the terrace amidst all the jungle sounds was followed by a trip to Cooks Bay - a lovely village with a white sand beach - obviously some link to Captain Cook, as is the case for a lot of places around here.

Ferry Landing

From there, it is a short drive to Ferry Landing, where there is a passenger ferry over to the beach resort of Whitianga.  We decided against taking the ferry and after a quick look set about our main reason for staying here - the magnificent Cathedral Cove. We were entertained near the car park on top of the cliffs by
some silly B who had nearly gone over the edge when trying to park on the roadside. Luckily, some Kiwi had a 4x4 with a winch.

Jayne at Gemstone Bay

It is quite a hike to get to Cathedral Cove (about 45 minutes) and it was a boiling hot day but it was a lovely walk through scrub along cliff tops. En route, our first stop was Gemstone Bay for a bit of snorkelling and to cool off.  Steve saw a shoal containing 'thousands' of fish but nothing very colourful.

Cathedral Cove (1)

Cathedral Cove (2)

A further twenty five minute hike to the Cove and it was worth every step!  Probably one of the best beaches we have been on.  It seemed to have a calming effect on everyone as it was such a peaceful place even given so many people there.

Cathedral Cove (3)

Jayne, on venturing for her last swim noticed a group of people looking into the sea. There was a stingray and a bloody big one. Beckoned Steve down and he got the piccy.

Sting Ray at Cathedral Cove

We reluctantly returned to the house for a bacon and fresh "avo from the orchard" sandwich.

Jayne Kayaking

Steve wanted to go kayaking so we drove the kilometre or so down to Rod and Sue's (the owners') cottage.  Jayne gave up quickly whilst Steve disappeared into the distance.  The water was very shallow as it was like a river estuary meeting an ebbing tide.  Finally, after Steve had already carried his kayak back, Jayne got the rhythm and didn't want to come off the water. Dinner was at the cottage, drinking wine and listening to the birds whilst the sun went down. PERFECT.

Evening view