WARNING! Picture overload…..

I’ve had a great week.  Monday, Tuesday, and Wednesday were typical days with accompanying missionaries to dental and doctor appointments, trying to make sure that all of the immunizations are current on new missionaries, answering calls, texts, and email health questions, and preparing for zone conferences coming in the next week.

Takapuna Beach Wednesday morning

Thursday, however, I broke the mold.  I received permission to leave the mission and go to the Coromandel Peninsula.  Fortunately, I can take calls and carrying on my work (except for dental and doctor visits) where ever I go.  I went to Coromandel a year ago when Jim visited me but Sister Lucas had never been there so I jumped at the chance to go again.

The Coromandel Peninsula on the North Island of New Zealand extends 85 kilometres north from the western end of the Bay of Plenty, forming a natural barrier protecting the Hauraki Gulf and the Firth of Thames in the west from the Pacific Ocean to the east. It is 40 kilometres wide at its broadest point. Almost its entire population lies on the narrow coastal strips fronting the Hauraki Gulf and the Bay of Plenty. In clear weather the peninsula is clearly visible from Auckland, the country's biggest city, which lies on the far shore of the Hauraki Gulf, 55 kilometres to the west.

More about the geography and history.

I took a lot of pictures!  My sister, Peggy, asked me to take her along on my trip with pictures, so I aim to please.

Thursday we left Auckland in a rain storm.  But luckily the rain had stopped before we arrived at the roads through the mountains on the peninsula.  They are winding and narrow but we made it before dark and in time for a good dinner.

Fish and Chips for dinner

We stayed in a nice 2 bedroom Air B&B in the small coastal town of Hahei.  The owner told us of a way to walk to the beach near us, up a stair way and path along the cliffs to the Cathedral Cove walk way.  Gorgeous scenery!

Stairway to the cliff path

At the top of the cliffs, we began our descent into Cathedral Cove.

Cathedral Cove lies within a marine reserve.  Here is some information I found on the net:

Te Whanganui-A-Hei (Cathedral Cove) Marine Reserve is in the southern part of Mercury Bay on the Coromandel Peninsula in New Zealand. On the coast of the mainland it runs from Cook Bluff in the north-west to the northern end of Hahei Beach in the south-east. Its offshore extremes run from Motukorure Island through Waikaranga Island to Okorotere Island and the northern end of Mahurangi Island (Goat Island). It covers an area of 840 hectares (2,100 acres). 

Part of the marine reserve lies off the Cathedral Cove Recreation Reserve, which runs from the northern end of Hahei Beach in the south-east to beyond Cathedral Cove in the north-west. With attractions such as a natural rock archway and neighbouring beaches at Cathedral Cove, the area is very popular with tourists, and receives around 150,000 visitors per year.

The Māori name for Mercury Bay, Te Whanganui-A-Hei (meaning the Great Bay of Hei), refers to Hei, a tohunga from the Te Arawa waka. According to tradition, Hei chose the area around Mercury Bay as home for his tribe, proclaiming ownership by calling Motueka Island "Te Kuraetanga-o-taku-Ihu" (the outward curve of my nose). It is said he made this claim near the present-day town of Hahei. 

The cave and beach was used as the tunnel through which the Pevensie children first re-enter Narnia in the movie version of The Chronicles of Narnia: Prince Caspian. More recently the cove was used as one of the locations in the music video for the song "Can't Hold Us" by Macklemore & Ryan Lewis featuring Ray Dalton. 

The path from the top to the cove is also beautiful and we were able to see a lot of birds, greenery, and sky!!

This trees grows right in the middle of the path.
It is amazing that the roots grow around a large boulder.

Sister Lucas liked the scenery too and captured a lot of memories.

The walk to the Cove is through a WWI Memorial Forest

The rock archway or Cathedral Cove Archway

Pics of the beach on the other side of the archway

On our walk back to Hahei from Cathedral Cove, we walked a different route down the mountain and into the town via the road way and through some of the residential areas. 

Pictures from the top of the mountain looking down into Hahei and the beach.

   

We saw flowers galore!  Flower overload coming up.   Pictures I took along the beach, through the bush, down the walk way and through the town.

I don’t know what kind of tree this is but when I first saw it I thought it had
some kind of pine cones that were diseased or had spider webs on them.  

Closer observation still leaves me wondering???

Saturday we drove about 40 minutes north to Whitianga where we boarded a glass bottom boat for a tour via water through the Marine Reserve.  WOW!

It was a fun tour with 12 of us on board plus Captain Adam who was most
knowledgeable about the geography and formation of the land sites as well as the fish.

WARNING:  This next video is taken inside a cave.  The children on the boat were yelling to hear the echo.  If your sound is turn up, you may want to adjust it.  LOL

This video was taken inside the cave but over the side of the boat and not through
 the glass.  The captain allowed the children to throw fish food over the side to attract
the fish.  The fish you are seeing are snapper.

There were so many amazing sights that I had a difficult time narrowing it down to the ones I shared.

After our boat tour, we had lunch and then visited the Mercury Bay Museum, a small museum in Whitianga with information about the town and local history.

I had fish chowder.

Sister Lucas had pizza.

Just a few of the displays

We had planned to visit Hot Water Beach on our way home on Sunday, but a wind and rain storm kept us away.  Another day.  The weather on Friday and Saturday couldn’t have been more perfect!!

Sunday evening a dear senior missionary friend, Sister McMurray, spoiled me with a plate of goodies.

On the way home from our beach walk Monday morning, I spied these gorgeous “birds”

This has been a glorious week.  The little “break or vacation” hit the spot!  Also made me realize again what a wonderful world the Lord created.  I am so blessed to have this opportunity to enjoy those creations daily.  

I love my Savior.  I love you my family and friends.  I pray that you will all be well and stay safe.