30/09/2018 - The last nights in the car

The last days of our beautiful road trip through New Zealand were spent in the west of Auckland. Wild nature, breathtaking beaches, and pure solitude provided a worthy conclusion to our indescribable adventure.

Two days ago, we left Muriwai Beach to continue driving to Piha. Before checking out in the morning, we had a lively conversation with a Dutch couple. They had just arrived in New Zealand two days ago and were already impressed. But in three weeks, they will be flying back, so we didn't keep them too long and wished them a wonderful journey. We are sure they will have an amazing time. ;)
In the early morning, we reached our destination for the day, Piha. The local beach with its unique feature left a good impression on us. The centrally located "Lions Rock" still stands above the wide sandy beach. Since we didn't have much time during our last visit, this time we decided to spend the following night at the local campground. After parking the car, we wasted no time and took a stroll by the sea. Thanks to the low tide, we easily reached the rock formation, which is not always accessible on dry land.
Piha Beach is a bit more touristy, but it is also perfect for dreaming, walking, or surfing.
To end the sunny day, we followed the campground owner's recommendation and ordered Fish & Chips at the nearby pub. Armed with the hot deliciousness, we quickly made our way to the beach and enjoyed the meal during the sunset.

The next day, we left Piha and drove to the neighboring Karekare Beach. If you're looking for solitude and expansive beaches, Karekare is the place to go. Even during our second visit, we only shared the kilometer-long stretch of beach with three other visitors. The black sand is especially impressive, with occasional lighter grains that make the dark surface shimmer like a starry sky. - As a personal souvenir, we filled a box with some sand, which we hope we can take with us to Germany.
After this visit, we continued our journey back to civilization. After publishing a new blog post, our path led us to Whatipu - a hidden gem. A secret tip off the beaten path. It's no coincidence that you can only get there via a long gravel road with countless potholes. At the end of the road, you'll find a minimalist campground with eco-toilets and outdoor showers. Just behind it lies a dream beach. We reached it within ten minutes. Due to the excellent weather and the fact that it was Saturday, there were naturally a lot of people. While the hobby anglers were on the rock formations, trying to cast their fishing rods as far into the sea as possible, we stayed on the sandy beach. From there, we noticed "Manukau Heads Lighthouse" in the distance. We visited this lighthouse a few weeks ago, but this time we saw it from the other side of the shore. The two stretches of coast are not connected as a seaway separates them. It would take more than two hours by car to reach the beautiful lighthouse from here.
Back at the campground, we lit the camping stove one last time. We had all sorts of canned vegetables, also known as Chili sin Carne, with bread. While engaging in exciting conversations with our neighbors, we ended the evening.

We lost an hour of sleep that night. Thanks to daylight saving time, the sun rose unusually late - but as usual, we were the first ones awake. After eating our cereal and brushing our teeth, we set off on a little excursion around 07:30 am. We visited nearby caves, which unfortunately weren't very spectacular. To be precise, only one of them is worth mentioning. Its size was very impressive. It's no wonder that dance events used to take place here. After this last cave discovery, we walked back to Whatipu Beach. We strolled barefoot on the pleasantly warm sand for about an hour.
Around noon, we experienced a complete contrast. We visited the completely crowded weekly market in Titirangi, a suburb of New Zealand's largest city. It felt like half of Auckland had gone to the market. It took 15 minutes to find a parking spot, and then we had to squeeze past the many appealing stands. Despite the rush, we found what we were looking for and enjoyed our lunch snack in the hustle and bustle.
At the end of the day, we returned to Muriwai once again, and this time for the last time. This is where we want to spend our very last night in our faithful car. With a heavy heart, tomorrow we will have to move out of Sam and check into an Airbnb room in Auckland.