A view of the Pacific from the back porch of our accommodations. So nice to be able to get out of bed and stroll to the beach. Oh, the beach does not have too many folks here either!
The ocean was not too angry this foggy morning. So peaceful.
During our afternoon stroll we watched as this “poor lifeguard” had to come out of his shack and get the lifeboat ready as a father and son decided to go for a swim between the flags that beaches set up as “safe zones” to swim. Maybe the guard enjoyed all the action?
A picture of driftwood you ask? Well, we think their name for it is cool: “Slash”. No fires are allowed in most of New Zealand, even on the beach. Killjoys!
On our way down to the beach at Otarawairere Bay We stopped to admire this huge fern tree with the largest fiddlehead we have ever seen. They don’t grow ferns like this back in the States.
This picturesque spot was not very crowded as the 1/2 mile walk down from the cute neighborhood had an elevation loss/gain of 300 feet or 30 stories. No escalators yet here in Kiwiland.
As the tide was low, Laurie found that continuing our walk was not only possible, but very scenic.
Laurie uses this piece of slash to ford the mighty stream below her. The days of simply walking across the rivers in the backwoods of Maine are done for today. Note, I just jumped across to avoid wet feet. Not a good idea for an aging guy with a bad back!
We found that this portion of the beach was made up of a layer of crushed seashells. Very cool texture on the feet. Thought it would hurt but….not.
Talk about a tree “putting down roots”. Nature really is amazing!
Speaking of nature, check out this colony of baby snails. We assumed they were snails but regardless, there were many adult snails in the area that must have “created” them in spots that most shoes would not squish by mistake.
If you are wondering if I got splashed here, I did. Cool little hole in the rocks reminded us a bit of Thunderhole up in Acadia National Park on a much smaller level.
As we did not bring our climbing gear we figured this was the end of our hike for the day.
Off to a scenic viewpoint that was accessible by car. Here is one of the many times we yearned for our tent back home as it would be fabulous to wake up to this view in the morning.
The viewpoint had views of two different towns in the distance. This is the town of Whakapapa. Remember that wh is pronounced “F” in Maori so don’t say it out loud!
This is the town of Ohope. We could not make out our house but knew where it was by the landmarks we recognized on the beach.
Interesting Maori artwork situated up high here taking in the views.
We took a walk through what folks around here call “the bush” to avoid a golf course (nice spot for a course by the way) and find a deserted stretch of beach out to Ohope Heads. Heads are the “end of the road” so to speak on a peninsula. The area above the high tide mark was roped off and signed with the above.
These birds called Variable Oystercatchers were fierce defenders of their young chicks. The little bastards came down to the water, out of the SAFE ZONE set up for THEM, and attacked us quite viscously. We tried reasoning with them that we were in our safe zone but to no avail.
More artwork here in the Whakapapa Heads area. Supposed to have something to do with protecting the sailors navigating the waters here.
Here is a video of the turbulent waters around the inlet to the bay. Our Airbnb host told us that not too long ago he watched 5 different boats capsize right here during the same stretch of bad weather. He said that he and others had to help rescue all the folks that were thrown into the water.