Day Eleven – Beauty Redefined on the North Island

So I think it’s official… I’ve gotten up earlier more mornings on this trip, than I do at home.  The alarm clock went off at 5am so I could hike Mt. Maunganui to see the sun rise.  It was a pretty tough hike, at least at the speed I was hoofing it… the sun doesn’t wait.  But once again, the views were worth the sweat and exhaustion.

After stopping back at the hotel to shower and check out, I headed north along the coast of the Bay of Plenty onto the Coromandel Peninsula, stopping at the little beach towns along the way.  One of the highlights was Hot Water Beach where a warm spring sits underneath the sand.  Within an hour either side of low tide, you can dig a shallow hole on the beach to create your own little hot tub. Despite all the people checking out this thermal rarity, it was a cool experience to see and feel the hot water scalding your toes when you dig your feet into the sand.  Seriously, it’s so hot it burns… so your “hot tub” needs to be in reach of the ocean waves so the cold water can rush in to create the perfect temperature.

Then it was onto Cathedral Cove, one of the most picturesque spots I’ve encountered on this trip… and maybe in life.  This beach is only accessible via boat or a 6km roundtrip hike. It’s absolutely stunning and I was able to take some time, sit on the beach and soak it all in… and as we know, there hasn’t been much opportunity for moments like this over the past ten days.  I enjoyed every second. This time the pictures DO do the backdrop justice, so I’ll let them do the rest of the talking.

I’m staying in a ridiculously small town tonight in the most adorable hotel… it’s an old church!  But there obviously isn’t a whole lot to do, which works out well given that I’m beat from that 5am wake up call.  I did stop for dinner at the local brewery and had the Coromandel mussels.  I’m not sure how these were different from the Marlborough mussels, but WOW.  I’ve always liked mussels, but this took it to another level.  Unfortunately almost all of the seafood caught locally around New Zealand isn’t exported outside the country, so if you want to try them, you’re just going to have to jump on a plane and come on down to middle earth.  Take it from me… It’s worth the trip!

Eleven down, one to go and I’m already starting to get depressed about having to return to real life 🙁 Maybe I’ll just miss my flight and have to stay…

This blog entry was originally posted on www.KmayerAdventures.blogspot.com