Matauri Bay, New Zealand
Tuesday, January 29, 2008
The campground allowed late checkout, which was really, really nice - most of the time we need to be out of a place by 10am. So we enjoyed the morning and climbed the nearby hill that had a monument to the Rainbow Warrior, the Greenpeace ship that was sunk in the Auckland Harbor by the French in 1985. Today the ship's remains lie offshore of the Cavalli Islands, and are a diving attraction. We then went into the ocean and played around - too bad we didn't have any boards to ride the small waves. There was no big wave action for surfing and no reefs for snorkeling/diving. But the water was crystal clear, fine golden sands - a REALLY nice beach for relaxation (and I'm picky on beaches). We didn't see any fish, but some kids kayaking near us saw a manta ray closeby.
We continued driving up north to the Karikari peninsula, and found a free wifi network right along the beach (great spot for wifi!), and hung out there for awhile. Then we decided to spend the night at the DOC Matai Bay campground.
