Bream Head

Whangarei Heads

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Photo By:

Ben Nakagawa

When you book a New Zealand tour of Northland, chances are you’ll leave from Auckland and head for Paihia in the Bay of Islands with a short stop at Whangarei Falls. By day three, you’ll be in Opononi on the west coast for a day in the sand dunes or another bus trip into Waipoua Forest and the giant Kauri trees, then back to Auckland. You’ll see a little of Nortland. But, there’s a better, cheaper way to see more and pay less– rent or buy an auto or RV. Either way, you can wander off the main road and find beautiful country any place you wander.

If you spend the night in Whangarei– which I think is one of the best towns in New Zealand-- you might as well pack up a lunch and drive the short distance around the north side of Whangarei Harbour, past the airport, to Bream Head, a high bluff at the end of a peninsula that juts out into the Pacific Ocean. To the north, you’ll find Ocean Beach with its pounding surf and miles of isolated beach. We won’t be passing nearby Whangarei Falls yet. We’ll find them on our way to Tutukaka.

View From

Parua Bay Tavern

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Photo By:

sammijk

Riverside Drive takes you back over the Hatea River. Beyond the airport, you’ll find the Waimahanga Walkway, an easy 45 minute walk near the mangroves– remember nothing will bite you, so don’t worry about a snake with a bad disposition or an alligator hoping lunch will pass by. If you want to get wet then enjoy your lunch, Tamaterau is a good place to swim or windsurf. The Pines Golf Course, an 18 hole course with views of the harbour is also nearby. There’s a boat launch a little farther up Whangarei Heads Road at Parua Bay. With the airlines as fussy as they are now, you probably won’t bring your own boat, but you can have a beer in the Parua Bay Tavern on the water’s edge and watch the boats. Parua Bay is a small community about 2 kms from the boat launch. McLeod Bay, another swimming/picnic area is just across from Marsden Point, that spot where we checked out the harbour on our way into Whangarei. A small wooden church built in 1858 is still used for Sunday worship.

Bream Head

tramp

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Photo By:

svmarcy

Taurikura is easy to spot. It’s a natural volcanic rock causeway that disappears into the sea. Woolshed Bay is a popular anchorage for sailboats waiting for a daylight passage into Whangarei, a weather break, or just hanging out enjoying the scenery. From the car park in Woolshed Bay, you’ll find several walkways crisscrossing the Bream Bay Scenic Reserve. You’ll be glad you packed a lunch– or two– if you decide to explore. The entrance to these walks are at Urquharts Bay back a short way (see map), or Ocean Beach– where we’re headed. Like most New Zealand walkways, they’re well signposted. If you’re in really good shape, have the time, and brought a lunch or two, take the six hour (one way) walk and enjoy the view of the offshore islands and harbour views. There’s also a shorter 3 hour hike to Peach Cove and return. This is a kiwi sanctuary, so no dogs are allowed. You can find more information on hiking trails in this area at the Department of Conservation, DOC.

Ocean Beach

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Photo By:

svetlai

Only 35 kms from Whangarei, Ocean Beach is a nice day trip along the largest enclosed harbour in New Zealand. Along the way, you’ll have a chance to enjoy the water, do some beachcombing or maybe watch dolphin and orca glide in and out of the water. At Ocean Beach, you can beachcomb for miles to the north or poke around in the rock tide pools to the south.

However you spend your day, whether working up a blister on one of those long hikes, swimming and snoozing on the beach, or settling back in the pub with a few brews, remind yourself how glad you are you took the time to rent or buy a vehicle so you could spend a day in part of New Zealand the tour guide forgot to mention as the bus zipped past on the way to the Bay of Islands.

If you’re all worn out from all that hiking, swimming or snoozing and have a self-contained RV, there’s overnight parking at Whangarei Heads at Ocean Beach. You can also find a place to park the night at Parua Bay opposite the hotel or at Pataua South past the public toilet.

