What a beautiful place Pahi is. We’ve been here before I was doing this blog with friends just after some heavy rain. We had to park on the gravel so its not an all weather grassy surface.
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Looking down from up the road.
Pahi is about 15 minutes off the main highway through to Dargaville. It is at the end of a peninsula south of Paparoa.
A local anti Fouling his boat
When I arrived, I was met with a sign in the office to make myself comfortable in a park of my choice and they’ll catch up with me. For $10 (with NZMCA discount) per person per night with power, it is exceptionally good value and its in a lovely spot in the northern reaches of the Kaipara Harbour.
All tide ramp
Apparently it is one of the few all tide ramps in the whole of the Kaipara.
Just like in the travel magazines!
The wharf is great for a walk down or just for a look around. There are some really quirky little houses there dotted around the waterfront, almost like an old fishing village you see in the magazines.
The office
Looking across to Whakapirau
Looking north past Whakapirau
Just like in the travel magazines!
Close to the water
Dawn with Fog
Pahi Hall by the wharf
The camp is a Doc park with the staff being managed by a local committee and apparently it works well. There is an old Hotel which had its license transferred to the Paparoa pub in the 50’s. It is still in great shape but is now a private house. The camp has a dump stations and a recently renovated toilet and shower block.
Looking across to Whakapirau
A lovely spot which you could easily spend a few days at and run by some really nice people.
There was a good 3G Internet signal here but I forgot to speedtest it.
Tim and Annette, my younger Aussie based brother and his wife had been over for the weekend but they were busy doing their own thing so we thought we’d escape from the house and head off to an Auckland City Park. We were headed for Shakespear Park at the end of the Whangaparoa Peninsula, North of Auckland city.
Rafe in the trees
We had the last park left available as they had restricted the CSC parking to 10 Motorhomes due to the amount of water from the recent heavy rain. It was busier than I’ve ever seen it and most had opted to park on the gravel parks where they could. One of the more obvious vehicles there was Roy and Bernice Vannini who were camp hosts.
The city doesn’t seem far away
While the weather was good, I went for my customary walks around to see what was happening. There was action everywhere as there were more tan 300 odd sea scouts in boats at the main camp at the other end of the beach. They were having a great time in their boats with plenty of people around in rescue craft keeping an eye on them. Others were just enjoying the beach and the park.
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Its a lovely spot and its the first time I’ve seen it this busy.
Looking great
Bernice and Roy came over to catch up which was fantastic as I’ve been following their blog over the last year or so. They’re fulltimers and have been for years in their 10m American Bus. Tons of room and they’ve done a lovely job of making it work for them. They’ve recently done a 3 month Motorhome trip around Europe so Fiona and I were keen to hear how they went and mistakes not to make 🙂 We’re heading over there in June and really looking forward to it. It sounds like they had a great trip and they gave us heaps of ideas and tips, books to read and so on. Very helpful !
Everyones on the gravel. Roy and Bernice’s Bus 2nd along.
Plenty going on
Sea Scouts having a ball
All aboard
Looking out to Rangitoto Island
Rafe on the gravel. Roy and Bernice’s bus by the tree on the left.
Shakespear is a funny place where the Internet is concerned as the first time we came here was without aerials and we got a very slow connection, useable but just ! The second time was later last year and we couldn’t get anything.. with aerials but without the patch for the aerials so I suspect they weren’t working. This time, it was pretty good for a known problem area, but we’ve got the aerials working well now but it was slow but usable and it seemed reliable. A tricky wee spot!
With Tim and Annette coming in for tea for their last night in NZ and after having a cup of tea in the morning with Roy and Bernice, we headed back to town.
Checking it all out
Its always nice coming to Shakespear and its so close too.
By walking down the street beside it reveals a nice private flat powered Motorhome park behind the hotel nicely planted out with Palms and with a nice outlook. It is $25 (for two)a night and includes the use of the nearby Backpackers Toilet and Showers. It also has a dump station.
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Solid ground too.The Backpackers with the Dump Station, Showers and Toilets.
We arrived early on a Friday and checked in for a weekend at Coromandel. Our friends Dianne and Gary were staying in a motel room in the Coromandel Top 10 right opposite so it worked perfectly.
We went for a walk down to the town which takes all of 10 minutes and enjoyed a cuppa at one of the many cafes down there and after checking into some of the shops wandered back to Rafe. There is a Laundromat there too.
