Nature's own beach spa

The following day was a visit to nature's own beach spa. Hot Water Beach is so named because it sits above some hot springs that we're left over from some volcanic activity many years ago.

The guide books tell you to simply head for the beach with a spade in hand and dig yourself your own little hot pool. It's not quite that easy, as the water from the springs doesn't cover the whole beach.

But armed with some guidance from some more experienced visitors, we soon had a fab little pool developed that had a great balance of both hot and cold water coming through. Unlike some of the neighbouring pools where only hot water was contained. Do hot it burnt your feet if you stood in it!

A couple of hours of soaking, and getting sand where you shouldn't ever get sand, the sun started to heat up meaning that the spa was even uncomfortable from a temperature perspective.

But what a unique phenomenon! It is a must visit. But get there early. It's an absolute zoo as low tide approaches.

A scenic cove

The first stop in Hahei was to aim for Cathedral Cove. This required us to find a parking spot and walk about 40 minutes.

Because the area is a reserve, dogs aren't allowed, so we were concerned not leave Maddy for too long. Especially as the weather was improving.

The downside was the car park for the cove is small and many people park up to spend the day at the beach there.

We tried when we first got to Hahei, but to no avail. There were just no cars moving. Stop we went for a walk on Hahei beach and went for some lunch.

We wanted to give it one more try and lucked out. We managed to nab a spot as someone left.

The walk to the cove didn't afford much on the way of views, but was still a nice stretch. And upon descending into the cove, the spectacle of nature isn't obvious. But then you find it. And you realise why it's probably one of the most photographed beaches in the country.

A trip to a NZ icon

After some rough weather and torrential rain that flooded some campgrounds the day before, we headed to the East coast of the Coromandel peninsula to visit some iconic destinations that usually adorn travel guides for this country.

We bad ourselves at a campsite just outside Hahei, keeping us within shorty driving distance of the main sites yet still allowing us to stay, considering we had Maddy with us. Many campsites forbid dogs in the height of summer so we have to do our best to find dog friendly sites.

We managed to get based at a campground belonging to a bird and animal park, which seemed a strange place to be dog friendly. But we were relieved to get somewhere.

It did mean that Maddy had some interesting neighbours to "observe"

The other Pacific Coast Highway

Heading around the Coromandel peninsula, the road is known as the Pacific Coast Highway. Considering we've driven the US version, and been wowed by it, we went sure what to expect.

The weather was staring to close in and we knew we were going to get rain, but it made for a slightly moody look to the sky!
It certainly wasn't quite as wow as the California highway, but it was still quite picturesque.

First stop, a familiar name

Our actual first stop was Auckland to visit friends and drop off a surfboard with them.

But when it came to hitting the road to the Coromandel, a vague plan had to be formed.

Armed with the NZMCA Travel Directory, we looked up an good place for a first venture onto the peninsular.

It looked like Thames would work for us. A perusal of local sites led us to a simple but cheap place right in the heart of the town.

An old WW1 memorial, set high up on a hill gives a great vantage point to look out over the Firth of Thames and across to the Auckland coastline across the way. As well as the town itself. What there is of it!

And we're off

So it's that time of year again when New Zealand breaks up and goes on holiday. And we're no different. With a week and a half off, it's the ideal time for us to make the most of the van.

This time we're off to the Coromandel, a popular holiday destination near Auckland.

Maddy assumes her usual position in the van while we're driving. We think she enjoys coming with us but it's hard to know for sure! We'd like to think she'd rather come with us than be left behind or at kennels!