20/11/2017 - Mangawhai Cliff Walk

The morning greeted us with bright sunshine. For the first time since we stayed at the Ruakaka campground, we could see and enjoy the view of the sea and the surrounding mountains.

Today, we had another campground change ahead of us. Our route takes us further north - the next destination is Whangarei. But before we headed there, we drove to the Piroa Falls, which are located south of Ruakaka. The drive there consisted mostly of gravel roads - a road surface consisting of loose stones.
The waterfall can be reached after a five-minute walk through the forest. Luckily, we arrived at a good time - with another couple, we were the only ones there. We could set up our camera equipment and take some pictures in peace.

Then we made our way to the nearby coast to Mangawhai Heads. A small town with many surf enthusiasts. However, surfing was not on our mind today. Instead, we decided to go on a three-hour hike.
To get to the actual track, we had to walk along the beach for a while. Once we reached the starting point, the first thing we had to do was climb up the mountain quickly. It got very, very warm for us at around 20 degrees Celsius and New Zealand's sunshine! After reaching the first lookout, we had to take a deep breath in order to enjoy the view of the beach, where we had just stood.
The track followed a mountain range that runs directly along the coast. This offered beautiful panoramas on a regular basis - cliffs meeting the deep blue sea or the green-glowing forests of New Zealand. So, we were never bored during the hike. It was always a short time uphill and then a little later downhill. Overall, we only came across a few very cheerful people. We suspect that it's much busier in the height of summer.
After 1.5 hours, the 'Mangawhai Cliff Walk' lived up to its name. The hiking route led us steeply downhill to the beach. Once there, we encountered large rock formations and an archway that we had to walk through. The track required us to walk back to Mangawhai Heads along the beach. However, it is important that the tide is low, otherwise we could be swept into the sea. Well-prepared, we reached this part of the route at the height of low tide.
Now the most climbing-intensive part of the route was ahead of us. In order to make progress, we had to overcome the many rugged rocks. This was definitely a workout for the whole body. #absbuttthighs ;) So, we made our way over the rocks for a while, only to come across deserted sandy beaches as seen on postcards. It took almost three-quarters of an hour until we finally reached the last part of the track. This led us along the wide sandy beach of Mangawhai Heads back to our car.
Taking off our shoes and walking barefoot through the sea was our reward for today.

Unfortunately, there was still a one-hour drive to our new destination after everything. Finally, at around 5:30 PM, we reached the campground in Whangarei.
After check-in, we had dinner promptly, and then we were able to finally fall into bed, exhausted.