Nicely setup parking and has a dump station and fresh water
The Laundry is easy to spot
Coromandel Town
I love the Husband Waiting chairs
That night it rained and we popped over to the Motel unit and enjoyed a few laughs and glasses of wine before heading to the Coromandel Hotel for tea. It was stunning. Gary and I had a carpetbag steak each, Fiona had a seafood chowder which had huge pieces of seafood in it and Dianne had the roast pork. The best was still to come.. liquorice ice cream with sambuca.. and it was huge. We all hooked in. This is really something to see and even better to eat.
Looking down the back
A neat place to stay and great place to eat as well.
I have done a blog on this before but this is the first time we’ve stayed here and I’m pleased we did!
One thing I did find interesting is like Simpsons Beach, I had to switch the router back to 3G. Although it worked on 4G, It was significantly faster on 3G.. see the speedtests below.
The sign said “Park in an empty park, plug yourself in and make yourself comfortable and we’ll be round”. .. or words of that effect. We were just parking when a huge smile appeared around the corner of the next door Motorhome helping us to park.
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I’d heard all about Cruzin N Stop before and was keen to try it out. It is right in the middle of Thames and is perfectly located for checking out the shops and cafes so I was immediately scoring huge brownie points with Fiona 🙂
Rafe in the park
For $20 including power for NZMCA members with toilets and a shower. Its a neat wee place to stay right in the middle of things. Its not a place you would go for a holiday given that it comes with in town distractions but its safe, handy, good value and the people are really helpful.
We stayed the night here on route to Coromandel. The road up the coast was closed due to slips and washouts and after a stroll around the town and a good gander at some antique shops, we headed back to Rafe and settled down some good old fashioned Netflix movies while it rained. Fiona on one TV, me on the other 🙂
Gordon outside Cruz N Stop
The Junction Hotel
The next morning, we walked the other way and after a visit to the Dump Station, we were off over the hill.
The Brian Boru Hotel
A neat spot to stop for a night or two, very very handy to everything in Thames and great people. At $20 with power and other facilities in the middle of town, it’s pretty reasonable.
We’d survived the weather as fortunately the storm veered away from Coromandel and left us with plenty of rain but no wind.
Debris after the storm
I woke up early on Good Friday and took Rafe around to the dump station and got prepared for the next few days at our prebooked beachfront site. Fiona was driving down to Ardmore to be picked up by Helen and Rob and they were due to arrive around the middle of the day. Rob was following in their new Autotrail Tracker with daughter Chloe.
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Our wee spot in paradise
When I arrived up at the beachfront site, there was another little Swift rental alongside. I jumped out to move a BBQ table out of the way and Eric from the Swift gave me a hand. Eric and his wife Mary Ann were from Victoria in Canada and were traveling around NZ.
About 11am, I received a call from Fiona to say that they had arrived and that the camp wouldn’t allow them to come in until 11:30. Seriously? This does nothing to create a holiday atmosphere!
Our little setup with the tables. The Tracker and Rafe
Half an hour went by and Rob brought the Tracker in to park. As Rafes door is on the right and the Trackers door is on the left, I suggested I move to Rob’s park so the doors faced each other. This turned out to work really well as Gary, Dianne, Neil, Christine and even Eric and Mary Ann all came around to join us for drinks and nibbles for several nights. A lot of fun.
Happy Hour. LtoR: Dianne, Gary, Fiona, Christine, Neil, Helen, Chloe and RobHappy at Hahei
Back to friday. As the day went on, the park got more people in but by Sunday morning, it was really only about 1/3rd full.
The Playground
Motorhomes parked behind us.
Beachfront cottages behind us.
Us at the end of the road.
Some white water
Its a great park, a stunning location where our parks on the beachfront had tracks directly down to the sand. We were effectively parked on the back of the sand dunes.
Beachfront parkingThe outlook 🙂
Toilets were handy, Gary and Diannes Beachfront cottage was right next to us, it couldn’t be better.
Beachfront cottages behind us.
My only comment would be that I found there was definitely room for improvement in the welcoming process at the office. To be fair this may have been stress caused by the cancellations they would have had.
The stunning beach
All the same, I have to rate it as one of the better Motorcamps around in a great place and we had a lot of fun.
