NZ 2009 - The Coromandel Peninsula

We spent 2 nights at Whitianga in Bill's Oceanside Motel and he remembered us from last year! The drive to Whitianga across the base of the peninsula and then up the east coast was wonderful. There are some spectacular mountains and beautiful colours.
We explored Cathedral Cove which we missed last year. We parked at Hahei Beach which is a long sandy beach, crowded by NZ standards but not by British! Then we had a significant walk to the cove itself and we were surprised by the number of people there. The main feature is a big arch, some 40' high with an equal sized pillar a few yards out at sea. There were a number of showers on this day, particularly when we set foot on sand!
We moved on to Colville Bay Motel after re-exploring Coromandel town, still looking a bit like a frontier town. The accomodation was in an idyllic setting, near the sea and amongst the hills. It exuded calmness and peace. The night sky was amazing. It was our base for one of the best days ever - the Coromandel Walkway. The drive to the start at Fletcher Bay was an adventure in itself on the gravel road with many hairpin bends and sheer drops into the sea. The walk was about 7km and involved 2 climbs from sea to about 500'. The views along the coastline were just about the best ever! We arrived at Stony Bay for our packed lunch and a dip in the sea after 3hr 15min. We then had to turn round and do the walk again! At the beach just before Fletcher bay we had the best dip ever. The sea seemed quite warm and it refreshed our tired bodies. A wonderfully satisfying day in perfect weather!