Friday, December 17, 2010

The Seabird Coast

Next stop Miranda. Along the Seabird Coast in New Zealand, Miranda is a wintering ground for Arctic birds. The Miranda Shorebird Centre, owned by the Miranda Naturalists’ Trust is a volunteer non-profit organization located about an hour south of Auckland near the mouth of the Firth of Thames. Each year, wading birds arrive down the East Asia Australia Flyway from their breeding grounds in eastern Siberia and Alaska. Not with a cocktail and a movie in a pressurized jet, either. And you thought you were the first one to come up with the idea of a winter in New Zealand?

Kaiaua
The Things People Do with Scraps
of Wood Lying Under the House
Photo By: Sandy Austin


We’re still going to the Coromandel, just taking the long way around through Clevedon and Kaiaua, a small coastal town famous for its fish and chips.



Fish & Chips
Photo By: Sandy Austin

Dropping south from Auckland, there are a couple of ways to hook into the Pacific Coast Highway– the Seabird Coast is along the northern part of this highway. We’ll turn off the motorway just south of
Manukau City. I mentioned the Top 10 Holiday Park at Manukau City before. It’s a convenient place to stay if you’re RVing or traveling by auto and want to rent a clean, inexpensive room. This park is close to downtown Auckland, a mall, and Rainbow’s End Adventure Park. If you’re driving and don’t want to tangle with traffic in a strange city while new to driving on the wrong side of the road, city buses stop right outside the park. Remember to bring that KOA card for a 10% discount at any Top 10 Park.



Kaiaua
View to the Coromandel Ranges from
The Seabird Sanctuary Information Centre
Photo By: Sandy Austin

The Miranda Shorebird Centre has three bunk rooms plus two self-contained flats. We’ve stayed overnight at the Centre in our movan. If you like birds and have time to linger longer, why not join the Miranda Banders and get out there in the mud? Actually, it’s done at high tide with a cannon-net. If your New Zealand trip is in the future, help out the birds by joining this group. The quarterly Miranda News which members receive is well worth the small fee. Or, help with repairs at the Centre then head up the road to the Miranda Holiday Park and soak in the mineral pool. You’ll find motels rooms, backpacker rooms and RV and tent sites. Take some time to soak in the largest hot springs in the southern hemisphere. If you soak and
shrivel long enough, you might see the moon rise behind the Coromandels, that range of mountains marching down the center of the Coromandel Peninsula– our next stop.

Most of the photos in this blog are by Kiwi photographers. Three in this post are by Sandy Austin. I’ve used several by Sandy in the past. If you’d like to see more of her work, click through on a link and spend a little time on a picture tour of New Zealand. Plan to spend more than a little time.  Sandy has 4,803 pictures posted.

Lyn Harris

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12 comments:

Anonymous said...

My favorite part of the world. I'll put the Seabird Coast on my must see list for sure. I'll be there in a couple of months and I've saved all your hints. It's so much more fun to find the road less traveled.
Ellyn

MELANIE WADHAM said...

Hi Melanie here from NZ, Im actually South African but have lived in NZ for 15 years now. I Live on the gorgeous Waiheke Island which is now one of the top 10 places to see in the world. If you haven't yet been, catch the ferry at down town Auckland and come and enjoy the beautiful coast line and vineyards.
Regards Melanie

I Must Be Off said...

Great post. And Waiheke island is now on my list.

Anonymous said...

Awesome blog. Places I'd never find on my own. Thanks :)
Carmen

Anonymous said...

I'm going to the North Island this month and won't miss this part. I say thanks, too for finding places off the beaten track. I'll keep my eye out for that funky car.
Shirley

Mark Perkins said...

Lyn,

Kaiaua and fish and chips, awesome.
I often shoot down to Rae's Rise, just near the bird sanctuary for a night just to get away from the big smoke of Auckland.

Nice post
Mark Perkins

abcindiatours.com said...

nice.
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Nomadic Samuel said...

Great post! Those fish and chips look incredible :)

Sam said...

New Zealand my dream destination

Claire said...

New Zealand my favorite place in the world…..mountains, lakes, snow, people who love nature will love NZ for sure.

jake first said...

Looks like a lovely place to visit and they do fish and chips too! Beautiful scenery, sun and chips what more can you ask for!

DHRUV R. THAKER said...

Nice images and information about New Zealand.




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