Good day to you all!
Sorry for they delayed post, but things are finally slowing down and I have less and less to report now.....
I am currently in the Bay of Islands (north of Auckland), which is known as the Winterless North. This part of New Zealand experiences the highest number of sunny days compared to the rest of the country. Needless to say I have been soaking it in as much as possible.The remainder of the country is experiencing Winter temperatures and can be a bit chilly, so it has been nice to end up in the sun for a while.
Right now I am staying in a little sea side town called Paihia. There are a few restaurants, shops, and a nice beach. Overall it there is not much going on here, but it is a nice place to hang out and relax for a while. It is also a good jumping off point to see the most northern part of New Zealand. In fact, two days ago I went up to Cape Renga, which is the most Northern point in New Zealand. Cape Renga provides stunning 360 degree views of both land and water. A small lighthouse also compliments the stunning views.
It is also the point where the Tasman seas and Pacific ocean meet. You can actually see their meeting point from Cape Regnaa. The two bodies of water have slight differences in color and when they collide into each other you can see the waves crashing from each body of water. You will notice a picture of this on the link below.
Also in the North is 90 Mile beach, which is legally considered a highway here in New Zealand. Yes, it is a legitimate beach that people can drive on when the tide is out. However, it is not actually 90 miles long. The story goes that when this beach was first discovered it was on horse back. The explorers knew that the horses could go 30 miles a day before they would stop due to exhaustion. When they reached the end of the beach on the third day the horses just stopped. The exploreres then assumed it was 90 miles long beacuse the horses would have kept going. The beach is however, just over 50 miles long, so their system was a bit off...
After driving down 90 mile beach in our bus, we turned to head up the stream that was flanked with sand dunes. Our driver trudged throught the sand and water and we we arrived to our destination...the giant sand dunes!! We all hopped out and hiked up the sand dunes and proceeded to ride boogie boards down them. On average you pick up a speed around 50kph, which is 32mph. It was a blast!!
I will be here in Paihia for a few more days and will be scheming up a plan for the next few weeks. Once I have it together I will let you all in on it. Until then I am going to head out, go kayaking in the bay, and enjoy being another year older! Yes, today is also my Birthday and I have officially hit my mid-twentys! 24 years old to be exact. Yikes!
So there you have it! A bit of relaxing, fun in the sun and another year older.
Photos: https://www.dropbox.com/sh/4vj33u6rfj2x36b/AAC_obrmGpb5PEv7vACllONMa
Cheers,
Jenna