Next, we’ll be headed up the road to Tutukaka, but we’ll have to get back to Whangarei so we can get around the Parahaki Reserve.

Lyn Harris

RV in NZ: How to Spend Your Winters South in New Zealand

There's a Cheaper Way

Whangarei Falls

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Photo By:

Stephen Gould

We probaby picked one of the cheapest ways to travel New Zealand for an extended period. We bought our RV, traveled five months a year in New Zealand, freedom camping part of the time, then stored it on a kiwi farm for $16 per month and flew home to another summer in the states. If you don’t plan to return each year but want to spend several months poking around, really getting to meet the people and finding places off the tourist track, there are cheaper ways.


Hostels are scattered throughout New Zealand– and they are not cheap, smelly, out of the way accommodations for hitch-hiking hippies. Seven YHA Hostels are located north of Auckland. In a converted villa, Whangarei YHA, a ten minute walk to the center of town, overlooks Whangarei Harbour. There’s no age limit. Double and family rooms are available at most hostels and bed linen is supplied. Most have internet access, many have ensuite rooms (attached private bathrooms), some have facilities for people with mobility problems, and all have community kitchens and lounge area to relax or watch TV.


New Zealand hostels are busy from Christmas until about the third week of January when New Zealand schools are on their holiday break. Don’t show up without a reservation during that time. YHA New Zealand is part of the international YHA. Though privately owned, they adhere to the international standards of the YHA network. Rooms are available to YHA members and nonmembers– at an additional charge. If you join Hostelling International, Guest Cards can be purchased and are valid worldwide. Membership prices are inexpensive and can be purchased on the installment plan for about $4 per night. These cards also give you discounts on transportation and activities including a discount of 50% on Air New Zealand domestic flights if you fly standby. Room reservations can be made in advance and are recommended for Auckland, Wellington, and Christchurch. A free phone is available next to the information desk at the Auckland airport to check room vacancies and make transportation arrangements– that discount card covers the airport shuttle.


For another way to travel New Zealand ans spend less on a room, try a

BBH Hostel. Independently owned and operated, there are over 350 independently owned and operated BBH Hostels in New Zealand. These are smaller hostels with a variety of room sizes including ensuite. Bedding is available, but you’ll save if you bring your own. Like YHA hostels, there are no age requirements. With this unique system, you book and pay on arrival. As their purpose is to provide rooms at the lowest cost, they suggest you don’t "pre-book hundreds of dollars of transport, activities or accommodation before you arrive."

Our Whangarei Hostel

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Photo By:

minikin_hvh's

You’ll find 35 BBH Hostels in Northland alone– four in Whangarei. Independent ratings and rates are posted on BBH. You don’t have to be a member to stay, but they offer a membership card with savings on rooms and travel, free on-line registration, and a $20 pre-paid phone card to help you book ahead. Have questions? Check into their forum and chat with someone who’s used this unique New Zealand plan.


Hostels are an inexpensive way to travel in New Zealand and meet interesting people from all over the world.


Lyn Harris


RV in NZ: How to Spend Your Winters South in New Zealand

Whangarei

Whangarei Harbour

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Photo By:

imagesnzimages

Water, water, everywhere. You’ll soon find that out if you’re traveling New Zealand by RV or auto. We found so much water, I left one chapter to water adventures in my book RV in NZ: How to Spend Your Winters South in New Zealand. The Port of Whangarei is at the head of Whangarei Harbour, the Hatea River winds through town and empties into that harbour, and you’ll even find a nearby waterfall. But, you can manage to stay dry if you don’t step off the dock or get caught in a rain shower.






Located in a broad valley with hills to the east and west, Whangarei is the largest town in Northland. The Town Basin is home to many international yachts. Larger ships dock at the deep-water wharf. You’ll want to spend time around that Town Basin– I mentioned in the last post where to find free over night parking there if you have a self contained van.