The build up was huge and as a result, we left Coromandel early and headed to Whitianga and then onto Hahei, as we figured it was very likely that we could get blocked in at Coromandel with closed roads. The road to Thames was already closed due to slips and wasn’t due to open until after Easter. After stopping at Whitianga for groceries, I cruised onto Hahei Holiday Park.
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I parked two rows back from the beach for the first two nights until the storm went through but on the second day, I decided to park behind the office amongst some trees for wind protection drawing on old boating experience.
My hideaway with the trees
Friends Gary and Dianne were in a beachfront cottage and Fiona had gone back to Auckland on the ferry for a couple of days work but was due back soon. ..so I was flying solo for a couple of days.
The Beachfront Cottages
Unfortunately the camp was absolutely deserted as most Motorhomers had disappeared and run for cover due to the forecast which initially had Cormomandel getting hammered by the remnants of ex tropical cyclone Cook.
The primo beach spots all empty
Gary and Diannes friends Neil and Christine arrived up from Otaki way on THE day and later, when the bell struck 4pm and the promised winds were only about 20 knots at peak and the rain was easing, we decided it was a fizzer and it was time for a light refreshment.
Just after 5 it stopped raining and it was time to go and check out the beach . What a great sunset with all the clouds.
Where were supposed to park but too close to the beach!
Getting cabin fever by 5pm but dry. LtoR Gary, Dianne, Neil and Christine.
People enjoying the great sunset
Dusk at Hahei after the “storm”!
There is still some energy in that water
Empty
The next day, parked in the right spot
Great Beach
People enjoying a wa;lk on Hahei Beach
I felt for the campground people as the place was deserted and from Hahei’s perspective, there really wasn’t a storm at all. Yes there was plenty of rain but the cost to all those on the peninsula at a peak time, it really was a beat up. I suppose from the forecasters perspective, it had to be that way rather than have people unprepared and it could have been a lot worse. It seems a real pity that it affects so many people’s livelyhoods.
Out in the sunshine
The next day, everyone that was there all seemed to be enjoying the sunshine on the beach. It really is one of the best beaches around.
Saturday was a big day. Rob and Helen were off to collect their new Autotrail Tracker RB and they were beside themselves with excitement.
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Rob and Helen looking very happy !
Their first Tracker RB had taken them and their daughter Chloe. all around NZ over the last 4 years or so.
The new Tracker looking very smart
The new Tracker is a different colour, has Automatic Transmission and has 180 horses. It has more room in the front lounge area, a separate Shower and Toilet area and lots of other little tweaks.
The new beast with Rafe behind
Having Rafe parked right behind, I was amazed with the changes in some of the vents, and other fittings which you see on Dethleffs and other makes. Even the tyres are different from the older models.. now Michelins.
Rob unpacking the sealed manual packs.
We drove down to meet them at Athenree Holiday Park as a meeting point and to help celebrate their first night away in it.
The Bedroom. The bed runs the opposite way to the older one.
We hadn’t long checked in when the first glasses of bubbly were consumed. A nice afternoon in the sun with a swim in the hotpools later as well.
Its a lovely Motorhome and they’re over the moon with it.
Its a good thing that Rob is pretty handy and technically minded and likes reading the odd manual.
As the title says.. lots of bedtime reading manuals for Rob!
Fiona had left Bland Bay and was heading back to town to do other things .. and work so she suggested that I spend another night out on the way back. We stopped in Waipu and had lunch and then Fiona went on to Auckland.
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The cricket pitch with the campground behind
I rang the good folk at one of my favorite spots when the weathers good, Whangateau by Matakana. A great campground run by Auckland City.
In the Grandstand
Today was a bit different as when I arrived, the tide was out and there was a friendly game of cricket with two families involved. One was from Whangaparoa and the other from the UK visiting. They were having a ball. I had to get some piccies.
Looking out to Omaha
Kids enjoying the pontoon
The Estaury
It is a fascinating place to watch as the tide comes in really quickly covering hundreds of metres of exposed mud in just under an hour… Amazing to watch.
The water is coming in
A nice campground if you’re looking for somewhere not to far from Auckland. See my earlier Whangateau post here.
The forecast was fantastic for the best part of the next week. My thinking was I had to be near a nice beach and it had to be northwards. With the holiday weekend approaching, I thought I might be lucky getting a park at Bland Bay but thought, I’ll give it a go.
