Northland cont

These are some pics that my friend took with his camera during the recent trip north. He has a much nicer camera and I'm starting to think I need a new one.

Northland-part 2

After a day of diving, we continued north up the Aupori peninsula. At the very end, was Cape Reinga. This is where the Pacific and Tazman Sea meet. On the way back, we raced up the giant sand dunes. There is a shot of Andre climbing up. To get a sense of just how high these dunes are, you can see Pip standing at the base.

Northland-part 1

Went to the northern most part of the country this past weekend with a few friends from work. The first day we drove up to Whangarei. It's about a 5 hr drive. I posted a few pics of the falls just outside of town. This is supposedly the most photographed waterfall in NZ. The next morning we took the short drive east to Tutukaka. Our boat left from here to some volcanic islands off the coast, the Poor Knights Islands. We did 2 dives there. Saw lots of stingrays, fish, eels and one of the drivers saw a hammerhead. Our second dive was through an underwater cave where the fish were concentrated in huge schools. It is generally regarded as one of the 10 best dive sites in the world. Really wish I had an underwater camera. As we pulled into the harbor in Tutukaka, a group of 10-15 Bottlenose dolphins played around the boat.

Skiing Ruapeho

These are pictures from this past weekend when I went skiing on Mt Ruapehu. Ruapehu is an active volcano that last erupted about 2 years ago. It's generally regarded as the best spot to ski in the north island. Driving up to the mountain is a unique experience in itself. I tried to get some pics that show the landscape. It's all lifeless volcanic rock. Almost looks like it could be another planet.

Fishing off the Coast

One of the guys I work with lives on a 45ft or so sailboat that he sailed from Mexico. He invited a few of us from work to go out fishing off the coast of Tauranga. We caught lots of snapper, some baracuda, a kingfish and a blue cod. We ate the snapper and cod for dinner when we harbored. Probably the best fish I've ever eaten.

Mount

These are a few pics from the top of the Mount. A really cool climb.

Rotorua

These are a few pics I took in Rotorua yesterday. The town is about 1 1/2 hrs south of Tauranga and known for the geothermal activity in the area.

Coromandel Peninsula

The drive was only a few hours north from Tauranga. Stopped at several places along the way. Lots of amazing beaches but the cathedral coves were absolutely amazing. The beaches there were surrounded by towering white cliffs. The water was turquoise with these strange rock formations jutting straight out. In between the two beaches there was a cave with a ceiling 50-60 ft high. Could have spent all day there. The pictures don't do it justice.

Tauranga

Gonna try to keep everyone up to date about where I am and what I'm doing. Just got into Tauranga the day before yesterday. Woke up this morning around 5am and went out to Mt. Maungnui to explore a bit. The Mount (as it's known around here) is about a 10 min drive from my place. It sits on the end of a pennisula surrounded by the Pacific on one side and the harbor on the other. Lots of paths for tramping (hiking in NZ). The beach there is popular with surfers. Think I'll get some lessons. Then went to the Strand which is harbor side with lots of shops and restaurants.