Coromandel Roads

Coromandel roads are an experience in themselves. While sometimes not for the faint-hearted (like me), larger vehicles often navigate with apparent ease. The roads are windy, often narrow, can be steep and are sometimes loose metal (unsealed). Regardless, the countryside they carry you through is truly beautiful.

“Caution wide vehicles” says a sign—does that mean people should watch out for wide vehicles or does it mean wide vehicles should exercise much caution? While I'm trying to figure out if there is actually any difference . . .

I need to distract myself from the narrow, winding road, the trucks speeding toward us, and the cars that are approaching with their wheels over our side of the white line . . .

So I wind down the window to record some of the magnificent views. Taking photos with Schnauzer breath in my ear.

I'm not sure that any of them are spectacular photos. They were taken on the fly with little or no thought to composition.

 I can see the wheels and the edge of the rig in the bottom mirror.

Logic whispers that my leaning toward the centre of the ute is not going to ensure the wheels of the rig stay on the road. Big trucks drive through here at speed every day. If they were concerned, they would slow down . . .  wouldn’t they?

“I think this must be the slowest I’ve ever driven through here,” Dave comments. I think he’s getting a little impatient with my nervousness. Or maybe he’s just reminiscing. The last time we came through here we were each on two wheels. Same road, same corners, but the road sure feels narrower.

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Two days later we travelled from Coromandel Town to Kuaotunu. Steeper hills . . . more tight corners and narrow roads.

Much of it was not too bad . . .

. . . but it still felt good to arrive safely at Kuaotunu.

After unhitching, later that day we took a trip up to Colville. The road up there wasn't too bad really. It would have been possible to take the rig. Same as out to Whangapoua.

Next we headed out to Opito Bay. Still without the rig. Thank goodness! The corners were tighter and the road even narrower.

Climbing up those hills gave some fabulous views. As we started off we could see our rig waaaay down there in the distance.

The road is loose metal in many places and certainly not a road we would choose to take the rig over. Even a large motorhome might struggle, although braver people than I do apparently travel through here. At one stage we met another car coming the other way and almost came to a halt as we crept past each other.

Although it’s not the greatest road in, Opito Bay is worth the trip.(More photos in this blog post)

 

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The next day we moved on, heading for Simpsons Beach, just north of Whitianga.

After that, Hahei and further south, the road seemed to widen a little and I managed to relax.

Please note, the views expressed in this blog are my own, and another person's experience might be quite different. After another year or so on the road, perhaps I will be braver! 
Regardless, always . . . keep left and take your time.

Cathedral Cove and Hahei

Cathedral Cove was one of the highlights of our Coromandel trip.

Our friends, Rick and Chic, are fortunate enough to live in beautiful Hahei, and they let us park up on their drive for a few nights.

Rick and Chic run an excellent Airbnb (two separate rooms), so if you need a place to stay in Hahei with absolutely FANTASTIC hosts . . .  check out these links: Hahei Getaway 1 or Hahei Getaway 2. (Tip: Book early as it's a popular place, especially over the summer.)

This is their campervan tucked in alongside the deck at the front of their home.

Hahei Beach is another beautiful Coromandel Beach. 

We knew this lovely white-sand beach from previous visits, but this time we wanted to check out Cathedral Cove. 

The track to walk to Cathedral Cove begins at the car park up on Grange Road, but this space is not that big, and frequently it is full. Knowing this to be the case, Chic drove us up and dropped us off.

Other options to get up here include a park-and-ride service from Hahei. The car park is on Pa Road in Hahei. You could also walk from Hahei beach up to the start of the track, but they say to allow an extra 20-30 minutes.

Dogs are not allowed, so Lucy had to stay with Chic. Naughty dog did not like being left behind and managed to chew through her rope! Fortunately, Chic was keeping an eye on her and caught her before she headed off in search of us.

It’s a good walk to get to Cathedral Cove—about 30-35 minutes going and a little bit longer coming back. 

Rick was to be our friendly "tour guide". Down below, there were several kayaks making the trip by sea. They're going into Mare's Leg Cove and you can see Te Hoho Rock beyond them—that's in Cathedral Cove.

It's easier to see the kayaks if I zoom in a little . . .

It was a warm day and a reasonable workout walking up and down the hills. There is a good wide track and steps that make the walk easier.

The views were stunning. 

Eventually we arrived at our destination. Wow!

When you step off the final steps onto the sand, you're in Mare's Leg Cove. This is Sphinx Rock.

Then you walk through the hole in the rock to get to Cathedral Cove. This is the arch that Cathedral Cove gets its name from.

Te Hoho Rock in Cathedral Cove.

Looking back through the arch to Mare's Leg Cove.

A water taxi is available from Hahei when weather conditions allow . . .

. . . and kayaks are another option.

Along the way, you can take side trips down to Stingray Bay and Gemstone Bay. The dotted line on this sign shows the track. An estimated 500,000 people make this walk every year.

We noticed people walking into this little cave near the water's edge of Mare's Leg Cove, so we went over to check it out.

The view from inside:

Just outside that little cave, there was water dripping down, forming a pool on the beach.

It's interesting how these huge trees all survive so close to the edge of the cliff.

Looking back towards the arch.

Eventually, time to head for home.

Views along the way—foxgloves.

If you click on this picture to zoom in, you can see people walking along the track up ahead.

 

At one stage, we could see more kayaks a little way out from shore. Rick spotted them as they were heading for this rock/island and knew what was about to happen—proving his superior knowledge as a guide! So we waited to watch them go through a hole in the rock.

And a closer view . . .

 

Back at Hahei, down at the local—"The Pour House": a Hahei seagull.

Hahei is also close to Hot Water Beach, where you can dig a hole in the sand and sit in warm water. Make sure you take a small shovel. Or, you might be able to take advantage of someone else's digging efforts after they leave! But other than a trip to Hot Waves* one evening, we left the Hot Water Beach experience for another time. There are so many wonderful places to visit on the Coromandel Peninsula . . . we'll be sure to visit this place on the next trip.


*Hot Waves is a fabulous little arty cafe/restaurant we visited at Hot Water Beach with Rick and Chic and their friends one night. There was live music and the food was wonderful. You can choose the toppings for your own pizza—absolutely delicious! They have other menu items, but my chicken, spinach, brie and cranberry sauce pizza was an excellent choice. Definitely on the "I'll be back" list.