June 4/5- Wow, we’ve been going so fast that we haven’t had much time to blog, so I’ll try and catch us up to speed. We rushed out to Hahei on the Cormandel peninsula to go kayaking on Monday, since a strong storm system was forecast to come in Monday evening and Tuesday. We were about 10 minutes late, but our guide, Hayden, and two sea kayaks were waiting for us. The weather was great- about 68-74 degrees and partly cloudy. The beach had almost no surf- just one small swell every few seconds. Hayden suited us up, gave us a quick tutorial and got us out on the water. We first circled an island, whose Maori name meant “the nose of Hei”. Hei had been the Polynesian chief whose tribe had settled the area. We circled it and went through several small reefs of rock and even a small cave. We then headed into Cathedral cove, a beautiful set of beach joined by a large archway/cave of rock. It was the first entry point of Narnia in the movie “Prince Caspian.” 

  While we explored Hayden prepared a lovely picnic of chocolate chip cookies and mochacinos and hot chocolate. After enjoying that, we loaded back in the boats and headed into an area called Jewel Bay and encountered some Eagle rays- small stingrays that we could see in the crystal clear waters. We came back around the coastline and back to Hahei beach.  It was about 4:30 and the sun was beginning to set (the downside to being back in winter) and we put on some dry clothes and headed down to a ‘holiday park’. These are like KOAs or RV parks with cabins and RV sites. 

We got a stand-alone cabin that had a main room with a queen bed and kitchenette, a full bath, and a small bedroom with bunk beds. There are not a lot of motels around, and they can be very expensive, so these are a good option for us.  We then headed up to a winery that our guide had recommended for their wood fired pizzas. We were the only people there, so the fellow in charge talked a blue streak at us, while cooking our pizza and giving us a little wine tasting. The boys availed themselves of the ping-pong table and several cats lounging by the fireplace. We also got a visit from a local fellow who had shot a rabbit and brought it in completely skinned- he put it on the fire (where our pizza had been cooked) and proceeded to chat Laura up while the boys played more ping pong.  Except for the change in accents, we could have been back in T.R. at a local barbecue restaurant. We headed back to our lodging and then got to sleep. 

The next morning our plan was to hit Hot-water  Beach- so named because a series of geothermal hot springs vent right under a beach. At low tide, you go out and dig a hole in the sand, and the hot water (as hot as 135F) comes up through the sand and fills your hole, making your own hot tub. We ‘hired a spade’ (rented shovels) and despite the windy, cloudy, 55 degree day, had a great time soaking in the hot water watching waves crash into shore. Some of the sand was hot enough to burn you- we discovered you could dig a hole to the side and get cool water, and regulate your pool temperature by combining the two. 

 Josh also explored a large rock in the surf and discovered green mussels, snails, sea stars and what looked like trilobites all over the rock. We also explored some other beach rocks and found lots of tidal pools and cool sea life. After a few hours, the rain came in to keep the 25 mph wind company, and we had to flee. We got some warm showers and hit the road. Laura is having a grand time driving on the left (although they call it right side driving because your steering wheel is on the right side of the car). The biggest challenges so far have been having the windshield wipers on the left of the steering column and the blinker on the right. This means some of my efforts to let people know which direction we are heading have resulted in a flash of clean windows. There are also multiple roundabouts and one-way bridges. The vast majority of the roads are just two lanes, and due to the volcanic topography, lots of windy twists and turns. Burke is quite the navigator though, so we are making it just fine. The car is not very spacious, but it is getting us everywhere we need to go. More on our adventures later!