Early start!! Sea Kayaking was booked 8.30am at Hahei beach, about 5km away. We met our guide – Tyrell – and his mum was also on the trip, which was nice! He was from Whangerei, where we had already been so was nice to say we knew the place! We jumped in our two man sea kayak, which he called ‘friendship breakers’ or ‘the divorce maker’ as controlling them was all about communication and working together. To start with Gav jumped in the back seat and was in control of steering. We folled the costline north, first stop was Gemstone bay where you can dive for precious stones. It is now a protected marine reserve so this is not really allowed anymore. Our next stop was Stingray Bay where we saw quite a few rays swimming under the boat next to the shore. We paddled in to a cave called ‘Lovers Cave’ which gets its name because it is only a short swim from the coast therefore people have been found quickly getting dressed in there!
Next we pulled up our kayaks at Cathedral Cove – here Tyrell made drinks for everybody – hot chocolate for Amanda and a Latte for Gav (with frothy milk and everything!). The coffee was amazing, although Amanda didn’t think that the hot chocolate came close the RDMH’s :o)
Next we pulled up our kayaks at Cathedral Cove – here Tyrell made drinks for everybody – hot chocolate for Amanda and a Latte for Gav (with frothy milk and everything!). The coffee was amazing, although Amanda didn’t think that the hot chocolate came close the RDMH’s :o)
We had the opportunity to take photos before heading around Poikeke and Mutueka Island, stopping to have a look at some Shags – a native bird that looks a bit like a penguin! Nothing to do with Lovers Cave.
Normally the trip ends here but we had made good time so Tyrell took us around Okorotere Island and through some more amazing caves. All in all we paddled over 9km! Our arms were dead and we were a little sun burnt – what an amazing adventure though!
Normally the trip ends here but we had made good time so Tyrell took us around Okorotere Island and through some more amazing caves. All in all we paddled over 9km! Our arms were dead and we were a little sun burnt – what an amazing adventure though!
We jumped back in our van to see how far we could drive back south before we were too tired. After about 3 hours we arrived in Tauranga and decided to find a campsite. A few KMs down the coast was Papamoa Beech – a long stretch of golden sand. We had a shower each to wash off the salt, had some pasta and got some well earned sleep!!
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