Whangarei Town Basin

Yacht Harbour

Photo By:

whangareiviews

In the Town Basin you’ll find: Clapham’s Clock Museum, the largest collection of clocks, time pieces and music boxes in the Southern Hemisphere, and the Museum of Fishes– a place we wandered through several times since we always liked to hang out around the sailboats, visit the unusual shops, and have lunch in one of the cafes. On the water side, you’ll find the yacht club– not very fancy, but friendly. Hang around outside for a while, figure out who’s off one of the boats and not another tourist, strike up a conversation, and you’ll probably get invited to join a pot luck. Many of these sailors are holed up for hurricane season, waiting for a good weather window. You’ll find people from all over the world wandering that area– many serious sailors. It’s a 21 day trip from Tonga to even reach Opua in the Bay of Islands. If you see someone from a sailboat flying a foreign flag– that’s a serious sailor.

Everybody Do

the

Whangarei Walk

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Photo By:

simoRRR

There’s plenty to see besides sailboats around Whangarei. At AH Reed Kauri Park, you’ll find the remains of a kauri forest and a tree-top boardwalk in the 500 year old kauri trees. At Whangarei Museum and Heritage Park on Hwy 14 on the road to Dargaville, you’ll find artifacts of Maori and European history, an 1886 kauri homestead, a chapel, and the Native Bird Recovery Centre for injured birds. New Zealand attracts many migratory birds. Some, warn out from the long trip south, can’t make it home and end up permanent residents along with the local fantails and Tui birds. This is also your change to see one of those big brown kiwi birds in the Heritage Park. The Quarry, a collection of studios and workshops near the city center is open to visitors. It’s home to an intensive summer art school and welcomes artists worldwide.

If you’re a golfer, Whangarei has seven courses. Dave and I play the Whangarei Golf Club. You need to watch that overhanging tree on the 6th tee. It’s easy to tee off and end up with the ball fifty yards behind you. If you have a self-contained RV and don’t tear up their greens, ask if you can stay overnight. It’s pavement parking, but the facilities are great– nice hot showers. If you’re a golfer, many rural golf courses will let you stay over night if you ask. Occasionally, a caretaker lives nearby, but usually everybody goes home and you’ll have the course to yourself. Some courses provide RV electrical hookups. They do this as a courtesy, not to make money, so they’re not advertised. When we play golf, we ask permission to stay and have always been welcomed. The manager asks if we need the facilities open all night. The women’s facilities have fancy flowers, fancy towels and good smelling shampoo and bath products. The women’s facilities only. Dave says it’s always ‘Bring your own soap and no flowers’ on his side.

You can drive up Memorial Drive to Mount Parihaka Lookout and look down over Whangarei and the harbour. Each night the War Memorial on the summit is lit and can be seen from the town below.

Whangarei Falls, one of the most photographed waterfalls in New Zealand, is 5km out of town. We’ll be passing nearby on our next stop– Tutakaka.

Lyn Harris

RV in NZ: How to Spend Your Winters South in New Zealand

Bream Bay

Downwinder

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Photo By:

Social_Advances

More than a month ago, on our road trip up the New Zealand coast from Wellsford to Whangarei, we cut off on a loop past Mangawhai Heads. Then, I dropped you in the parking lot behind the hotel in Waipu while I wandered off talking about Kiwi motorsports and kauri forests. Just be glad Im not your travel agent. The folks at the hotel would have politely asked you to move on. Freedom campers are usually welcome for two or three days at the most.

Now, it’s time to pack up the barbie and your dirty clothes and head on up SH1 to Whangarei. Yes. I know you could have walked from Waipu to Whangarei in a month, but I’ll tell you anyway what you might have missed along the way.

Bream Bay stretches in an arc from Langs Beach, a little below Waipu, to Marsden Point at the entrance to Whangarei Harbor. This map shows you Bream Bay and where we’re headed. About an hour and a half north of Auckland, Bream Bay is popular for its sand and surf, diving and snorkeling, big game fishing, and kite sports– traction kiting. Kite ATBing (kite-mountain boarding) is similar to kitesurfing but you surf the land instead of the water. Even newbies to kite sports can enjoy a ride in the sea breeze. Equipment is determined by weight and experience. It might be a good idea to test your skills over the water before surfing the hard stuff.

