mike & rhonda's latest adventure: Hellhole of the Pacific

While doing our walkabout in Devenport we came across forts that were built prior to WW1 on top of both of the volcanic cones. One had a series of tunnels and disappearing cannons that dropped under cover automatically with the recoil of the cannonball blast. Very ingenious design but up until now an 'angry' shot has not yet been dispatched. It reminded us of Canada and our homeland security. We also walked by a large park where 4 cricket matches were going on.We sat and watched for a while but we didn't see anything exciting happening, not even a tea break. The majority of their fans were congregated in the concession stand patio where beers were being served. It would seem like the best way to 'observe' a match.
From Auckland we drove north to the Bay of Islands, a collection of small islands, sandy beaches and beautiful views. We spent two nights in Paihai and after arriving in the afternoon we walked up and down the main street along the beach checking out the nice shops and eating establishments. However, the 30C temperature lured us back to our hostel where our balcony had a nice cool breeze, a view of the harbour and cold refreshments. The next day we went to the Waitangi National Reserve and to the Treaty House where in 1840 the British convinced the Maori chiefs to sign an agreement that didn't work out as well for them as it did for the Brits (one can only assume that alcohol was involved in this land grab). Nevertheless it was the beginning of New Zealand as we know it today, although it took another 5 years of skirmishes before things settled down. Most of these battles took place in Russell which was just across the bay, and we took a short ferry ride to check it out. With ongoing battles happening between 1835 - 1845, it drove out the British elite for a while, and attracted criminals, felons and madames to Russell, who got away with just about anything while the British law enforcement troops were busy keeping the Maori's at bay, thus earning the nickname, Hellhole of the Pacific. Today it is a beautiful quaint seaside town with Victorian style homes. The locals still have fun with their heritage, celebrating with several Hellhole parties every year. It sounded like a lot of fun but we missed our opportunity by being there one day late.
After leaving the Bay of Islands we drove south down the east coast and then over to the Coromandel Peninsula, stopping in Whitanga at another hostel right beside the beach with balcony views once again. Yesterday we drove 40 km's south to Hot Water Beach where everyone created their own hot tub on the beach. A local showed us how to find a 'hot' spot by squishing your feet into the sand, 4-5 inches below the surface, and if you felt heat then that was your spot. It didn't take us long to find ours, and I started digging away. Being a novice at this I probably picked a spot a little too close to the ocean, and miscalculated the time it took for the tide to recede (low tide is the ideal time to be there), so a few rogue waves wiped out my efforts and I had to start over several times. In the end we were successful and even had a few spots in our tub were the water was extremely hot and would burn your skin if you stayed in that area for more than a few seconds. Quite remarkable. We then drove over to nearby Cathedral Cove where a 45 minute walk along a cliff top and then down to the beach led us to a nice water shaped arch and nice sandy beaches where we spent the afternoon.
We are now in Tauranga, further down the east coast of the North Island. Today we will do a short (1 hour) hike up to the top of a dormant volcano on their lovely coast, explore the town a little and drive an hour inland to Rotorua, known for it's natural thermal activity.