The Coromandel

Finally, south of Auckland! I had been so excited to explore The Coromandel. I remember most of the journey we did 20 years ago with the family and it being so much fun, probably not as much for dad who had to drive the whole area in a day. Which is even more impressive to me now as, yes, it was just as hilly as he warned me.

If I was to do things differently, I probably wouldn’t have bothered staying in Thames for the 3 nights I paid for. The campsite and staff weren’t the friendliest, and sadly a lot of the shops were closed or shut down, so it was all a bit of a ghost town and not really a happy start to the Coromandel. I think I actually only stayed 2 nights in the end too despite paying for 3 which was a bit of a silly thing to do but alas, we live and learn.

I had set up my go pro on the dashboard ready for the windy roads and sea views, I’ve got hours of footage that I still haven’t looked at all these months later, quite a few times I forget I’m recording and sing and talk to my self quite a bit. I drove up a very gravelly road that Vandalf wasn’t keen on but found a beautiful short track to a hidden waterfall! Then a tiny bit further on before heading back down to the main road I found the tracks to the Kauri trees in The Waiau Kauri Grove. They weren’t as big as Tane Mahuta of course but they were beautiful and I stayed there a while walking around the treetop paths.

I made it to Coromandel town and found the Top 10 which had just been turned into a Tasman holiday park and I was there first customer and got a free night for it (which made me feel better about the other place). I was the only one there the whole time so made my self quite at home. The weather was good and I had found a Warehouse back in Thames where I’d treated my self to some better clothes for walking in went out to test a new walking pole I picked up from a hardware store. The path I found was interesting, at one point I’m pretty sure I was on private property but no one stopped me. I made it up a very steep hill to look out across the Coromandel views which were breathtaking. I’m glad I had my pole with me otherwise I might still be up there now. It was a decent 10km loop in the end, followed by some banging macaroni cheese that I made in the campsites kitchen. The next day I drove up a small and steep road to Tokatea Lookout. It was so windy (weatherwise) that I didn’t dare to go further, so after enjoyig the views I went back down and over to Shelly Beach. I stopped to do some research here, as if I’d of kept going I would have ended up down to the very end of the Coromandel at Port Jackson. I could see on google maps that other big vehicles did go down there but it was basically a road big enough for one vehicle with a sheer drop down to the sea. I had basically talked my self out of it to everyone (in hope they’d talk me out of it to). I turned back and booked my self the last slot on the Driving Creek Railway. There were only 2 others on the train with me and it was one of my best little experiences of the trip. I was so happy! The train itself was so much fun, the tracks blew my mind and the views were just insane. It was such a perfect little experience! The lady in the office was a bit worried when I mentioned going to Port Jackson too so she showed me a video of the roads and then warned me of the storm coming in and said it was best I stayed this side of the Coromandel. So that was that and I went and booked myself back into the Tasman Holiday Park!

Before the storm came in though I did head across the road to treat myself to a $26 roast dinner and desert. It was a huge serving of roast pork, with crackling, veg and gravy followed by a slice of cheesecake. I did have to loosen a button afterwards, I’d also popped on some makeup and jewelry which felt quite nice! Then I hurried back across the road and got cosy in Vandalf as the storm hit. The next day was wet and windy all day and I loved it. I stayed in Vandalf reading, with endless cups of teas.

The next day, the storm had passed and I was happy to continue on the roads. Vandalf (and I) did very well up the hills and turns but thankfully there weren’t many others actually on the roads. I stopped at Whangapoua, tried to get across to New Chums Beach but hadn’t planned ahead with tide times so just walked along the beach in the tide. Then along a bit further to Rings beach and Kuaotunu where I saw some damage on the roads from the storm. A bit further up I did another little beach walk and came across a restaurant that served the biggest and best mussels I’ve ever had. They were gigantic! I stayed the night in Kuaotunu where I saw one of the most beautiful sunsets.

The next day was more beach exploring, Whitanga, Cooks Beach and Hahei before I checked into the Top 10 at Hot Water Beach. They had a 3 for 2 deal night as well so set up camp for 3 nights. The reception ladies were so friendly and told me all I needed to know about accessing the natural spas on Hot Water Beach. So the first morning I set off at 10am with my spade and headed to the beach. I found a few holes and tried digging around them, nothing! Turns out I was in the completely wrong area and the tide had gone over the actual bits I was supposed to be at. So I sulked back to the site and made use of their hot pool for the next few hours. The campsite had a fire inside the communal area and a very friendly and sleepy kitty so I spent the rest of the afternoon sitting with the cat, reading my book on the Camino way and drinking tea. It was dark by 17:15 after a red sunset sky so I think I actually went to bed pretty early, which is good because the next morning I was on a mission!

I got up before sunrise (which wasnt till 7:30am), made a big cup of coffee and headed back to the beach with my spade. I found the hot bubbles and started digging! The hot water actually gets to boiling point so the key is to make a big hole further away and then a tunnel of the hot water going into your little bath area. I was the only one there and made my hot pool, it was slightly raining and the sunrise was right in front of me with crashing waves and a gentle breeze. It was honestly perfect and I often wish I could be in that time and place again quite often. I enjoyed a peaceful 30/45 mins of bliss before others started joining. There was a girl named Char who I’d met in the kitchen the night before, and 2 others who joined her and they made one next to me. Then it got quite busy but everyone had asked for my advice on the best way to do it, I felt like such a pro.

After a couple of hours there I headed back to the campsite with Char and we had a good chat about our adventures, she was also a single 30-something year old on a working holiday visa who bought a van and wanted to travel New Zealand! We went in the hot tub when we get back for a couple more hours, it was honestly one of the best mornings, followed by more relaxing and reading.

When it was time to leave I said goodbye to Char and we swapped numbers. Then I headed off on a rainy morning to find more walks. I parked up in Tairua and walked to the Mt Paku summit which was quite a challenge up the muddy slopes and a bit of a rock climb at the end. Despite it being cloudy it was still awesome views. The rest of the day was spent on the road, stopping off at a couple places to stretch my legs and find loos but it was raining heavily again so I found shelter in Whanamata and treated my self to a curry for dinner!

The last stretch of Coromandel was still awful weather but I enjoyed visiting Waihi and walking around the giant gold mines. Again, I hadn’t really made a plan on where to head next so I went back on my self a bit and found another Tasman Holiday Park in Waihi Beach, but this one had a hot tub. I stayed there for a few nights whilst the weather made up its mind but honestly I really enjoyed resting in Vandalf with my fairy lights on, watching Yellowstone (mainly for Rip) and treating my self to some hot tub sessions.

Highlights of The Coromandel were the Driving Creek Railway and Hot Water Beach for sure. Unfortunately the track for Cathedral Cove was closed and the boat ride I’d booked was cancelled due to the bad weather. Though my favorite bits were also having my cosy alone times in Vandalf, and meeting Char and her funky looking Van, Clem.

Mt Maunganui

Regional parks & Pot noodles