There are places that you absolutely have to see: Cathedral Cove in Hahei

Nothing to do with chilling: The last day on the Coromandel Peninsula took us to one of the points in the world (if you're there) that you should definitely see: Cathedral Cove and To Hoho Rock. That's what it said on the "Great Plan" and that's almost how it was done.

First we drive our tiny car over the mountain range of the Coromandel Forest Park that separates Pauanui and Hahei. It's actually only a few kilometers as the crow flies across the Pacific Ocean, but we have to go around the outside and over the mountain... narrow, lots of serpentines and drops of sweat on the foreheads of the child and wife.

It's a 60-minute walk from the town center to the cave...wouldn't have laughed! It also saves money, you can also take the boat, but the cheapskate Pitti wants to walk, up the mountain, up the stairs, whatever because it doesn't cost anything. We run...

...approx. 20 minutes to get to the narrow path over the cliffs to the hotspot. Once there, hiker Pitti looked really stupid: the path is closed; in February 2023, tropical cyclone Gabrielle destroyed large parts of the hiking trail and made it impassable.

So back... then to the beach and with the incredibly expensive water taxi on the only possible way to Cathedral Cove - across the sea. It was a dream! Sunshine, there were only six other people in this bay besides us... and then: within seconds the weather changed and it was pouring rain. But that doesn't affect our Pitti either. In the pouring rain, he makes his way back across the raging sea, on the small boat, a nutshell, at the very front of the bow, and laughs in the face of Poseidon and his whims, foamy and suffering from gout. Child now calls me "Aquaman Pitti" in awe! By the way, back at Hahei Bay it's sunshine again - and we're wet to the bone!

Last evening in the Grand Mercure Puka Park Resort - we cook, do some laundry and then tomorrow we head to the next stage inland: Rotorua at Lake Rotorua...approx. 2.5 hour drive for 190 kilometers, always on the left. And there is a big cinema planned there!

Windshield wiper instead of indicator counter: 52... is getting better, but it could also have been due to the rain that the rest of the family didn't notice the mistakes.

coming soon

PIDISI