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Bland Bay
After 50ks odd of winding road around the Whangaruru Bay, I arrived at the Bland Bay Camp. In the office was manager Wayne who couldn’t do enough for me and even though I’d just walked in off the street, made me very welcome and even found a waterfront site for the night. If I wanted to stay longer, I’d have to move one back which was fantastic.
Rafe with the best seat in the house
I’d just plugged in Rafe, opened vents and settled things down and then went for a walk (5 steps to the beach) to get a piccy with my phone for Facebook.
The Office and shop
No sooner had I posted it when several old colleagues from my days at the Herald as a photographer, reminded me to be on my best behaviour as another ex photographer Ross lived here. Several suggested I look him up and found the address. An hour later, I’d found Ross in his kitchen preparing Veges for his freezer. In his early 70’s, he’s a picture of health, fit as a buck rat living off his huge vege garden and the fish he catches in the bay and loving it. He’s just the same and it was great to see him.
Derek and Judy’s bus Eagle Rock further along the beachfront
I’d just got back to Rafe when a face popped in the door with a platter of Tuna with two sauces inviting me to try them out. This was Derek who I later had a drink with and his wife June by their bus further down the waterfront. A lovely couple who have been living aboard for 2 years or more. Derek was in the Army for 20 odd years and he knew a few people that people in my family knew so we had plenty to talk about. A great evening.
First Thing.. well worth getting up for 🙂
The next day I moved Rafe back a parking space and found myself next to Terry and Louise with their grandson Max in their Dethleffs Sunlight. I spent most the day nattering to them and lazing in the sun. I really wanted to go for a swim but with a cool onshore breeze and the water being so cold, couldn’t quite get there.. One day soon :-).
The Bland Bay tree which was struck by lightening recently and is now a shadow of its former self.
Yum .. friends of Dereks
The Dump Staion on the end of the toilet and shower block
The new Toilet and Shower block
Later in the afternoon there was a lot of excitement when Derek and his friends in a 26 foot odd runabout with half cabin had returned to the beach with what turned out to be a 149kg Marlin. Huge excitement and it was later put next to Derek’s bus and packed in ice for all to see. Amazing.
The kids from around the camp admiring the Marlin
After another day with Fiona having finished work and she was going to drive up and join me. Shops or beach I asked her.. It didn’t matter she said so Wayne managed to squeeze us in for two more nights and she arrived later in the morning.
This camp really is spectacular. Right on the beach sheltered by another peninsula, it is just a lovely. Although several people asked me not to rave about this place as they wanted to keep it for themselves :-), it really is special. At $22 pp powered, in peak season with nice loos and showers ($1 shot), a dump station, UV treated bore water and a good internet signal, it doesn’t get much better.
One of our favourite places to stay is the Pauanui Club. For $8 a night including power and water and membership of the club for 24 hours, this is extremely good value. We had not long stopped and plugged in and paid for our stay when one of the Directors of the club, Robin, who is responsible for the development of the property popped over for a chat. A really nice guy. He was telling me that the plan over the next year is to add a laundry facility and Hot showers for Motorhomers. There are toilets here already but they’re also adding to those too. It’ll be sensational!
The bikes are ready to goThe Pauanui Club with the new Showers, Laundry and Toilets area to be in the building on the right
There are 6 powered very flat sites and all surrounded with trees for the wind. We arrived here from Taupo for two nights to see the grandkids who were staying here. They were only an easy bike ride about 10 minutes away so it works well. Just next door is a full Golf course, a mini golf course which is fun and the legendary airfield with the hangered house alongside for the aviation enthusiasts.
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Hanging out the washing as your neighbour rocks in!
A Yak outside while you enjoy a beer
New Power and water poles
On our first day, my son Alex, Sarah and the boys came around on their bikes and we sat out in the sun by the mini golf course.
We took the boys through the mini golf the next day. Liam (3) insisted that the golf club had to be back to front and played it like hockey. Ayden (7) was saying that two or three hits were only one ! :-). They were having fun so to us it didn’t matter.
There is a dump station is just down the road and while there, we stopped for a few minutes to watch the locals out with their jet skis and beach toys. The Pauanui club also has a full kitchen and bar so on our last night before heading back to Auckland, we were going to have a meal there but for some unknown reason it wasn’t possible so we walked to the nearby town centre and had a great meal there.
We’ve stayed here before. The previous blog can be seen here.
Fiona & Chris, two empty nesters put their dreams of doing something different into reality… Now back in a house, they were living in their Motorhome, come along for the ride.
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