Whakatane

Saturday, March 13, we left Putaruru and drove north and a little east towards the coastal city of Tauranga. It is an industrial port but also caters to vacationers in a concentrated area of beaches and resorts near the landmark Mt. Maunagunui, a cone shaped mountain, which rises abruptly out of the water on its own little peninsula. We ate our typical picnic lunch on a gorgeous, long, white sand tourist beach and then set off to walk around the base of Mt. Maunganui. It was an easy beautiful breezy walk with views to the harbor and then rocky beaches overhung by large pohutukawa trees (no longer in bright red bloom as they had been in Auckland when we first arrived in NZ).

We drove further down the coast to Whakatane where we found and checked in to our hotel. In perusing our little free guides we discovered that the NZCD Surf and Life Saving Championships for 2010 were taking place just a few minutes drive east at Ohope Beach. We scurried over and found various races in progress. We joined the milling crowds cheering on their favorite 6-person teams of men or women who were paddling double hulled canoes out through the surf, around a buoy, and back to shore where one person jumped into the water and sprinted for a flag gate.

 

After watching several exciting races, we walked the beach for a stretch enjoying the all the flocks of seabirds but especially the black oyster catchers with their long orange beaks. Before returning to town and a quiet dinner in our kitchenette room, we drove out the beach spit with views to the Bay of Plenty on one side and the sheltered Ohiwi Harbour on the other. Sadly, the house next door to our little hotel was filled with partiers who whooped it up all night long. Let’s hear it for earplugs!!