Hard Case

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Photo By:

Social_Advances

The 2008 National Kite Championships were held in Ruakaka– a short distance up Bream Bay on our way to Whangarei. (Whangarei begins with the F sound for those of you who want to pretend you know something about the Maori language.) Photos and videos of the

2008 Championship might encourage you to take a dip in the surf. The 2009 National Kite Championships will be held February in Christchurch. At Ruakaka you can rent kiting equipment, explore the Ruakaka Wildlife Refuge in a kayak, rent dive or snorkeling equipment to check out the reefs or the nearby Hen and Chicken Islands, or try your luck at big game fishing. This whole area of New Zealand is sub-tropical. Dive and sportshops are spread from Kaitaia down the coast to Mangawhai. Find the area you’re interested in exploring and contact a local shop. These are usually small shops that offer personal services and you’ll get a fair price. It’s pretty hard to find a Kiwi who won’t give you an honest deal. Good dive locations are mainly on the east coast where you’ll find sheltered bays, sandy beaches, and many, many reefs and offshore islands. Wreck diving can be found up the coast. Two old warships are artificial reefs off the Tutukaka Coast and the Rainbow Warrior is in the Cavalli Islands.

We’ve been talking about offshore islands as we move north from Auckland. Just east of Bream Bay, about 12 kilometers off Bream Head, Hen and Chicken Islands are prime kingfish areas in the summer and a great spot for diving and underwater photography all year round. Named by Captain James Cook in 1769, they became a scenic reserve in 1908 and a wildlife refuge in 1953.

Stan Thorburn with Kingfish

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Photo By:

Beach & Boat

These warm sub-tropical waters are popular with big game fishing enthusiasts. Bream Bay Charters can help you plan a diving/snorkeling or fishing trip in Bream Bay. If you’re really after a bragging size fish and enjoy tournaments, Lion Red Beer and Carters sponsors Beach & Boat Fishing Competition the end of February/ early March each year in Ruakaka. Over 2000 anglers compete for prizes and trophies. Before the tournament, a snapper is caught and tagged. Catch this slippery devil during the tournament and win $100,000. If you enjoy big game fishing, plan to be in Ruakaka during this tournament. Information and pictures can be found on the Beach & Boat Competition site. Even if you don’t win the $100,000 prize, you’ll enjoy three days of fun. Just be sure to book a place to stay way ahead.

The Ruakaka Reserve Motor Camp is right on the beach and close to the tournament. A family oriented camp, it’s one of the largest camp sites in New Zealand with 180 RV sites and 111 tent sites. This is a popular motor camp that’s usually booked from Christmas to mid-January when the Kiwis vacation and also during the tournament. If you’re traveling by auto, five backpacker cabins are available in the motorcamp. There are also nearby motels.

Greg Whithan

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Photo By:

Beach & Boat

That short loop that jogs off Hw1 to the northeast at Ruakaka takes you to Marsden Point and One Tree Point at the neck of Whangarei Harbor. Both are good places to watch the yachts thread their way through the channel on their way into Whangarei Town Basin. One Tree point is a small community. At Marsden Point on the eastern side, the

New Zealand Oil Refinery’s Visitors Center is open most days. At the Visitors Center, you’ll find a 1/33 scale model of the refinery as well as models of their pipeline from Marsden Point to South Auckland. Admission is free.

If you’ve spent your day snorkeling, kiting, fishing, or sightseeing and you’re knackered, you’ll find motels and two good motorcamps in Whangarei. If you’re traveling in a self-contained campervan, you can park for the night at the Whangarei Town Basin near WOADS down past the wharf. Free parking is also available at Marsden Point in the Harbour Board carpark.

And we finally made it to Whangarei! A good place to eat, drink and spend money.

Lyn Harris

RV in NZ: How to Spend Your Winters South in New Zealand