Another bach

On our last full weekend in NZ, we rented yet another bach on the Kapiti Coast, just an hour north of Wellington. It must have been someone's home at one time, because it was huge, 3 bedrooms, a master bath ensuite, a glass enclosed vine covered outdoor eating area, and the usual kitchen, living room and dining room , in a bungalow on 3 acres with a view of the ocean. It was a rainy, misty sort of weekend, and Kapiti Island kept appearing and disappearing out of the fog. We thought we were on an episode of 'Lost'.

There was a narrow track through the beach grasses and over the dunes to the beach, long and flat and dominated by the island off the coast. This was the most isolated bach we have stayed in, and we'll go back again if we can.

Mataikona bach

New Zealand apparently has almost as much coastline as the continental U.S., although it is only the size of Colorado. It is said that no place is more than 47 minutes from the sea, close enough that anyone can drive to the beach for the day. Still, there is nothing like watching the tides coming in and out from your front window.

As we have travelled around New Zealand, we have found that on our free weekends we prefer to stay in rented cottages on the coast with sea views. We research them on the internet, and so far each bach has lived up to our expectations. We arranged for three nights at this typical bach on the ocean.

It was a very windy weekend, and on our first day there, we attempted to visit the lighthouse at Castlepoint, but the warnings were up not to attempt the steps in windy weather as it is considered too dangerous. As the sand was blowing in our faces and the wind nearly knocked us off our feet, we just drove back to the bach. The next day was quieter and we were able to walk up the narrow path and stairs to the lighthouse and beyond. Barry took this fabulous photo of the lighthouse and the barrier reef and lagoon beyond.

We were slightly discomforted to discover that from Castlepoint to Mataikona is a Tsunami hazard zone.

Te Mata peak

We spent a few days in Hastings on the Bay of Plenty. There is a long windy road that leads up to the Te Mata peak, 400 m above sea level, with panoramic views in every direction, and overlooking some wineries and the bay. Parts of the road are one lane wide and are carved into the side of a cliff. I must admit, I had forgotten just how scary the road was since we were last there.

But once you get there, the view was fabulous.

Tin art

I love these metal representations of animals that seem to be all over New Zealand. These two llamas were in the town centre of Wellsford, north of Auckland.

Muriwai Bach

We've stayed at Muriwai before, 2 years ago. It's a black sand beach just 1 hour west of Auckland with a very large gannet colony. We loved the beach and walks out there and decided to go back when we had a long weekend in Auckland. We ended up staying out there for five days!

The bach we had booked before was no longer available so we rented a different one, still high on the hill above Muriwai for the best views. It had amazing views from the living room and the bedroom. It too, had a long flight of stairs to get to the front door. And then a flight of stairs to get to the main living level. Then another flight of stairs to the loft master bedroom and ensuite. I didn't need any additional exercise while we were staying there.

Boating in the Coromandel

As I mentioned before, boaters take their boats out into the ocean by way of ramps into streams or bays. Here is a line-up of boats we passed one afternoon as we were leaving the Coromandel Peninsula all waiting patiently to get their boats loaded onto the trailers and away.